I had a draft of a fried tortellini recipe for a year. Tried, approved by the family jury, and archived. My kids liked them, I… not so much. That’s why I drafted the recipe and then procrastinated. And today I’m very happy I didn’t write that recipe, because these crispy cappelletti gratinated in the air fryer are a thousand times better! 😀
Maybe it’s because I don’t have a knack for frying.
Or maybe it’s because since I’ve had the air fryer, even if it’s small and surely basic in its performance, I’m so satisfied with the results I get that I don’t feel (at least for now) the need to commit to frying better than the minimal skills I possess.
On the contrary, I’m having a blast experimenting with the air fryer.
Among all the tests I’ve done so far with the air fryer, these crispy cappelletti definitely take first place.
They turned out great, perfectly crunchy, visually appealing, and make a great impression as finger food and as an appetizer idea. And you wouldn’t believe it’s a leftover recipe!
In short, recycling Christmas leftovers can also be a way to experiment with new ideas and give a modern touch (come on, sometimes you can) to traditional foods.
Do you agree? I hope so because I really recommend trying this recipe!
And if you do, please don’t forget to prepare the cheese dipping sauce because it’s the ideal complement to these, and hopefully your, crispy cappelletti! 😋
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👇 Below are three more air fryer recipes + another idea for recycling cappelletti:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Inexpensive
- Preparation time: 3 Minutes
- Portions: 20-30 cappelletti or tortellini
- Cooking methods: Air frying
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
With my small air fryer I “fried” 21 cappelletti (but arranging them closer together I think I could have reached 30).
Since it’s a leftover recipe (but also because many air fryer models are more spacious) I’m not listing the weights of the ingredients, which are still intuitive from the instructions.
- cooked cappelletti (or tortellini)
- cornmeal
- extra virgin olive oil
- milk
- flour
- butter
- Parmesan (or other grated cheese)
Tools
- Air Fryer Ariete Airy Fryer Mini
- Tray or cutting board
- Skewers for finger food
Steps
Premise: the cappelletti in this recipe are our homemade Christmas ones (
sooner or later I’ll write the recipe) (here it is here! 😉). I recommend, if you can’t make them at home, to still use good quality cappelletti (or tortellini), preferably fresh pasta.
Roll the cappelletti in cornmeal.
It’s best if the cappelletti are slightly damp so the cornmeal sticks better.
Moisten the flour with a little oil.
Gently turn the cappelletti to coat them evenly.
Place the breaded cappelletti in the air fryer basket (on the grid) without overlapping them.
Set the air fryer to 400°F for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, turn all the cappelletti and start the appliance again for 2-3 minutes to complete cooking on the underside (i.e., the part of the cappelletti that was in contact with the grid).
Note: I don’t know if this need to turn foods to complete cooking is a characteristic of all basket air fryers or if it’s typical only of mine, but I know that some air fryer models come with a drum basket (rotating) that surely resolves this step. In any case, as with all appliances, and given the many different models of air fryers out there, it’s useful to adjust cooking times and methods to your own device.
The result, I say it because it’s really true, surprised me. 😀 These crispy cappelletti turned out great and proved to be a real treat, one leads to another like every respectable snack!
They are excellent hot, served right after cooking. But they are also delicious at room temperature.
Tasty eaten alone, naturally, and super-delicious when dipped in cheese sauce (hot or warm).
Perfect for an appetizer, a buffet, or a standing dinner. Or simply as a treat, to give a second chance to the cappelletti in broth, or tortellini, leftover from Christmas, New Year, Easter, or even just a Sunday lunch.
It’s a very simple sauce, just prepare a classic béchamel and add grated Parmesan (or other grated cheese of choice).
For the quantities, consider that with 3.4 oz of milk, 0.35 oz of flour, 0.35 oz of butter (or oil), and 1 oz of Parmesan, you get two small bowls of sauce like the one in the photos of this article (and it’s enough for about 40 cappelletti).
If necessary, multiply the quantities as needed.Preparing béchamel is very simple: melt the butter in a small pot, add the flour, and cook over very low heat, stirring until the roux takes on an amber color, pour a little milk at a time, mixing well before adding more.
When the béchamel is ready, add the grated Parmesan, stir, and here is the sauce to dip the crispy cappelletti in.
For more details, you can find the full recipe –> here (Parmesan Sauce Recipe)
If you want to try making béchamel in the microwave, here are my three recipes, the classic and two in the microwave:
– with butter –> Microwave Béchamel
– and light –> Light Microwave Béchamel
– classic –> Classic Béchamel
Salt-Free Tips
For those who don’t know, I cook without salt, all the recipes on this blog are without added salt, and all conclude with some of my tips for seasoning without salt.
Today’s tips are:
1) If you cannot consume salt and want to make cappelletti or tortellini without salt, I recommend cappelletti over the two. Indeed, unlike tortellini, Romagna cappelletti (those from my region 😀) do not contain either ham or mortadella.
2) For the Parmesan sauce, you can make the sauce less salty by reducing the amount of Parmesan, possibly preferring a shorter aging. Consider also the possibility of using simple béchamel, which made at home (and possibly without salt) is equally an excellent accompaniment sauce.
If you’re interested in reducing or eliminating salt, always remember to:
● Reduce salt gradually, the palate needs to adjust slowly and shouldn’t notice the progressive reduction.
● Use spices. Chili, pepper, curry, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, cumin…
● Use aromatic herbs. Basil, parsley, oregano, thyme, sage, marjoram, rosemary, mint…
● Use seeds. Sesame, pine nuts, almonds, walnuts…
● Use spicy vegetables or fruits. Garlic, onion, lemon, orange…
● Use my salt-free vegetable granules
● Prefer fresh foods.
● Avoid water cooking, prefer cooking methods that do not disperse flavors (grill, foil, steam, microwave)
● Avoid bringing the salt shaker to the table!
● Occasionally allow yourself a treat. It’s good for your mood and helps perseverance.
If you don’t want, or can’t, give up salt:
● You can still try my recipes, salting according to your habits. 🙂
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