Do you love pasta?
I love pasta. Thin noodles, thick noodles, wheels, shells, pasta with butter, pasta with sauce...I don't play favorites here. After all, this is America, and all pasta varieties should be treated equally! Making homemade pasta dough is one of the most rewarding yet simplest things to do! Flour, eggs, and salt--that's all there is to it.
Did I mention I love pasta?
I made a batch of homemade raviolis, and while they were easy to make, they were also extremely time consuming, so don't attempt to make them unless you plan on spending a nice, long afternoon in the kitchen. Also, I did everything by hand, so unless you have a fancy schmancy pasta maker machine, your arms and back and abs will hurt the next morning. Pasta dough is tough to roll out. Not that I'm complaining. I welcome workouts to sneak into my cooking routine any day!
Part 1: the filling
Let's start with the filling first. Heat up 1 tbs of olive oil in a large pan, then cook a small, diced yellow onion for a few minutes on medium heat. Add 1/2 tbs minced garlic (I used the kind in a squeeze bottle) and cook another minute or so
Plop. Add 1 1/2 lbs ground Italian sausage. I ended up having leftover filling mixture, so you could get away with just using 1 lb of meat. But I like leftovers, personally :)
Break up the sausage clumps. I turned down the heat a little so that the sausage wouldn't brown too quickly while doing this part
I added some spices to pump up the Italian flavor. If you have Italian seasoning, use about 1-2 tsp. Since I did not have any, I just added whatever I had in my cupboard haha, so paprika, marjoram, oregano, and some cayenne pepper for a little extra hotness.
Speaking of marjoram, I have an extreme, slightly illogical hatred toward it. Maybe because I had trouble finding it years ago when making a homemade pizza, I don't know. Like, it's an extra spice that recipes contain that doesn't seem necessary, but you don't want to leave it out just incase your whole recipe will explode if you don't include everything it lists. As far as I'm concerned, marjoram is like the bitter middle sibling that wants to be like its older sibling oregano, but just isn't all there. Sorry not sorry marjoram, you are not loved!!!
Anyway...
After your sausage has browned, drain the grease, then put the mixture in a large bowl. Time to add lots of cheese! I did 2 cups of Italian cheese. Trust me, you want it all!
Ok I lied. I actually added 3 cups, which I think is a perfect amount. If you're not a 100% devoted cheese lover, stick with 2
Add 1 cup ricotta cheese. I'm not a huge fan of ricotta, but this amount didn't overwhelm the rest of the mixture, which I like :) Stir everything up and let cool for a bit
Now, having a food processor or blender is really convenient at this point. If you don't have one, you can still use the meat mixture as is to fill the ravioli dough, but you won't be able to get the right texture unless you can puree it. I added a handful of basil leaves then pulsed everything together
Mmmmm, doesn't that look tasty?? Ok yes, your filling will look like cat food, but that just means you can pack more of it into your ravioli dough since it's so smooth and compact. Put the mixture aside for now and start your dough
Part 2: the dough
Saw from various sources online that the popular way to make the dough is to combine all the ingredients on a smooth surface like a countertop. Not sure why people don't just use a large bowl since there's less mess, 'cause it worked just fine for me. Dump 5 cups of flour in your large bowl and make a well in the center kinda like this
Add 8 eggs into the center of the well. I have 5 pictured here, because I almost forgot I was making a larger batch, but you get the point
Start by scrambling the eggs together in the center of the well, sprinkle on a little salt, then slowly blend the flour inward
Takes awhile to do, but you'll get there!
Once the dough starts to form and get thick, you'll want to blend the rest of the flour in with your hands
If your dough is too wet, add more flour. If it's a little on the dry side like mine was, just wet your hands under the faucet, then continue to knead the dough. I did this several times. Continue to knead dough until it is smooth, which can take some time to do
Once the dough is smooth, divide it into 2 balls and wrap both in plastic wrap. Let the dough rest for about 15-20 minutes
Now time for a workout. Take a chunk off one of your dough balls (it's easier to work with smaller pieces at a time), leaving the dough you're not working with covered with plastic wrap so it doesn't dry out. On a smooth surface, roll out the dough as thin as you can
I used a round cookie cutter with about a 2 inch diameter to make the ravioli cutouts. Reroll the scraps!
