Homemade Ravioli

Making two kinds of ravioli was a project that took time, but was well worth it...

I used up spinach, bocconcini, butternut squash and Parmesan, and we all ate well!








I picked up some ricotta cheese, and proceeded to make a spinach and cheese filling, and a roasted butternut squash filling. Making the filling is the quick part of this process, but I find that making the raviolis is the most rewarding part. It's also a great opportunity for everyone to come together in the kitchen and help out. With the availability of fresh pasta, some of the work is already done for you!

Another plus is that you know exactly what is in the filling, no fillers such as breadcrumbs. You can also control the ratio of pasta : filling, and therefore enjoy the flavours of the ravioli, and not just the pasta and sauce.

To make the butternut squash filling, cut the squash in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Season the cut side of the squash with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.

Place cut side down in an ovenproof dish, add about 1" of water and bake in a 400F oven until soft; the skin will start to go golden.

 Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before scraping out the cooked flesh and placing it into a bowl, along with:

1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives (the last of the season)
salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg

Mix well, taste and adjust seasoning, then add in 1 egg yolk.

Refrigerate until needed.







For the spinach filling, start by wilting the spinach if you are using fresh, as I was. If you are using frozen cooked spinach, defrost it. Squeeze as much water as possible out of your spinach, and chop it. You will need about 1 1/2 cups.

Mince 1/4 cup of onion, and cook in a bit of olive oil until it is softened and starting to caramelize.

Remove the onions from the heat, and allow to cool before placing them into a bowl with:

The cooked, chopped spinach
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Add:

1 cup ricotta cheese
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 cup bocconcini, diced
salt, pepper, pinch of nutmeg and pinch of cayenne pepper

Mix well, taste and adjust seasoning and refrigerate until needed.

Both fillings can be made a day ahead if you like.








For the assembly you will need:

2 baking sheets, lightly dusted with cornmeal to prevent the raviolis from sticking
A small dish of cold water and a pastry brush
A sharp knife or pizza wheel
A small scoop or spoon
About 6 - 8 sheets of fresh pasta dough

Lay out a sheet of pasta, and place balls of filling along the middle of the sheet. The size of your raviolis will determine the size of the ball.

Our raviolis were about 2" square, and the filling was about 1" in diameter.

Lightly brush the pasta dough with water, all around the filling.

Using the knife or pizza wheel, cut the dough in between the filling.

Bring one side of pasta dough over the filling to meet with the other. Firmly press the edges together to seal, and then work your way around the filling, pressing the dough edges together and removing as much air as you can.

Trim any excess pasta away to neaten the look of the ravioli. Place the finished raviolis on the prepared baking sheet and continue until you run out of pasta or filling.

I made about 30 of each filling.

Cook the ravioli in a large pot of boiling, salted water. They will float to the top as they cook, and usually cook in less time than store bought pasta.








Drain, and gently toss with the sauce of your choice. We used cream sauce for the squash ravioli and Basic Tomato Sauce  for the spinach and cheese ravioli.

 

• The raviolis can be made as big or small as you choose. I have made jumbo ravioli, and served 2 per person, as a garnish in Smoked Tomato Soup. 

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•  There are various ravioli forms available, such as the one shown on the right. These help with the consistency of size and appearance, but being homemade sometimes means looking homemade, in my opinion!

