Caramelle, Butter & Poppy Seed

One of my favorite pasta dishes

WHAT IS CARAMELLE?

Caramelle means candy in Italian. It’s a stuffed pasta shaped like a little wrapper pinched on both ends, soft in the middle. Looks sweet. Tastes even better.

It doesn’t belong to any one region. You’ll see versions of it in northern and central Italy, usually filled with ricotta, greens, or something rich from the night before— the usual suspects. It’s the kind of shape that feels homemade.

Caramelle was the first pasta shape I fought to put on the menu—and somehow, my chef said yes. I’d make extra dough at work, lug it home, and sit there late into the night, folding those little parcels by hand. They were ugly at first. Clumsy. Like a kid learning to crawl. There was no master pasta chef guiding me, no secret handed down in whispers. Just me being way too stubborn and naively putting hours into failing.

Caramelle practice 2019 — 1am after working the line at Restaurant Progress in PHX

We ended up throwing it on the menu. The chef picked the sauce and filling, but that moment? It was mine. Finally, someone said yes to my stubborn little pasta. I was so proud I called my mom right after. She didn’t know what Caramelle was—not a clue—but hearing her happiness over the phone? That was everything. In the end, it’s never really about the pasta or the sauce—it’s about those quiet victories that fill your soul. The kind of moments that remind you why you keep going.

When the COVID lockdown hit in 2020, I lost my job at the restaurant I worked at. We shut down. No warning. No work. Bills kept coming, and my new apartment rent felt like a punch in the gut. So I started selling pasta out of my apartment.

Caramelle was the shape I made the most. I spent hours staring down at a wooden butcher block, my hands folding and shaping the dough like it was second nature—like riding a bike. There’s something about those folds—imperfect, alive—that hold a lot of heart. That pasta carried me through some of the hardest times in my career. It’s got soul.

In short

Bites of this remind you why life is worth living. True simplicity with ingredients you might already have lying around at home. This sauce is too easy and honestly making the pasta is the hardest part of this session. The fresh pasta, Caramelle is shaped-like-candy is bursting with nice tunnels of lemon ricotta. It’s special. The butter and poppy seeds dance so well together — they provide a nicely balanced pasta sauce with a slight crunch.

“Pasta al Burro” — Pasta with Butter

This could be considered Pasta al Burro but we add some unusual suspects to make it something a little different. Shallots, White wine & poppy seed.

Yes, poppy seed. It works I promise you.

It even got me laid once!

Fillings

• Lemon Ricotta

For this set you see in the photo I used a lemon ricotta filling for the Caramelle. It is made very simply— just ricotta, grated pecorino, lemon juice and lemon zest mixed until it tastes bright.

Other fillings to use with this Sauce

• Cacio e Pepe (Ricotta, Black Pepper)

• Chestnut, Mushroom & Pork

• Potato, Leek, & Parm

• Kabocha Squash & Ricotta

Simple is always best with pasta, don’t over think it and don’t try to do too much!

COMING SOON— CARAMELLE PASTA CLASS

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