From 'Chicken Feed' to Culinary Hit: Sweet Corn Pasta Graces Beverly Hills Dining

Chef Edoardo “Edo” Baldi has turned a dish initially dismissed as “chicken food” into a celebrated pasta creation now served at Baldi, a new restaurant that opened in February at the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills. The dish, sweet corn tortellini, represents a nearly 30-year evolution of a pasta concept that faced early paternal skepticism.

Baldi’s father, Giorgio Baldi, founder of the eponymous Santa Monica restaurant, questioned his son’s decision to incorporate corn into an Italian pasta dish. "You give corn to chickens," Edo recalled his father telling him. Despite this initial doubt, Edo was inspired to create the dish after tasting a sweet corn soup. He began experimenting with how to translate the corn's natural sweetness and rich flavor into an Italian culinary context.

The elder Baldi's reservations did not deter Edo, who developed sweet corn agnolotti and added it to the menus of both his father's restaurant, Giorgio Baldi, and his own establishment, e. baldi. The dish proved to be an immediate success, with Edo describing the response as “an explosion” on its opening night.

At the new Baldi restaurant, the sweet corn pasta has been reimagined as tortellini. This iteration features a filling of sweet corn purée blended with mascarpone, ricotta, and Parmigiano cheese. Each tortellino is hand-shaped and then cooked, finished with butter, Parmigiano, and white truffle olive oil. The design of the tortellini is intended to enhance its ability to hold the filling and sauce, thereby preserving the flavors that contributed to the original dish’s popularity.

The success of the sweet corn pasta marked a significant moment for Edo's culinary journey and his relationship with his father. Giorgio Baldi, witnessing the dish's popularity, encouraged his son to continue his innovative approach to cooking, with Edo noting, "In a sweet way, I got approval from my dad."