Welcomed Home with Some Fried Ravioli

Isn't that cute little whale-shaped ravioli adorable? I didn't plan it that way, and I tend to think that its the only one that turned out like that... but who cares! I might just go out and get all kinds of silly-shaped cookie cutters and get on with having all sorts of wild raviolis... bunny faces, shamrocks, tea cups, Abe Lincoln! Boowhahahahaaaa!

Ahem.

I'd asked my husband what he'd want to eat when he returned from his business trip a few weeks ago, and he requested these fried raviolis. I'd made them for our last two New Year's Day parties (and this last time, I forgot to photograph them until after everyone left!) The nice thing about these tasty little fellows is that they can be almost entirely prepared ahead of time. (Which makes them AWESOME for parties!) I was happy about his choice, too, because I knew that I could make them the night before - which would free up my time for fawning all over him! (Read: lay around and eat all the fancy Swiss chocolates he brought home!!!!!) (That, and a giant load of laundry!) Heh.


Strange shapes aside, one of my favorite things about frying ravioli is how they puff up. Something about their pillowy, crunchy-but-gooey goodness is so very dreamy. I am just as happy to pop them in my mouth as I am to sauce them - they're such a nice little snack on their own!

Don't get me wrong, the sauce is terrific, too! I almost always cheat and either use diced or crushed tomatoes in lieu of the whole ones. Unless it makes sense to, of course, I don't see the point in getting whole tomatoes just to take them out and cut them up. (Well, that and whenever I try to do so, I make an amazingly huge mess!) Even better still, I've been using fire-roasted tomatoes in place of normal. Feel free to mess around with YOUR tomatoes, too! :)

Maybe fried pasta doesn't float your boat? Head on over to Ruth's Presto Pasta Night Roundup and you'll be sure to find something delicious. (In fact, I'm positive you will!!) I am so excited for her - next week she'll be celebrating 52 straight weeks of pasta! (I can't think of a better way to spend a year!) Go Ruth!


Fried Ravioli with Hot Sausage Ragu
c/o Emeril Lagasse, 2001, via Food Network
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_18204,00.html

Ravioli:
1/2 cup fresh ricotta
1/4 cup grated mozzarella
1/4 cup grated provolone
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 fresh pasta sheet, about 11 by 14-inches, cut into 2-inch squares (to make 32 squares)
1 large egg
2 tablespoons water
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1 1/2 teaspoons Essence, recipe follows
2 cups vegetable oil, for frying

Hot Sausage Ragu, recipe follows

In a bowl, combine the cheeses, egg yolk, garlic, parsley, salt, and pepper and mix well.
Place 16 of the pasta squares on a lightly floured surface. Place about 1 tablespoon of the cheese mixture into the center of each square. Lightly wet the edges with water with a fingertip, and top with a plain pasta square. Press to seal the edges.

Heat the oil in a pot over medium-high heat.

Beat the egg with the water. In a separate bowl, combine the bread crumbs with the Essence. Dip the ravioli in the egg wash and then into the bread crumbs, one at a time. Add in batches to the hot oil and fry until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Repeat with the remaining ingredients and serve hot with the Hot Sausage Ragu.

Hot Sausage Ragu:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 pound hot Italian sausage (or 1/4 pound hot sausage and 1/4 pound sweet sausage
1/2 cup chopped yellow onions
3/4 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 (15-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped, juices reserved
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 cup dry red wine
1/4 cup heavy cream
Pinch sugar

In a medium pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add sausage and cook, stirring, until brown and the fat is rendered, about 4 minutes. Add the onions, garlic, crushed red pepper salt, basil, oregano and black pepper, and bay leaf, and cook, stirring, until soft, 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and their juices, tomato sauce, tomato paste, wine, cream, and sugar, and stir well. Bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until thick and the flavors are blended, about 30 minutes, adding water as necessary to keep from getting too thick.

Remove from the heat, and cover until needed.

Yield: about 2 1/2 cups

See the recipe...

Goat Cheese-Arugula Ravioli with Tomato-Pancetta Butter

We had this last Sunday night for dinner. I had a lot of extra ravioli rounds leftover from the beet pasta, so I tasked Dave with finding a new filling. Considering how much we liked it, I think I might send him to find recipes off the internet more often!

Presto Pasta Night, hosted by the lovely Ruth at Once Upon a Feast, is something I wish I participated in more. We have had a crazy amount of pasta dinner this last week, so I think I might save a couple for future weeks! Sneaky! :)

These ravioli were glorious. Yep, glorious. The filling was creamy and delicious and the sauce was fresh and lively. (And c'mon, pancetta is fantastic in almost everything.) I only made half the called-for filling, since I knew I wouldn't be able to fill all my remaining pasta rounds. I wish I had made the whole thing. I had wonton wrappers, but I sometimes find them too squidgy for ravioli.... but I would have made do, this filling was so tasty. I think the reason it worked so well for me is because I adore goat cheese and arugula. Mostly goat cheese. I even have a kit to try to make my own at home (which I should get to later this week), so I might be able to keep us into a steady supply.

