Guido's Cucina Ravioli printable


Guido's Cucina Ciao, I am Guido and my recipes for delicious Italian foods appear here. I love to make pasta such as my Cheese Ravioli at home. It's easy, here's how. Ingredienti Per la pasta 2 large eggs (best to use at room temperature) 4 tablespoons water (75°F - 80°F) 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil Per il formaggio (cheese mixture) 8-oz ricotta cheese 2-oz various grated cheeses: asagio, romano, parmesan 4-oz grated mozarella 1 large egg 1/2 tsp oregano 1/2 tsp parsley Ground pepper: to taste Extra ingredient required later One egg white Istruzioni per prepararsi
It is easiest to make the pasta dough using a food processor with a dough blade. Put pasta ingredients listed above except one tablespoon of water into the work bowl. Attach the cover. Turn on the food processor and watch the contents. It should form small dry balls after about 30 seconds. Turn off the machine. Scrape the inside of the work bowl, including the bottom corners. Turn the machine on, and add the remaining water a little bit at a time through the chute. Once a ball of dough forms, stop adding water and continue to run the machine for about another 15 seconds. (The amount of water may vary depending on the size of the eggs and the moistness of the flour.)
Wrap the ball of dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for about an hour for the gluten to form in the dough.
Right before you are ready to make the ravioli, mix the cheeses together with the egg and spices. Stir well.
Divide the dough into four smaller balls. Do not knead. Put three of the balls into a small bowl and cover to keep it from drying out. Using a pasta roller, follow the directions to run the pasta through it so that you get a long strip of thin dough. I use a pasta roller attachment on a KitchenAid mixer. It works very well. (Use speed 2, medium-low). Place the strip of dough flat on a well-floured surface.
Using a ravioli cutter, cut the ravioli into rectangular strips about 2-1/2" x 5". To prevent the pasta from sticking to the ravioli cutter, dip the ravioli cutter into flour before pressing it firmly onto the pasta to cut it.
Using a pastry brush, apply a small amount of egg white about 1/4" along each side of the cut pasta dough. The egg white acts like "glue" to hold the ravioli together, especially during cooking.
Place about 1 tsp of cheese mixture onto one side of the ravioli dough, and fold the empty side of the dough on top of the other side, lining it up into a square. Gently lift the ravioli from the table, and press ends together. Remove excess cheese, and ensure all sides of the ravioli are sealed. Place each piece of ravioli as you create it on a floured piece of parchment paper. Use layers of paper with floured surfaces, continue to roll the pasta, cut and fill ravioli until you have used up all of the pasta. Do not try to re-use scrap pasta. The gluten doesn't hold it together and it will not form good pasta once it has been run through the pasta roller. Store finished ravioli in plastic resealable freezer bags -- one bag per serving (about 6 - 8 ravioli). Place bags into freezer. It is important to freeze the ravioli before cooking it. When you are ready to eat it, fill a pot with two quarts of water for each serving you intend to prepare. You need to have a large amount of water so that when you put the frozen ravioli into it to cook, it doesn't bring the temperature of the water down too low. (If that happens, the ravioli will glob on the bottom of the pot and become inedible.)
Bring the water to a rolling boil. Add a little salt to the water to flavor it, but do not add oil. Add the ravioli, and boil for about 4 - 6 minutes, or until the ravioli floats. Using a slotted spoon, remove each ravioli and drain. Serve hot with your favorite pasta sauce. Mangi e goda *Buon appetito!*