Cappelletti are very similar to Tortellini, except Cappelletti are made starting with squares of pasta rather than circles, and have different-flavoured meat stuffings. The squares are folded in half to make a triangle, then the two ends of the triangle are joined together to make a turned-up peak. They can be filled with meat or cheese.
They are a Christmas holiday food, normally served in a broth.
Tortellini are made in Bologna; Cappelletti are made in Emilia-Romagna. In some areas, they are made round instead of triangular.
Substitutes
Tortellini
Literature & Lore
“Cappello” in Italian means “hat”; “cappelletto” is a little hat. “Cappelletti” is the plural, meaning “little hats”. Note: both “hat” and the pasta in Italian are spelled “Cappell”, with two p’s. It is a common mistake to mix the word for hat, “cappello”, with the Italian word for “hair”, which is “capello”, with just one p.