The cotechino in puff pastry with spinach and ricotta is a rich and tasty main course. A recipe that is ideal for preparation especially during the Christmas holidays, but also on special occasions or when you want a substantial special dish. A golden crust of puff pastry, ready-made, but you can also make it at home, that wraps a filling of ricotta, spinach, and cotechino, in this case, I chose fresh.
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 2 Hours 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4 servings
- Cooking methods: Stovetop, Oven
- Cuisine: Gastronomy
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
Ingredients
- 1 cotechino (fresh)
- 10.5 oz spinach, frozen
- 1 cup cow's milk ricotta
- 1 sheet puff pastry (rectangular)
- 1 egg yolk
- to taste nutmeg
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- to taste fine salt
- to taste black pepper
Tools
- Kitchen Scale
- Pot
- Pan
- Fork
- Colander
- Bowl
- Baking Sheet
- Small Bowl
- Lid
- Brush
- Spatula
- Wooden Spoon
Steps
To prepare the cotechino in puff pastry with spinach and ricotta…
In a rather large pot filled with cold water, immerse the fresh cotechino (I also made a few holes in the casing with the tip of a knife) and bring it to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, lower the heat to almost a minimum, cover it with a lid, and cook for 2 hours.
While the cotechino cooks, in another pot with cold water, add the still frozen spinach and cook for 10 minutes after returning to a boil.
When the spinach is cooked, drain it very well and place it in a pan with extra virgin olive oil and let the excess water evaporate until fully dry.
Let the spinach cool by transferring it to a bowl, and once cooled, add the ricotta, nutmeg, salt, and pepper, then mix the filling well.
After the cotechino’s cooking time, remove it from the pot and while still warm, cut and remove the casing with a knife.
Take the puff pastry sheet, unroll it and spread the spinach and ricotta filling over the surface of the pastry using the spatula, leaving 1 or 2 cm of the edges free.
Place the cotechino on the short side of the puff pastry sheet and use the baking paper to help roll it up. If there’s too much excess pastry, you can trim it and use it for decorations. Seal the edges well with your fingers or the tines of a fork.
In a small bowl, place the egg yolk and brush it over the surface of the puff pastry.
Finally, bake the cotechino in puff pastry with spinach and ricotta in a preheated oven at 356°F (180°C) and cook in static mode for 25/30 minutes until golden.
Once cooked, serve it hot just as it is or with your preferred side dish.
Advice
For the recipe, I used fresh cotechino, however, if you don’t have much time or don’t have this type of cotechino available, you can opt for pre-cooked vacuum-sealed cotechino, following the cooking instructions on the package.
