The term “fregnacce” is usually used to refer to nonsense, but not in this case, as it is an excellent first course consisting of sheets of pasta stuffed with meat and sausage. There are various versions, the classic ones with spicy tomato sauce, white with asparagus… we have chosen the most classic of the Abruzzo versions.
Ingredients for “Fregnacce”
- 300 g durum wheat flour
- 4 eggs (3 for the dough, 1 for the sauce)
- 1 onion
- extra virgin olive oil to taste
- 3 sausages
- 200 g ground beef
- 600 g tomato sauce
- ½ chili pepper
- 100 g grated pecorino cheese
Preparation of “Fregnacce”
Sift 300 g of durum wheat flour onto a pastry board and knead it with 3 eggs for about 10 minutes until the dough is smooth and compact. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes, then roll out into a thin sheet and cut into squares of about 18 cm per side. Chop 1 onion and brown it in oil in a saucepan. Crumble 3 sausages into the pan and add 200 g of ground beef.
Mix well and sauté for 10 minutes. Add 600 g of tomato purée and half a chilli pepper and cook for 40 minutes. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil with 2 tablespoons of oil and add the pasta, 3 squares at a time. Drain the squares with a slotted spoon and place them on a damp tea towel. Take half of the meat sauce, pour it into a bowl, let it cool, then add 1 egg, 100 g of grated pecorino cheese and mix well until the mixture is thick.
Spread a tablespoon of the mixture on each square of pasta and fold it into quarters. Grease some single-portion baking dishes with the rest of the oil, arrange the fregnacce in them, sprinkle with the remaining sauce and bake at 180°C for 15 minutes. Leave to rest in the oven for 5 minutes before serving. Mouth-watering!