• A cookie cutter can also be used to cut shapes from the pasta dough, before filling and sealing them. This opens up a whole lot of choices. To make things easier for yourself when it comes to sealing the shaped ravioli, it works best if you have 2 cookie cutters of the same shape, but one size apart. Use the smaller one for the bottom piece and the larger one for the top piece, as it has to stretch over the filling.
• The filling can be made ahead and refrigerated for a day or two; it can also be frozen. The ravilois can be filled and frozen; cook from frozen, allowing a bit of extra cooking time.
• If you have a pasta maker at home and make your own pasta sheets, think about adding flavour to the pasta sheets before you make the ravioli. Try chopped fresh herbs, minced garlic, lemon zest, tomato paste or roasted red pepper puree...
• Filling combinations are endless, but try and include a cheese such as ricotta, mascarpone, cream cheese or soft goat cheese to help bind the other ingredients as well as to add creaminess.
• Leftover meat, finely chopped; that lonely sausage or chicken breast in the freezer; the last few scallops or shrimp; extra pulled pork or braised beef...meat choices are endless and if you are using leftovers the ravioli will benefit from the flavours already in the meat.
• Herbs and spices should enhance the meat and cheese that you are using. 
• Vegetables should be cooked first, as the raviolis are not in the water long enough to cook them. Vegetables such as mushrooms, zucchini, eggplant and spinach  release a lot of water during cooking, and that will not only dilute the flavour of the filling, but can also seep out and make the pasta dough soggy.
• I like to include a stronger cheese with the creamy one. A ravioli is only one or two bites and you want to experience the intensity of the filling in each bite. Think of cheeses such as goat cheese, feta, blue cheese, Parmesan or asiago, smoked cheese or a peppered cheese.
• Some ideas for filling options: finely chopped cooked chicken, soft goat cheese, chopped sundried tomatoes and basil; grilled or roasted zucchini, finely chopped with feta cheese, cooked spinach, basil and ricotta cheese; mushrooms finely chopped and cooked with onions, garlic, fresh thyme and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, ricotta and blue cheese; roasted garlic, cream cheese, cooked scallops, lemon zest, Parmesan and black pepper.

Double Chocolate Brownies with Cinnamon and Chipotle

Everyone has been asking me to bake treats, so I decided to make some brownies...I still have copious amounts of cocoa, for some reason. I also used up the last bit of white chocolate and chocolate chips.

The brownies are very easy to make, and I added some cinnamon and chipotle pepper to give a bit of a kick, and instead of using melted butter I used olive oil.

Start off by heating the oven to 350F and lining an 8" X 8" pan with foil.

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients:

1 cup flour
1/3 cup cocoa
2/3 cup white sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon dried chipotle chili powder

Whisk together:

3/4 cup olive oil or melted butter
3 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Continue to whisk, and add in 1/4 cup strong coffee.

Now add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix until just combined.

Stir in:

1/2 cup chopped white chocolate
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips

Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake until the brownie is set, and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, about 25 - 30 minutes.








Cool before removing from the pan, and cutting into 16 squares.

• Decorate the top of the brownies before serving, by dusting with cocoa or icing sugar, or drizzle with melted chocolate.
• The spices can be omitted or changed. Try nutmeg, ground or fresh grated ginger, star anise or cayenne pepper.
• Vanilla extract is my personal favourite, but almond or peppermint will be a nice choice with the chocolate.
• Any chopped chocolate or chocolate chips can be used, alone or in combination.
• If you are a fan of nuts in brownies, some suggestions are pecans, almonds or hazelnuts.
• Dried fruit such as cranberries or cherries will add a chewy texture to the cakey brownie.
• The coffee worked with the chocolate and cinnamon. Liqueur can be used instead...Kahlua, Grand Marnier, dark rum are a few good choices to try.
• Orange zest, toffee bits, peanut butter heated up and swirled into the brownie before baking, or chopped candied ginger chunks are some other ideas to try.
• The brownies will freeze well, and as Christmas is approaching can be wrapped and given as gifts.

Risotto with Sausage, Leeks and Roasted Red Pepper

This risotto came about because I had a whole lot of things to use up...and the result was a creamy, rich, filling and flavour loaded meal.

2 Tandoori chicken sausages
Half a roasted red pepper
Half a leek
Some cream sauce from a previous dinner
The last onion in the house
Half a glass of leftover white wine

In a hot pan, with a drizzle of olive oil, cook:

1 small onion, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced

Cook until the onion and celery soften, but don't let them colour.

Now add in 11 ounces of arborio rice, and stir for a minute to coat the rice with the oil.

Pour the half glass of wine into the pan; it will sizzle. Stir over a medium low heat until the wine is evaporated.

Add half a cup of warm chicken stock, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the stock is all absorbed by the rice.

