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1
Prepare the pasta dough and chill it.
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2
Trim all the excess skin and fat from the duck legs.
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3
Heat 2 cups of the stock, and pour it over the dried porcini.
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4
Let soak for 1/2 hour or longer.
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5
When the mushrooms have softened, drain and squeeze them, reserving all the soaking liquid; chop the porcini into 1/2-inch pieces.
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6
Using the food processor, mince the onion, celery, garlic, and all the fresh herbs for 20 to 30 seconds, to a moist paste, or pestata.
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7
Set the big pan over medium-high heat, and film the bottom with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil.
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8
Lay all the duck legs in the pan, skin side down; sprinkle on 1/2 teaspoon salt, and sizzle for a couple of minutes, until the skin side is browned.
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9
Flip the legs over and continue cooking, adjusting the heat and moving the meat as needed, until nicely browned all over, then remove them to a bowl or platter.
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10
If you want to continue cooking with the duck fat, leave 4 tablespoons of it in the pan.
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11
Otherwise, pour it all out and use 4 tablespoons of olive oil instead.
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12
Return the saucepan to the heat, and scrape in all of the paste from the food-processor bowl.
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13
Stir it all over the hot pan, scraping up the browned bits, for 2 minutes or so, until it is nearly dry and toasting.
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14
Return all the duck legs to the pan, and tumble them in the hot pestata.
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15
Scatter in the chopped porcini, stir and toss with the legs, and cook for several minutes, until everything is sizzling.
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16
Pour in the wine, raise the heat, and turn and tumble the duck and seasonings until the wine has almost cooked away.
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17
Pour in the porcini-soaking liquid (leave any mushroom sediment in the container), and sprinkle another 1/2 teaspoon salt all over.
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18
Heat to a boil, turning the duck legs and stirring to amalgamate all the seasonings in the broth.
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19
Set the cover ajarleaving a crack for evaporationand cook at an actively bubbling simmer, turning the duck frequently.
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20
Add stock every 20 minutes or whenever needed, so the liquid level is about two-thirds of the way up the meat.
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21
After 1 1/2 hours or so, when the duck is quite tender and loose on the bone, turn off the heat, and let the legs cool completely in the covered pan.
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22
Remove the duck legs from the saucepan, and pull all the meat off the bones.
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23
Discard the bones and cartilage; tear the meat into good-sized shreds.
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24
Spoon fat from the sauce, and stir in the meat.
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25
If the sauce is dense, loosen it to a flowing consistency with more stock; heat to a bubbling simmer, and cook for another 15 minutes.
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26
Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
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27
Let the sauce cool again, or use some or all of it to dress the pappardelle now.
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28
To dress 1 pound of pappardelle, put half the sauce in a wide skillet (or the same pan you cooked it in, if you are using it right away); use all the sauce if cooking 2 pounds pappardelle.
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29
Have the sauce at a simmer when you drop the pasta into the cooking water.
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30
If it is concentrated, moisten it with stock or hot pasta water.
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31
Cook the pappardelle in at least 6 quarts of salted water (8 quarts or more for 2 pounds), at a rolling boil, just until al dente, about 2 or 3 minutes.
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32
With a spider, lift the strands from the pot, briefly drain, and lower them into the sauce.
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33
Toss the pappardelle over and over to dress them thoroughlyif the sauce is too thick, loosen it with spoonfuls of pasta-cooking water; if the sauce is soupy, cook rapidly, tossing the pasta, until it thickens.
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34
Turn off the heat, and toss the pasta with half of the grated cheese; drizzle over it a final flourish of olive oil.
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35
Serve from the skillet, or pile the pappardelle in a large warm serving bowl.
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36
Pass more cheese at the table.
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37
Put the flour in the bowl of the food processor and process for a few seconds to aerate.
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38
Mix the egg, egg yolks, and olive oil in a measuring cup or other spouted container.
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39
With the machine running, pour the liquids quickly through the feed tube on top of the flour.
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40
After 20 seconds, most of the dough should clump up on the blade.
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41
Process for another 15 seconds or sono more than 40 seconds total.
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42
(If the dough does not gather on the blade and process easily, it is too wet or too dry.
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43
Feel the dough, then work in either more flour or some ice water, in small amounts, using the machine or kneading by hand.)
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44
Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface and knead it by hand for a minute, until its smooth, soft, and stretchy.
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45
Press it into a disk, wrap well in plastic wrap, and let it rest at room temperature for 1/2 hour.
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46
To roll out the dough in a pasta machine, cut the pound of dough into four equal pieces.
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47
Work with one at a time, keeping the others covered.
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48
Run the first piece of dough through the rollers at the widest setting several times, to develop strength and smoothness.
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49
Repeat with all the pieces.
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50
Reset the machine to a narrower setting, and run the first piece through, extending it into a rectangular strip.
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51
Let the rollers move the dough, and catch it in your hand as it comes out.
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52
Roll it again, to stretch and widen it.
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53
Lightly flour and cover the strip, then stretch the other pieces.
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54
Roll and stretch all the pieces at progressively narrower settings, until they spread as wide as the rollers (usually about 5 inches) and stretch to 20 inches or longer.
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55
Cut the four long pasta strips in half crosswise, giving you eight sheets, each about a foot long and 5 inches wide.
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56
Lay these flat on the trays in layers, lightly floured, separated, and covered by towels.
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57
Lay out a rolled sheet on the floured board; dust the top with flour.
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58
Starting at one of the short ends, fold the sheet over on itself in thirds or quarters, creating a small rectangle with three or four layers of pasta.
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59
With a sharp knife, cut cleanly through the folded dough crosswise, in 2-inch-wide strips.
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60
Separate and unfold the strips, shaking them into long noodles.
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61
Sprinkle them liberally with flour so they dont stick together.
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62
Fold, cut, and unfurl all the rolled pasta sheets this way, and spread them out on a floured tray.
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63
Leave them uncovered, to air-dry at room temperature, until ready to cook.
