It’s been a minute, friends. But here we are at the end of Italian month(s) and if you thought the cooking has slowed down, well you’d be wrong.
I’ve been cooking with excitement and fury, trying to get it all in before the end of the year. Only to realize, I have 9 recipes to share, and well, zero blog posts to show for it.
Rather than give you the dog and pony of why my life has gotten in the way of blogging, I’ll just say that I still have insane energy and love going into this blog. But it will change in the new year.
Because all good things evolve. More on that later.
For now, I want to talk about anger and disappointment :0)
But only in the context of ravioli.
I tried to make my own ravioli last year and it ended up with me on the kitchen floor crying with ricotta and flour in my hair. Anger and disappointment happen sometimes in the kitchen, especially on projects that require hours of dedication that sadly, do not turn out as you expected.
Ravioli is one of those projects and I’m going to tell you to make it anyway.
I wound up putting the fucked up ravioli on a pizza I think…
BUT please buy or borrow a pasta sheet maker. My major fail last year came from trying to roll my own pasta dough. If you can do it, bless you.
But us mere mortals will require special pasta making tools.
The good news is that a pasta machine (KitchenAid attachment or standalone) are stupid simple to use and you cannot mess it up. So this time, ravioli is fun to make, not angry and disappointing.
A few things I learned:
Our goal is to roll the sheets of pasta thin enough so the ravioli shell is delicate, yet substantial enough to keep some bite and not fall apart when it hits the hot water.
For whatever reason, I prefer vegetarian ravioli with a decadent sauce. Which means, Ravioli in Butter Leek Sauce.
I stuffed these ravoli beauties with ricotta, parmesan, onion and mushrooms and bathed them in a butter leek sauce. But you could use any filling you like with any sauce you like.
Also, these ravioli freeze like a dream.
I’ll stop talking so we can get to the good stuff.
I used this pasta dough recipe from Gimme Some Oven.
Ravioli in Butter Leek Sauce
(start making 90 minutes before you want Ravioli in Butter Leek Sauce)
Start by making your pasta dough. Add all ingredients to a standing mixer and mix for 6-8 minutes with a dough attachment. OR mix everything together with a wooden spoon then knead with your hands for 10 minutes. You want the dough smooth and elastic.
Wrap in plastic and let sit in the fridge for 30 minutes to 1 day.
Then, start your filling. Cook your onion over medium heat with 1 Tbsp of oil. You want these slightly caramelized, which will take about 15 minutes. Then remove them from the pan, heat up another Tbsp of oil and turn the heat up high. Add your mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes until browned. Add the mushrooms and onions to the cheeses and mix to combine. Add salt/pepper to taste. Let cool before filling.
When your dough and filling is ready, take small tennis ball sized pieces of dough and work it through your pasta maker. Use more flour than you think you need (you don’t want it to stick!) Work through all the numbers on your pasta roller and go up to number 5.
This is a great step-by-step post if you like pictures.
Once your sheets are done, use a ravioli mold (like mine) or use the method where you use a pasta cutter to form the ravioli squares. Again, use that link above if you like pictures. Don’t make the mistake of over-filling and really make sure your edges are sealed.
As your pasta water heats up, start your sauce. Get a sauce pan large enough to hold the ravioli once it’s done cooking. Heat up the butter and then add your leeks. Let cook down for 5-7 minutes. You want them soft. Then add your minced garlic. Season with salt and red pepper flakes.
Add the white wine and let cook.
Your ravioli only needs THREE MINUTES in the boiling water. After three minutes, transfer 1/2 cup pasta water and your ravioli to your sauce pan. Let cook for another 1-2 minutes in the sauce. Serve with more Parmesan and chives.
Danielle
