Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Mushroom Ravioli

First of all, I am NEVER making pasta again without a pasta maker--well at least not ravioli.

Since I have settled that, I can tell you about my horrible experience trying to make ravioli (without a pasta maker or a rolling pin). I decided to make it after browsing through my new Food & Wine cookbook and becoming hungry just by looking at the photographs. The recipe seemed easy. It was not.


Anyways, given that I am going back to my old blogging ways (posting more often than not), here is my first recipe of the semester: mushroom ravioli.

If you have a lot of dedication--and plenty of time on your hands--try this; if not, wait until you purchase a pasta maker and then do it. Even though I became discouraged during the process, in the end these turned out better than I expected.


Ravioli (adapted from Food & Wine)

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 tablespoon semolina flour + more for dusting
  • 3 large eggs (make sure they are large)
  • 1-1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • Filling (I used sauteed mushrooms)
  1. In a food processor, pulse all-purpose flour with salt and semolina flour. Add eggs and pulse until just incorporated, careful not to overdo.
  2. With the machine on, add olive oil in a thin stream and process until moistened crumbs form. Turn onto semolina-dusted surface and knead dough just until smooth. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
  3. Cut dough into 4 equal pieces and wrap in plastic. Working with one piece at a time, flatten using a rolling pin (or wine bottle in  my case) until dough is thin enough to see the outline of your hand through it. Dust with more semolina if necessary, but careful not to add too much since it will dry the dough.
  4. Cut strips of dough 8 inches wide. Place filling 1/2 inch from edge, placing more filling every other inch. Fold dough over filling and cut ravioli, leaving a 1/2 inch edge. Using a fork, press dough together around filling to seal. Place ravioli on a semolina-dusted baking sheet until finished with remaining dough.
  5. In a large pot, boil water with a pinch of salt. Cook half the ravioli over high heat until al dente, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, carefully transfer ravioli to platter (or pan if working with sauce). Repeat with remaining ravioli and serve right away. Uncooked ravioli can be frozen for up to 1 month (freeze first on baking sheet and transfer to plastic bag).




For a quick sauce: dice tomatoes and sauté in pan over medium heat. Add ravioli when tomatoes are cooked and stir for a couple of minutes. Sprinkle ravioli with mozzarella cheese and serve immediately.

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