This meal began as an excuse to learn how to make fresh pasta but ended with a lesson on NOT what to do when making ravioli. I intended to make two batches of ravioli, one filled with butternut squash and one with a classic ricotta. The squash, however, was apparently too wet and it made the pasta a gooey mess. But the cheese ones were perfect.
Aside from the disastrous events surrounding my squash, the experience of making fresh pasta was (at the risk of my sounding nerdy) pretty fun. Rolling out the dough and filling it was tiring, taking me over an hour to do so, but it was cool to take a ball of dough and end up with over 50 ravioli.
In addition to my ravioli, I made a brown butter sauce with sage to go on the pasta, which was delicious, and a side salad with a simple vinaigrette. Overall, this meal was pretty good and I am very proud of making the pasta from scratch, even though it didn't turn out exactly as I had planned.
Recipe:
Fresh Egg Pasta
1 cup plus 2 tbsp Tipo "00" flour
7 tbsp all-purpose flour
9 egg yolks
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp water
1.) In a stand mixer, combine the flours and on medium speed slowly add the egg yolks a few at a time. Then add the oil and water, letting each fully combine before adding the next ingredient. Mix just until the dough comes together, 2-3 minutes.
2.) Turn the dough onto a lightly flour surface and knead until it becomes silky and smooth, about 5 minutes. The dough is ready if you stretch it with your hands and it gently pulls back into place. Cover dough and set aside. (Make filling while the dough is resting for 30 minutes).
3.) Cut the dough into four equal pieces. Shape a piece into a oval shape wide enough to fit the width of your pasta roller. Lightly flour your work surface and set your roller to its widest setting. Lightly flour an oval of dough and pass it through the roller. Pass through the widest setting again, dusting with flour gain if it feels sticky. Repeat the process of rolling twice through each setting until you reach a 5 or 6 on your roller. *For ravioli, you should be able to read text through the sheet of dough at the proper thickness.
4.) Make sure your work surface is still floured to ensure that the pasta won't stick as you're filling. Take about a teaspoon of filling and place it on the lower half of the sheet, about 1 inch from the bottom edge. Repeat the entire length of the sheet (cut the sheet if it is too long and do this in turns), making sure to leave about 1.5-2 inches of clearance between the dollops of filling. Lightly brush the perimeter of each filling pile with water to aid in sealing the pasta. Then take the upper half of the dough sheet and fold it over the filling dollops, using dry fingers to press the dough around each pile, making sure to press out any bubbles. When the pasta is properly sealed, take a rolling pasta cutter to cut the ravioli apart, making sure to leave about a half an inch of clearance around each filling. Take the batch of ravioli and place on a thoroughly floured baking sheet, cover with plastic and repeat on the other 3 balls of dough.
5.) Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil and add up to 10 ravioli at a time, cooking for about 3-4 minutes. Quickly drain, sauce and serve.
Butternut Squash Filling (make sure that it isn't too wet before putting into ravioli, maybe add bread crumbs or something similar if it is too wet.)
2 cups cooked butternut squash
2 eggs
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp sugar to taste
1/2 cup freshly grate parmesan
1 recipe Fresh Egg pasta
1.)Puree squash. Combine in a bowl with the egg, nutmeg and salt and pepper. Taste: if the mixture isn't sweet add the sugar. Stir in the parmesan and taste again, adding any seasoning you like to taste.
2.) Fill pasta
Ricotta Filling
1 egg
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 1/2 cups ricotta, drained
1 tsp minced garlic
a small grating of nutmeg
1 cup freshly grated parmesan
Salt and pepper
1 recipe Fresh Egg pasta
1.) Combine egg, breadcrumbs, ricotta, garlic, nutmeg and a little water in a bowl and mix well. Refrigerate.
2.) Fill pasta
Brown Butter Sauce
1 stick butter
1 tbsp chopped sage
1.) Put butter in a small sauce pan over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Once the butter stops foaming and is a nut brown add the sage. Take off heat and pour over pasta.
In addition to my ravioli, I made a brown butter sauce with sage to go on the pasta, which was delicious, and a side salad with a simple vinaigrette. Overall, this meal was pretty good and I am very proud of making the pasta from scratch, even though it didn't turn out exactly as I had planned.Recipe:
Fresh Egg Pasta
1 cup plus 2 tbsp Tipo "00" flour
7 tbsp all-purpose flour
9 egg yolks
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp water
1.) In a stand mixer, combine the flours and on medium speed slowly add the egg yolks a few at a time. Then add the oil and water, letting each fully combine before adding the next ingredient. Mix just until the dough comes together, 2-3 minutes.
2.) Turn the dough onto a lightly flour surface and knead until it becomes silky and smooth, about 5 minutes. The dough is ready if you stretch it with your hands and it gently pulls back into place. Cover dough and set aside. (Make filling while the dough is resting for 30 minutes).
3.) Cut the dough into four equal pieces. Shape a piece into a oval shape wide enough to fit the width of your pasta roller. Lightly flour your work surface and set your roller to its widest setting. Lightly flour an oval of dough and pass it through the roller. Pass through the widest setting again, dusting with flour gain if it feels sticky. Repeat the process of rolling twice through each setting until you reach a 5 or 6 on your roller. *For ravioli, you should be able to read text through the sheet of dough at the proper thickness.
4.) Make sure your work surface is still floured to ensure that the pasta won't stick as you're filling. Take about a teaspoon of filling and place it on the lower half of the sheet, about 1 inch from the bottom edge. Repeat the entire length of the sheet (cut the sheet if it is too long and do this in turns), making sure to leave about 1.5-2 inches of clearance between the dollops of filling. Lightly brush the perimeter of each filling pile with water to aid in sealing the pasta. Then take the upper half of the dough sheet and fold it over the filling dollops, using dry fingers to press the dough around each pile, making sure to press out any bubbles. When the pasta is properly sealed, take a rolling pasta cutter to cut the ravioli apart, making sure to leave about a half an inch of clearance around each filling. Take the batch of ravioli and place on a thoroughly floured baking sheet, cover with plastic and repeat on the other 3 balls of dough.
5.) Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil and add up to 10 ravioli at a time, cooking for about 3-4 minutes. Quickly drain, sauce and serve.
Butternut Squash Filling (make sure that it isn't too wet before putting into ravioli, maybe add bread crumbs or something similar if it is too wet.)
2 cups cooked butternut squash
2 eggs
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp sugar to taste
1/2 cup freshly grate parmesan
1 recipe Fresh Egg pasta
1.)Puree squash. Combine in a bowl with the egg, nutmeg and salt and pepper. Taste: if the mixture isn't sweet add the sugar. Stir in the parmesan and taste again, adding any seasoning you like to taste.
2.) Fill pasta
Ricotta Filling
1 egg
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 1/2 cups ricotta, drained
1 tsp minced garlic
a small grating of nutmeg
1 cup freshly grated parmesan
Salt and pepper
1 recipe Fresh Egg pasta
1.) Combine egg, breadcrumbs, ricotta, garlic, nutmeg and a little water in a bowl and mix well. Refrigerate.
2.) Fill pasta
Brown Butter Sauce
1 stick butter
1 tbsp chopped sage
1.) Put butter in a small sauce pan over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Once the butter stops foaming and is a nut brown add the sage. Take off heat and pour over pasta.
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