Ravioli Awesomeness

Okay, so a few had asked for this "recipe", but hopefully you all understand that I don't exactly do measurements when I cook. Three things are required for this recipe: a food processor, a pasta machine, and time. If you haven't made your own pasta, please practice first! I've lived in two very different climates, and have had to tweak my recipe for the humidity.



1 cup semolina
1/2 cup AP flour
2 eggs
basil paste (optional)
olive oil
1 lb. Italian sausage
fresh basil
ricotta cheese
parmasan cheese
mozarella cheese
1 stick of butter
bacon


Step one: base pasta. Toss into the food processor 1 cup of semolina flour, a halfish cup of AP flour, and 2 eggs. Pulse until you start to see a crumbly consistency. I like to flavor the base a little more, so I use a squirt or 2 of premade pesto or basil paste. Run the processor steadily, and drizle in olive oil. You should start to see large clumps forming. Stop the processor, and spread out a healthy length of plastic wrap. Dump the contents onto the wrap, and mash into a ball. You will need to let the pasta rest for at least 1 hour before playing further. If you are leaving overnight, refridgerate, but keep in mind it will need to be remoistened.


Step two: filling. toss into food processor the sausage, 2-3 large spoonfuls of ricotta, and parm-moz cheese (I buy this pre-shredded in abag, so I'd say about 2-3 shaks of the bag. I'm guessing it's around 1/2 a cup?). Add one handful of fresh basil (just chop the large stems off). Pulse until well combined. Put into a tuperware and let "rest" for at least a hour. This helps the flavours in the goop get all friendly.


Step three: ravioli! Run the pasta through your machine in small batches, starting at the thickest flat setting, run through several times (fold, re-run, fold, rerun), then slowly working up to the next to thinnest (on mine, this is a 5). beat 2 eggs in a bowl, and place close to your work space. lay out a strip, and cut into medium sized squares (about 1.2 inches). Brush, or use your fingers, every other square with your egg wash. Using a teaspoon, place little smooshed balls of the filling mixture into the center of your washed square. Place the dry piece on top, and press around the edges. Take each piece and make sure the edges are sealed.

I like to let these finished ravioli chill in the fridge for at least another hour to make sure they've set nicely. This is a good time to cook the bacon. drain it and set it aside to crumble during the final step.


step four: awesomeness. I like to nuke my ravioli in a shallow dish with a little water for about 3 minutes to get the sausage good and cooked, and soften the shell a bit. In a large skillet, turn on med heat, and melt half the butter. toss in the crumbled bacon pieces. lay in the ravioli in 1 even layer in the pan. swirl the pan often so they don't stick. flip after about 4-5 minutes, there should be a nice golden crispy tone to the bottom of the ravs. Once they are cooked, spoon onto a plate, sprinkle some romano cheese over the tops, then pour the butter-bacon goodness over the top.

try not to eat the plate. You'll probably have a bunch of the filling mix left over (i have no idea how to buy less than a lb. of sausage, thus the overage), but if you take this and mix in 1 lb. of ground beef and some bread crumbs, you have an awesome meatball mixture.

If you are not cooking in butter, but choose to cover with a sauce, you will want to actually want to precook the sausage in your filling prior to the mixing and stuffing.