Smeraldini

We are in Emilia-Romagna, a land famous for fresh pasta, both stuffed and not. Tortellini, lasagne, tagliatelle, tortelloni, cappelletti—the list goes on and on. There is an abundance of choices, and any food lover will find their favorite dish here.

However, among all these specialties that have crossed borders, establishing Italy as the undisputed homeland of pasta, there is one lesser-known (unjustly so) that is no less deserving of attention than the more famous recipes. We are talking about the Smeraldini. We might think of them as the lesser-known cousins of tortellini, with which they share the famous “Venus' navel” shape, but they are slightly larger, have a more flavorful filling, and green pasta (from which they get their name, as they are green like emeralds).

This dish brings back fond childhood memories for our Cesarina Cristina from Bologna.

“I grew up watching my grandmother in the kitchen. I remember standing on a chair to see better what she was making: traditional dishes, but sometimes with unique twists. She was originally from a village in the Modenese Apennines, so every now and then, to introduce us to new flavors, instead of the classic Bolognese tortellini in broth, she would make slightly larger tortellini with a more flavorful filling, dressed with a Parmesan cream—perfect for warmer weather. A few years ago, I was talking with a dear friend and discovered that her grandmother had a similar recipe, where the tortellini dough was green: they called them Smeraldini. Since then, I’ve prepared my grandmother’s summer tortellini recipe using green dough, which suits the name”.

If you want to try this recipe and surprise your guests or family with a lesser-known dish, here is the Smeraldini recipe from Cesarina Cristina.