Toasted Ravioli And Basic Ravioli Dough Recipes

RAVIOLI DOUGH

Steps:

• In an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine flour and salt. Add eggs 1 at a time and continue to mix. Drizzle in oil and continue to incorporate all the flour until it forms a ball. Sprinkle some flour on work surface, knead the dough until elastic and smooth. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for about 30 minutes to allow the gluten to relax.
• Cut the ball of dough in half, cover and reserve the dough you are not immediately using to prevent it from drying out. Dust the counter and dough with flour. Form the dough into a rectangle and roll it through the pasta machine, 2 or 3 times, at its widest setting. Guide the sheet of dough with the palm of your hand as it emerges from the rollers. *Reduce the setting and crank the dough through again, 2 or 3 times. Continue until the machine is at its narrowest setting. The dough should be paper-thin, about 1/8-inch thick.
• Dust the counter and dough with flour, lay out the long sheet of pasta. Brush the top surface of dough with egg wash. Drop 1 tablespoon of cooled filling about 2-inches apart on half the sheet of pasta. Fold the unfilled half over the filling. With an espresso cup or fingers, gently press out air pockets around each mound of filling and form a seal. Use a crimper to cut each pillow into squares. Check to make sure the crimped edges are well sealed before cooking. If making ravioli in advance, dust with cornmeal to prevent them from sticking.
• Cook the ravioli in plenty of boiling salted water for 10 to15 minutes. Ravioli will float to the top when cooked so be careful not to overcrowd the pot. Lift the ravioli from water with a large strainer or slotted spoon. Plate the pasta, top with sauce and grated cheese before serving. Garnish plate with chopped herbs and toasted pine nuts.
• *For Herb-Patterned Pasta: Follow the standard recipe given above and roll it out to a medium-thick sheet. Next, take well-washed leafy herbs such as, basil, flat-leaf parsley and tarragon, pinch away the stems so only the leaves remain. Hand press the fresh herbs on the dough's surface at 1-inch intervals. Fold the dough over itself and run the "sandwich" through the pasta machine at a thin setting. The leaves will stretch and pattern the pasta. Continue making ravioli as indicated in the procedure.

TOASTED RAVIOLI

Steps:

• For the filling: Combine the ricotta, butter, parsley flakes, Romano, salt, pepper and egg in a large bowl and mix well. Set aside.
• For the pasta dough: Fit a stand mixer with the dough hook, then generously oil the hook to prevent dough from sticking. Whisk the egg, milk, salt and 1 tablespoon water together in a mixing bowl. Pour egg and milk mixture into the stand mixer bowl and add half the flour. Beat the dough over medium-low speed until the flour begins to incorporate into the mixture. Gradually add the rest of the flour until the dough comes together and forms a ball. Once the dough is mixed, turn out onto a floured surface.
• Divide the dough into 2 portions. Using a pasta machine or pasta attachment for your stand mixer, sheet the dough: Begin with the machine on the thickest setting and run one of the dough pieces through. Gradually reduce the setting number until the dough has been sheeted through the lowest number.
• Scoop roughly 1/2-tablespoon dollops of filling on the pasta layer, leaving 1 inch of space from the edge of the pasta and in between each. Lightly sprinkle water over the pasta. This will help the top layer adhere.
• Using the same process as before, run the second portion of dough through the pasta machine, gradually thinning it to match the same thinness as the bottom layer. Carefully lay the top layer over the pasta and filling. Gently press the dough around the scoops of filling to seal the ravioli.
• Using a pasta cutter, cut the ravioli into 2-inch squares. Place cut ravioli on a parchment-lined sheet pan and cover. Freeze until completely solid, at least 3 hours. (Make sure your raviolis are fully frozen before breading, as the dough has a tendency to thaw quickly. If the raviolis are soft during breading, they can become misshapen.)
• For the breading: Whisk the eggs and milk together in a medium bowl. Add the cracker meal to a second medium bowl. Working in batches, dip ravioli into the egg and milk mixture, then toss into the cracker meal, coating well. Put breaded ravioli back on the lined sheet pan, cover and freeze for another 3 hours.
• Fill a large, heavy-bottomed pan halfway with canola oil and heat oil to 350 degrees F. Cook the ravioli in batches, being sure not to overcrowd the pan, and flipping during cooking, until golden brown all over, about 5 minutes.

