I am not entirely sure what compelled me to make ravioli, but I had some really nice mushrooms (chantrelle and porcini) and felt like going the distance. It may have been the video I had watched earlier in the day of Gordon Ramsay working as a sous chef for Michael Pierre White back in the late 1980’s. Ramsay looked the same, but in this case, was taking orders from someone else. They were making ravioli and I thought I too should make ravioli. This is actually my first attempt at ravioli, and I must say, it came out great.
If you have a kitchen aide with a pasta attachment or pasta roller, this wont be too difficult. If you don’t, and already know how to make pasta, you probably don’t need this recipe. Ravioli is easier than it looks, it just takes time and some patience. The idea here is to make a mushroom filling and thin sheets of pasta dough that you can cut into small rounds for the ravioli. You could also make larger ones, or smaller ones, whatever you prefer.
To keep the ravioli sealed, you will need to wipe the edges of the pasta with egg. Because this is fresh pasta, it will cook quickly, and you probably also want to use a light sauce of butter and herbs to keep the flavor of the pasta filling front and center. This would be a great thing to make a day ahead for a dinner party to impress all your guests. This could easily be a cheese filling, or a meat filling, whatever you decide.
Ingredients:
Makes about 22 ravioli
Pasta Dough (recipe courtesy of Michael Ruhlman)
9 ounces all-purpose flour
6 ounces egg (3 large eggs)
1 extra egg for ravioli (beaten in small dish)
Crack eggs into small bowl. Place flour into large bowl, making a well in the center. Pour eggs into center. Using your one or two fingers, beat eggs while slowly incorporating the flour. Continue until egg and flour are well combined and come together. On a lightly floured surface, place dough and knead for about 10 minutes. Press with heel of hand, then fold, repeating, until dough is smooth and silky (dough still may feel somewhat hard, but it should be smooth). Press dough into a large disc and cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for at least ten minutes, while you prepare filling.
Mushroom filling:
8 oz mushrooms (I used chantrelle and porcini), washed, and roughly chopped
1 large shallot, medium dice
2 ounces soft goat cheese
1/2 teaspoon dry sage
1/2 teaspoon dry parsley
salt
pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
Heat olive oil in large pan over medium-low heat. Add shallots and cook 2-3 minutes, until softened. Add mushrooms, herbs a pinch of salt and some black pepper. Cook until mushrooms release their liquid and begin to brown.
Add mixture to a food processor and blend until smooth. Place in a bowl and mix in goat cheese. Set aside.
Set a large pot of salted water to boil.
To make Ravioli:
Cut pasta until 4 even pieces. Working with one at at time (keeping the rest covered), roll pasta using whatever method available (Ideally kitchen aide pasta attachment or pasta roller). Roll pasta to a ‘6’ on your machine. Ensure pasta sheets are well floured during the entire rolling process. Set aside each sheet on sheet trays lined with wax/parchment paper, that are well floured.
Once all pasta has been rolled, using a small water glass or cookie cutter, cut out approximately 40 circles.
Beat reserved egg in a small ramekin. Place about 10 ravioli pasta pairs along counter or work area. Add about teaspoon of filling to half of the pasta circles. You can always add a touch more filling, but you don’t want them to overflow. Using a brush or finger, place some egg around the edge of the filling pasta circle. Carefully cover it with the second piece and lightly press around the edges to seal.
If your pasta water is boiling, you can test one to ensure it remained sealed (boil until it floats and then for another 1 minute or so). If not, add a bit more egg to edges or use slightly less filling.
Repeat with remaining ravioli. You can set finished pasta into a large bowl. You may have extra pasta dough, which you can cut into large ribbons, or thinly and eat as regular pasta. Extra ravioli can be frozen for up to a month, or refrigerated for 1-2 days.
Boil ravioli and serve with melted butter and herbs, or whatever you prefer. Enjoy!
