Spinach Mezzelunes with Masa Chicken

May the Fourth be with you.

I wanted to make a filled pasta, and I knew what shape I wanted to make it, but I couldn't remember what it was called.  Without the internet, it would have taken me days to figure it out.  Instead, Wikipedia has a page devoted to most shapes of pasta.  Scroll down to the "filled" category, and what I had in mind was number twelve.  The link gets properly detailed.  I remember when research like that would require a trip to the library and flipping through several encyclopedia volumes.  Less than a minute later, I was ready to go.

The site gave me the idea of making the dough with part buckwheat flour.  It's my original pasta dough recipe for rolling by hand, just subbing half of the flour with buckwheat.  I'm filling them with spinach (actually beet greens, but they taste the same) and the last of the shredded mozzarella I didn't put on last week's pizzas.  The mezzelune description specifies light sauces, but I had a jar of free marinara.  I also wanted to do a presentation I saw on The Chew where you place items on top of the sauce instead of tossing them in it, and needed a contrasting color.  I thought it looked cool.

To make this a balanced meal, I decided to coat and pan-fry some chicken alongside the other half of the head of cauliflower from the farroto.  I used a breading similar to the one in The Chew link, but with matzoh cake meal instead of the rice flour.  Corn flour is the same thing as masa harina, for those who have trouble finding it.  The result is pretty much the same, but it's no longer gluten-free.  There's white flour in the mezzelune dough, so that clearly was not my goal.

1 batch pasta dough (sub half buckwheat flour if desired)
more a.p. flour for rolling
*1/4 lb raw spinach or 1/2 C chopped frozen and thawed
*1/2 C shredded mozzarella cheese
*1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tb butter
*1/4 C matzoh cake meal (or a.p. flour)
*1/4 C masa harina
*1/4 C grated parmesan, plus more for garnish
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 lb chicken tenders or boneless/skinless chicken cut in strips
*1/2 cauliflower, cut into florets
1/4 C olive oil
2 C marinara or pomodoro sauce

1.  Cut spinach into a thin chiffonnade.  Place in a microwaveable bowl with the minced garlic and butter.  Cover and microwave until wilted, about 1-1/2 minutes.  Allow to cool, then drain off liquid.  You can even press out more.  Stir in mozzarella to make the pasta filling.  If using frozen spinach, warm with garlic and butter for flavor, drain, and stir in cheese once cooled.

2.  Dust a work surface with flour and roll out the pasta dough to 1/16" thick.  It's going to shrink back a bit, so make sure it has done so before cutting it.  Cut rounds with a 2-1/2" biscuit cutter.  I got 3-1/2 dozen pieces out of it and wished halfway through I'd used a bigger cutter, but that's the size they're supposed to be.  Re-roll scraps until the dough is used up.  The dough starts so soft that it doesn't really get tough after three rollings.  You just don't have to add much flour after the first roll.

3.  Onto each circle, spoon about 1 tsp of filling.  Fold over to make "half moons" and pinch shut.  Set on a lightly floured surface until ready to use.  Any leftover filling can be added to the marinara.  These can be done early in the day and refrigerated.

4.  Start boiling a large pot of lightly salted water, at least half a gallon.  This is going to take a while, so let's make the chicken and cauliflower.

5.  In a shallow dish, combine matzoh meal, masa harina, parmesan, salt, pepper, and oregano.  In a large, deep skillet heat oil over medium-high.  Moisten chicken strips and dredge all sides in the coating.  Place in the skillet and fry until edges are crispy and the meat is cooked halfway through, about 5 minutes.  Flip and do the other side, which should take less time.  You need to pull the pieces out the second the center is done.  Tenders go from cooked to tough very quickly.  If there's room in the pan, start frying the cauliflower.  If not, it can wait until the chicken's done.  The water isn't boiling yet.  When the chicken is cooked through and the outside is crispy, set it aside and keep warm.

6.  If you have any chicken dredge left, go ahead and coat the cauliflower with it.  Everything tastes better Parmed.  Add more oil to the pan if necessary, then fry the florets until golden.  Don't let them get soft.  Keep them warm with the chicken.

7.  Hopefully, your water is boiling by now.  Place the mezzelunes in the boiling pot and cook until the pasta is done, about 4 minutes.  They sink at first and float when done.  Fresh pasta cooks much faster than the boxed stuff.  Drain.

8.  Warm the sauce.  I vote for the microwave at this point.  Spoon half a cup into the bottom of a curved plate or individual pasta bowl.  Arrange chicken, pasta, and cauliflower so they're not drowned in the sauce and serve, topped with a sprinkling of more parmesan.

Difficulty rating  :-0
(Kind of a lot of elements)