Ingredients:

4 cups 00 flour (or all purpose)

1 lb whole milk ricotta

1 egg

2 tsps salt

Directions:

Place flour on a clean working surface.

Make a well in the middle.

Place ricotta, egg and salt in well.

Using your clean fingers or a fork, carefully mix egg into ricotta.

Add a little flour at a time into the ricotta mix.

When all flour has been absorbed by the ricotta mix, begin kneading dough until smooth and elastic. 

Dough should not be sticky! If it is, add a little more flour.

Shape dough into a ball, cover with plastic film and rest for 30 minutes.

Cover a large cookie sheet with a clean cloth (or parchment paper) sprinkled with flour or fine semolina, if you have it.

You will use the cookie sheet to hold the cavatelli as you make them.

After the 30 minute waiting period, remove wrap from dough and cut it into 2” chunks. 

Keeping extra dough covered with film, roll one piece at a time into a little log.

Cut log into 1” long pieces.

Roll each piece into a little shell using your two finger tips (index and middle) while pressing into the dough and sliding forward.

Place cavatelli on prepared cookie sheet and sprinkle with a little flour to avoid sticking. Do not overcrowd!

When finished, boil water to cook cavatelli.

Place a large colander in the sink.

Before placing cavatelli in the hot water, carefully pick the cloth off the cookie sheet where they were resting and gently let cavatelli fall into the colander. 

Carefully shake colander to allow extra flour to fall off (and not end up in the water making it as thick as gravy).

Freshly made cavatelli will cook quickly. 

Try one 5 minutes after water comes back to a boil.

They should be Al dente.

Drain well.

Add your favorite sauce to the cavatelli.

Serve hot with extra sauce and grated cheese. 

Makes 2 lbs pasta.