Anyway, we enjoyed these ravioli far more than the beet ones, but only because goat cheese and arugula appeal to us more than beets. To each their own. :)

Goat Cheese-Arugula Ravioli with Tomato-Pancetta Butter
Bon Appetit Magazine, March 2001
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/104784

Ravioli
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 large shallots, minced
8 ounces arugula, chopped (about 8 cups)
6 ounces soft fresh goat cheese (such as Montrachet), crumbled
1/2 cup (about 1 1/2 ounces) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
42 (about) wonton wrappers (from one 12-ounce package)
2 large egg whites, whisked just until foamy

Tomato-Pancetta butter
6 ounces thinly sliced pancetta or bacon, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
6 large plum tomatoes, quartered, seeds and membranes discarded, tomatoes diced
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

For serving:
5 tablespoons butter, melted
12 fresh basil leaves
Fresh thyme sprigs

Make ravioli: Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots; sauté 10 minutes. Add arugula; toss until wilted but still bright green, about 3 minutes. Transfer arugula mixture to large bowl and cool. Mix in goat cheese and Parmesan cheese. Season filling with salt and pepper.

Line 2 baking sheets with heavy-duty foil; spray foil with nonstick spray. Place 4 wonton wrappers on work surface; cover remaining wrappers with plastic to prevent drying. Lightly brush entire surface of each wrapper with egg white. Spoon 1 generous teaspoon filling into center of each wrapper. Fold wrappers diagonally in half, forming triangles. Press edges firmly to seal. Arrange ravioli on prepared sheets. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling. (Can be made ahead. Cover with plastic and chill up to 1 day; or cover with plastic, then heavy-duty foil, and freeze up to 1 week. If frozen, do not thaw before cooking.)

Make tomato-pancetta butter: Cook chopped pancetta in large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp and brown. Using slotted spoon, transfer pancetta to paper towel; drain. Set aside. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon drippings from skillet. Add butter to drippings in skillet; melt over medium-high heat. Add tomatoes and thyme; sauté until tomatoes are tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.)

Cook and serve ravioli: Place melted butter in large bowl. Cook half of ravioli in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 4 minutes for fresh or 5 minutes for frozen. Using large strainer, transfer ravioli to colander and drain; place in bowl with butter and toss to coat. Cover to keep warm. Cook remaining ravioli in same pot of boiling water. Drain and add to bowl of buttered ravioli. Toss gently to coat. Divide ravioli among bowls. Rewarm tomato butter over medium heat. Add reserved pancetta and basil; sauté 1 minute. Spoon sauce over ravioli; garnish with thyme.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

See the recipe...

Beet Ravioli with Poppy Seed Butter

First we were on a little vacation (but that doesn't mean we didn't eat) and then I was a bit under the weather... so my posts have been piling up! I'll try to double-post the next few days to catch up!

This month's Weekend Cookbook Challenge, created by Sara at I Like to Cook, is Red and White:

So grab a recipe that has a red or white ingredient. Or use a cookbook with a red cover. Or cook a recipe by Betty White!

I made this dish last Saturday night. We'd gotten a bunch of beets in our CSA shipment the Wednesday before, so this seemed like the ideal entry. I'd looked though my cookbooks and over the internet for a good-looking beet recipe. This was important because I'd only cooked with beets once before, and they played a bit part in a wine sauce. I really wanted the beets to be the star of the show.

Doing so was a gamble, because I'd never really had beets before (the canned variety frightened me). Dave didn't have much experience with them either, so this was a big deal. The comments section of the recipe stressed the importance of the poppy seeds, too, so I made sure to grab some from the store.

What can I tell you about this dish....? I roasted the beets the evening before (with the zucchini and radishes) so I saved time on Saturday. The filling and dough were both really easy to make. Either I didn't make enough filling, or else the dough just makes twice as much, so I had lots extra egg pasta (which you'll see again soon in another ravioli recipe).

I will say that I really almost enjoyed the filling pre-stuffing it into the ravioli. But I think this dish is maybe better suited to being an appetizer or beginning pasta course... because the earthiness became too much after a while. Unless, of course, you love beets. If this is you, then make this pasta. If you have beet-loving family or friends, invite them over, because this dish is very pleasing to the eye... just.... beetly overpowering. O, and the poppy seeds really were key, as they provided a nice crunch to each bite.

Beet Ravioli with Poppy Seed Butter
Bon Appetit Magazine, May 2005
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/232091

2 large red or golden beets (about 14 ounces)
1/2 cup fresh whole-milk ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons dried breadcrumbs
1 1/4 pounds Fresh Egg Pasta

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400°F. Wrap beets individually in foil; place on baking sheet. Roast until tender when pierced with knife, about 1 hour. Open foil carefully (steam will escape). Cool. Peel beets; finely grate into medium bowl. Add ricotta cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in breadcrumbs.

Roll Fresh Egg Pasta dough into sheets according to recipe. Place 1 dough sheet on work surface. Using 3-inch round biscuit cutter, cut sheet into 7 rounds. Transfer rounds to lightly floured baking sheet; cover with plastic wrap. Repeat with remaining dough for total of 56 rounds.

Sprinkle 2 smooth kitchen towels with flour. Place 8 pasta rounds on work surface, keeping remaining dough covered with plastic. Place small bowl of water next to work surface. Spoon 1 teaspoon beet filling onto half of each round. Dip fingertip into water and dampen edge of 1 round. Fold dough over filling, pushing out as much air as possible and pressing edges firmly to seal. Transfer to prepared towels. Repeat with remaining rounds. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead. Transfer to rimmed baking sheet and place in freezer until frozen solid, about 6 hours. Transfer ravioli to resealable plastic bags.)

Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat and stir in poppy seeds; keep warm. Working in batches, cook ravioli in large pot of boiling salted water until cooked through, stirring often, about 2 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer to skillet with melted butter; toss to coat. Divide ravioli among 8 plates; sprinkle with Parmesan.

Market Tip
The flavor, color, and texture of roasted fresh beets is incomparable, so don't even consider using the canned variety. When choosing beets, select bunches with bright, glossy leaves attached.

Makes 8 first-course servings.

See the recipe...