Then with a spoon, take a heaping portion of the filling mixture and plop it on one of your dough circles. Don't skimp on the filling, because its malleability will allow quite a bit to fit if you handle the dough right
I found that the best technique to maximize the amount of filling without causing it to squeeze out is to take your top dough circle, pinch it together with the bottom circle, and slowly work your way around pinching to create a pocket. Once you have a pocket like in the picture above, use your finger to gently push the filling down, then add a little more filling. Then seal closed. If the dough is not sticking well, use a little water to help the top and bottom circles meld together. If they are not firmly pinched together, they will come apart once you start to boil them
This recipe yielded 44 raviolis and took me a few hours to make, so while you're working on them, make sure that the completed ones are covered with a damp paper towel so they don't dry out too much. Having them dry for a little bit before boiling is good, but I wanted to do a final pinch check on them all after completion, which is easier to do if you don't let them dry out
I decided to freeze half the batch. You could just cut the recipe in half if you don't want to make such a large batch, but if you're already putting the effort to make them, might as well make extras to freeze for another meal!!
Once you're ready to get cooking, you can take the paper towel off and let the raviolis dry for 15-20 minutes. In the meantime, prepare a pot of boiling water. I added some olive oil to the water to help prevent the pasta from sticking. Then toss them in! I did half the batch at a time so they wouldn't be overcrowded
There they go! I've always read that the pasta is done once it rises to the top of the pot, but if your pasta is thicker than normal (which it will be if you rolled it by hand), I recommend letting the raviolis boil an extra minute to make them more tender and less chewy. Only takes a couple minutes per batch--so much quicker when you use fresh instead of dry pasta
All done! At this point, you could eat them like this, or with some butter. Orrrrrr make the most delicious sauce ever
Part 3: the sauce
Simmer 4 cups of heavy cream in a medium pot for about 35-40 minutes. Be careful that it doesn't boil over, which cream just loooooves to do (I might have fallen victim to that one or two times. Or ten). Once the cream thickens a bit, remove from heat and stir in 1 tbs parsley, 1 tbs garlic powder, 4 ounces gorgonzola cheese crumbles, and 1/4 cup parmesan cheese. Please try this sauce--it is so so SO good
Make sure to serve your raviolis with a big glass of wine ;) I also made caprese skewers and garlic cheese pull-apart bread for the meal. Might not be a low calorie dinner, but go ahead and splurge--you deserve it!! Yum yum
Sausage Stuffed Raviolis with Gorgonzola Cream Sauce
Ingredients:
For the filling:
1 tbs olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
1/2 tbs garlic, minced
1-1 1/2 lbs ground Italian sausage
1-2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2-1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
2-3 cups Italian cheese (parmesan, asiago, and romano)
Fresh basil leaves to taste (I used a handful)
For the dough:
5 cups flour
8 eggs
Dash of salt
For the sauce:
4 cups heavy cream
1 tbs dried parsley
1 tbs garlic powder
4 ounces gorgonzola cheese crumbles
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
Directions:
1) Heat oil in a large pan. Add onion and cook for several minutes on medium heat. Add garlic and cook another couple of minutes. Break up the sausage into the pan. Add Italian seasoning and cayenne pepper, then cook until sausage is browned.
2) Drain grease from pan, then place mixture into a large bowl. Add Italian cheese and ricotta; blend together. Once cool, pulse sausage mixture with basil leaves in a food processor or blender until everything is smooth and compact. Set aside.
3) For dough, place flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Add eggs to center of well and scramble. Add a dash of salt on top of eggs. Slowly start incorporating the flour, working it inward, then once dough starts to form, use your hands to blend in the rest of the flour. The dough will be a little tough, so it takes some time. If the dough seems too dry, wet your hands under a faucet, then continue to knead dough until it is smooth. Form the dough into 2 balls, cover with plastic wrap, and let rest for 15-20 minutes.
4) Use a circle cookie cutter to make the tops and bottoms of your raviolis. Place a spoonful of filling on one circle, then take another circle and pinch it together with the bottom. Stuff those babies! Cover the finished ones with a damp paper towel so they don't start cracking as you're working on the rest.
5) Once the raviolis are complete, take off the damp paper towel and let them dry for about 15-20 minutes prior to boiling. In the meantime, bring a large pot of water to boil. You can add a little olive oil to help prevent sticking, too. Then boil the raviolis in 2 batches. Once they rise to the top of the pot, boil another minute and then they're finished.
6) For the sauce, simmer 4 cups heavy cream 35-40 minutes. Once it has thickened a bit, remove from heat and add parsley, garlic, gorgonzola, and parmesan. Enjoy!!!