Continue to add stock, allowing it to absorb before adding the next half cup. Keep an eye on the heat, it should not be too high, or the stock will evaporate before it is absorbed.

When the rice is almost cooked through, but still retaining a bit of a bite, remove it from the heat and spread it out onto a lightly greased baking tray to cool.

Remove the casing from the sausages, and cook the meat, breaking it up with a spoon. When it is cooked through, set it aside.

In the same pan (it has all the sausage flavour) add a bit of olive oil and cook the sliced leeks, until they start to soften.

Add a sprig of fresh rosemary to the pan while the leeks are cooking.

Add the cooked rice to the leeks, and continue to cook, adding chicken stock as needed, until the rice is fully cooked.

Add the cooked sausage, sliced roasted red pepper and season with salt and pepper.

Stir the cream sauce into the risotto, and allow everything to heat through.

Just before serving, stir in a handful of grated Parmesan, and some chopped fresh parsley.

Taste, and adjust seasoning.





I served the risotto with some blanched green beans, and an extra sprinkle of grated Parmesan.

• This recipe will serve 4 people as an entree; more as a side dish or accompaniment to stew or braised meat (omit the sausage).
• I used a total of 3 cups of chicken stock, and about 1/2 cup of water.
• The wine can be omitted, or you can use juice instead...apple juice will add a nice sweetness to the risotto, especially if you are using pork sausage or serving it as a side to pork.
• The green beans added a crunchy contrast to the creamy risotto, as well as visual appeal.
• The sprig of rosemary added a lot of flavour, so did the sausage. The leftover cream sauce had garlic in it, so all the dish really needed was salt and pepper to round out the seasoning.
• Instead of sausage try cooked diced bacon or chicken breasts, especially if they have been marinated first. Dice, skewer and grill the chicken breast and top each portion with a kebab.
• The rice can be cooked a couple of days ahead, and kept well wrapped in the fridge. Make extra and you can make risotto balls to freeze for another meal. Roll the cold risotto into 2" balls, dip in egg wash and then roll in breadcrumbs. Bake in a 425F oven for about 20 minutes. They can be stuffed with cheese before coating in egg and breadcrumbs.
• Add herbs and spices to give character to your risotto...fresh basil, thyme or sage; chili flakes, crushed fennel seeds or paprika. Add garlic, fresh or roasted. Instead of roasted sweet pepper, why not roast some hot peppers, and add them for the smokiness and extra heat.
• Brown rice can be substituted for arborio rice.
• Peel and dice butternut squash, toss in olive oil and spices, roast until tender. Add this into the risotto just before serving. 
• Extra pumpkin from making pumpkin pie? Stir some into a risotto, add minced fresh sage, a pinch of nutmeg, a bit of cream and top with goat cheese.

Smoked Tomato Soup with Pull-apart Cheese Buns

Time to use up the smoked roma tomatoes that hubby made, and I threw into the freezer. Add to that the bit of tomato paste in the fridge, and the 3 carrots that were left.

Easy, filling and comforting tomato soup...

...with some pull-apart cheese buns, that I added some fresh thyme and roasted garlic to.







As far as the smoked tomatoes go, they can be exchanged for canned plum tomatoes, or oven roasted roma tomatoes, as not everyone is as lucky as I am, having a husband who enjoys smoking various foods for me to cook! If you still want to achieve the smoky flavour, add some bacon into the recipe.

I started off with the bread dough, then put the soup on to simmer while it rose. Then while the bread was baking, I finished off the soup.

Measure out the flavourings for the bread first:

1/2 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 head of garlic, roasted
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 cup grated cheddar

Into the bowl of a stand mixer, measure out:

1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon active dried yeast.

Add 2 1/2 cups warm water and leave it to start bubbling, about 2 minutes.

When the yeast starts to bubble, add the flavourings in, along with:
1/3 cup olive oil
2 heaping cups of wholewheat flour
3 - 4 cups all purpose flour






Use the dough hook on a medium to low speed, adding the all purpose flour as needed, until it forms a ball of shaggy looking dough, that is not too wet and sticky.