BASIC RAVIOLI WITH A BUTTER-SAGE SAUCE

Steps:

• For the filling: Add the ricotta, Parmigiano and eggs and sprinkle with salt in a bowl. Adjust seasoning if needed. Put the filling in a pastry bag and reserve.
• For the pasta: Set the pasta roller on the widest setting (#1). Start with half the pasta dough; keep the other half covered until ready to use. Using your hands, flatten the dough as much as you can to facilitate it going through the pasta roller. Run the dough through the roller, twice dusting it in between rolls if it feels sticky. Fold the dough into thirds and turn it 90 degrees (a quarter turn) and run it through the pasta machine 2 to 3 times. Move the roller to the next setting (#2) and run the pasta through. Dust lightly with flour if the dough feels sticky. Continue to run the dough through the machine reducing the opening (or moving the setting to the next larger number) in between every roll. Stop when you get to the correct thinness, this will usually be around number 5 or 6 on the dial, but every machine is different, you will have to be the judge of your own pasta thickness.
• To assemble the ravioli: Lay out the dough on a flat surface. Brush the lower half of the dough (the part that is closest to you) lightly with water. This is the glue that will hold the ravioli together. Use the glue sparingly, if you use too much the pasta will slide and not stick. Pipe 1-inch balls of filling onto the pasta that has been brushed with water, leaving about 2 inches between each ball. Fold the top half of the pasta down over the filling to meet the bottom edge. Using your index fingers, poke around each filling ball to seal the ravioli shut, AND to make sure that there are no air bubbles. Using a fluted round cutter or a fluted pastry wheel or even a drinking glass, cut out each ravioli. Transfer to a sheet tray dusted with semolina or polenta and reserve until ready to use.
• To cook the ravioli and make the sauce: Add the butter to a large saute pan and bring to a medium heat. Add 1 cup of chicken stock and season with salt. Shake the pan to incorporate the butter and stock, and simmer until the stock has reduced a bit and the sauce looks velvety and is the consistency of heavy cream. If the sauce thickens too much, adjust the consistency with chicken stock. Add the sage and season with salt.
• Add the ravioli to the pot of boiling water and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Carefully remove the ravioli from the cooking water and put them immediately into the sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil, shaking frequently to be sure that the ravioli don'(TM)t stick to the bottom of the pan.
• Transfer the ravioli to a serving platter. Mangia Bene!
• Put the flour on a clean, dry work surface. Make a hole (this is also called a well) in the center of the flour pile that is about 8 inches wide (bigger is definitely better here). Crack all of the eggs and the yolk into the hole and add the olive oil, salt and water.
• Using a fork, beat the eggs together with the olive oil, salt and water. Using the fork, begin to incorporate the flour into the egg mixture; be careful not to break the sides of the well or the egg mixture will run all over your board and you will have a big mess! Also, don't worry about the lumps. When enough flour has been incorporated into the egg mixture that it will not run all over the place when the sides of the well are broken, begin to use your hands to really get everything well combined. If the mixture is tight and dry, wet your hands and begin kneading with wet hands. When the mixture has really come together to a homogeneous mixture, THEN you can start kneading.
• When kneading it is VERY important to put your body weight into it, get on top of the dough to really stretch it and not tear the dough. Using the heels of your palms, roll the dough to create a very smooooooth, supple dough. When done, the dough should look VERY smooth and feel almost velvety. Kneading will usually take from 8 to 10 minutes for an experienced kneader and 10 to 15 for an inexperienced kneader. Put your body weight into it, you need to knead! This is where the perfect, toothsome texture of your pasta is formed. Get in there and have fun!
• When the pasta has been kneaded to the perfect consistency, wrap it in plastic and let rest for at least 1 hour. If using immediately do not refrigerate.
• Roll and cut the pasta into desired shape. How smooth and supple!

TOASTED RAVIOLI

Steps:

• Beat eggs and a splash of milk seasoned with salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Combine bread crumbs with cheese and parsley in a second dish. Coat the fresh pasta in egg then bread crumbs. Heat 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil over medium heat in a skillet then toast the ravioli until deep golden, 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
• In a small sauce pot heat the remaining extra-virgin olive oil and the garlic and red pepper flakes over medium low heat. Grind the roasted peppers in the food processor and add to garlic after it sautes for a couple of minutes. Stir in tomatoes and season the sauce with salt and pepper. When ready to serve, transfer sauce to a small bowl. Surround the sauce with toasted ravioli for dipping and serve.