Dough
3/4 lb. flour
2 eggs
1 oz. butter
1/2 pint warm water, or slightly less
Pinch of salt

Cheese Filling
5 oz grated Parmesan
5 oz grated Gruyere
1/2 pint milk
2 eggs
Pepper
Salt
A pinch of nutmeg
Pinch (fairly generous) of thyme

Cream cheese filling
1 lb. cottage cheese
4 ozs. grated freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
1 whole egg
1 egg yolk
One pinch of nutmeg
Black pepper, salt


Tossing sauce of one's preference
Either tomato sauce, broth, or butter and grated Parmesan

"Sift flour and salt together. Place on a board and make a well into which break the eggs. When you have kneaded them into the flour, add the softened butter, and gradually sufficient luck warm water to make a dough. Knead until smooth and easy to handle; cover and allow to stand for ten to fifteen minutes before dividing into two portions and rolling very thin on a lightly floured board, remembering to flour the pasta lightly between each of its several rollings.... But when your pasta has been rolled as thin as possible (remember, thin enough for you to be able to read the newspaper ? or at least the headlines ? through it), instead of rolling it into a roll as you have done when making tagliatelle, keep it in two large, flat sheets, or, supposing your pastry board is on the small size, a greater number of small sheets of thin pasta. As each sheet is rolled to the desired thinness, spread it on a clean cloth, and keep it covered with another cloth, so as to prevent its going crusty and becoming too breakable to handle. When your pasta is made and the filling you intend using is prepared, spread a sheet of the paste on to a floured pastry board, and dot with the filling at regular intervals, say a teaspoonful of filling at intervals of about 1 1/2 to 2 inches. Cover lightly with the second sheet of pasta, after having brushed the 'walks' between the lines of filling with beaten egg to ensure that the second sheet of paste will close down over the filling. You may then either use a small round cutter, or, less tastefully, run a pastry wheel between the fillings so that you have a series of little filled envelopes of pasta. Transfer these to a floured dish, being careful not to let them overlap, and cover with a floured cloth or paper until you are ready to cook them. These can be made overnight if wished. To cook, have ready a large pan of boiling salted water and transfer your envelopes of pasta one at a time, until all are in the water, allowing them to cook for four or five minutes or until they rise to the top of the pan. Remove them one at a time with a perforated spoon or slice, place in a heated dish, and serve with a generous helping of melted butter and grated Parmesan, or with any preferred sauce. These little filled envelopes are equally delicious served in a clear consomme, as one more form of pasta in brodo."

This recipe was taken from "Italian Cooking" by Dorothy Daly. It was published by Spring Books in Great Britain. For the complete copyright-free cookbook see www.archive.org.... P.S. What's truly amazing about Dorothy Daly is that she manages to capture Italian cuisine so well and so lovingly. She not only provides exact proportions for the ingredients needed, she also provides detailed instructions on how to make the recipes. She obviously spent a lot of time in the company of good Italian cooks who showed her how they prepared their dishes. How many other cookbook authors would bother to tell their readers to spread a clean cloth over their pasta to prevent it from going crusty? That's an excellent tip that the author could only have picked up from working alongside those in the know. Sadly, as there is no information -- not a single word! -- on this author (At least not on the world-wide web) it's impossible to say where and with whom she studied the art of Italian cooking. Photo and notes: Mary Melfi.

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