Turn the dough out onto a floured counter, and finish kneading by hand, until you have a smooth, elastic dough.

Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Leave it in a draft free spot of your kitchen to rise until it has at least doubled in volume, approximately 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

When the dough has risen, lightly punch the air out and turn it out onto a lightly floured counter.

Pre-heat the oven to 350F, and lightly grease 2 loaf pans.

Divide the dough into 2 pieces; form one piece into a regular loaf and place into one of the loaf pans, leaving it to rise until doubled again.

Divide the remaining dough into 10 pieces, rolling each into a ball.

Place the 10 dough balls into the other loaf pan, and leave to rise again, while the oven heats.






When the balls and the large loaf have doubled in size again, brush the tops with cold water and bake for 45 minutes. The tops will be golden and crispy, and when you remove them from the pans they will sound hollow when you knock on the bottom of the loaf. The loaf and buns should be removed from the pans to a cooling rack immediately, to avoid sweating.

Place the warm pull apart buns on a plate, and allow people to help themselves...pulling your own warm bun from the 'loaf' is part of the fun of this bread!

Now for the soup...

Heat a large pot, and drizzle in a bit of olive oil.

Add:

3 large carrots, diced
1 medium onion, diced
Salt and pepper

Cook these until the onions start to soften slightly.

Add the herbs and tomato paste:

a few sprigs of fresh parsley
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
1/4 cup tomato paste
4 cloves garlic, peeled

Stir the tomato paste in well, and cook for a couple of minutes.

Next add in the tomatoes. I used about 12 smoked roma tomatoes.

There is no need to peel them, as the soup will be pureed and strained.

Now add in enough chicken stock to cover the tomatoes. I used about 2 - 3 cups.

Allow the soup to come to a boil, then turn it down and let it simmer until the carrots and onions are soft.

Using a hand blender (my preference), blender or food processor, puree the soup.

Then strain it through a fine mesh strainer to remove any seeds and tomato skins.

Return the soup to the stove to reheat. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Adjust the consistency if needed, by adding more chicken stock, or even whipping cream.







I served the soup garnished with crumbled goat cheese., passing the warm bread at the table.

• The bread and buns can be frozen.
• Flavouring the bread is a great way to use up little bits of things such as olives, cheese, cooked onions, fresh herbs and adding extra spice such as curry powder, sambal oelek (garlic chili paste) or canned chipotle peppers will add a boost of flavour.
• The buns can be rolled and baked as individual buns on a parchment lined baking sheet; adjust the cooking time to approximately 20 - 25 minutes. Turn one over and knock on the bottom; if it sounds hollow, it is done.
• This soup is a basic method that can be used for most vegetables. Vegetables such as carrots, butternut squash, parsnip, sweet potato will thicken themselves. Vegetables such as asparagus, spinach, roasted red pepper, cauliflower or broccoli will need to have potato added to help thicken the soup.
• Onions can be switched for leeks or shallots, or even a combination.
• Personalize the soup by using herbs or spices of your choice...paprika, chipotle, cayenne, basil, fennel seeds, cumin.
• If you like a chunky soup rather than a smooth one, after it is pureed and strained add in things such as black beans, bacon, corn, peeled and chopped tomatoes.
• As I mentioned at the start of this post, the smoked tomatoes can be substituted with canned plum tomatoes, or roasted roma tomatoes. To roast the tomatoes, cut them in half, place in a baking dish, sprinkle with salt, pepper and herbs such as basil or thyme. Drizzle with olive oil and roasted at 400F until the skins wrinkle and the tomatoes start to colour slightly.
• If you choose to add bacon, I suggest cooking the diced bacon, removing it and the fat from the pan, and then proceeding with the recipe in the same pan. Add the bacon back after pureeing the soup, or use it as a garnish.
• Garnishes for the soup can include sour cream, pesto, crumbled soft cheese such as goat or blue cheese, croutons, cooked diced bacon, grated hard cheese such as white cheddar or Parmesan.
• The soup will keep in the fridge for 2 - 3 days, and also freezes well.