When it comes to Italian food, there is nothing like this easy homemade ravioli recipe. Ravioli are so versatile because there are so many options for the filling.
We happened to be visiting Sammy, and, as luck would have it, he was making ravioli. This was a great opportunity to capture the process and post it.
The filling that Sammy had ready was ricotta cheese, sausage, and spinach. This is one of the many fillings you can use for ravioli.
Filling with ricotta cheese, sausage, and spinach:
1 lb. (16 oz.) ricotta cheese
1/2 lb. Italian bulk sausage (cooked, crumbled, and cooled)
1 egg
2 cups chopped spinach (fresh or frozen)
1 clove minced garlic (Optional)
salt and pepper to taste
In a small frying pan, cook the sausage. Break it up as fine as possible while cooking. Let the sausage cool before mixing with the ricotta cheese.
Mix the ricotta cheese, spinach, garlic, egg, and salt and pepper in a mixing bowl. Now add the cooled sausage and mix well. Cover and refrigerate while you make the dough.
The Dough:
4 cups all-purpose flour (more if needed)
4 eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
We use our KitchenAid Stand Mixer for this. Add the flour, olive oil, and salt into the mixing bowl. Add one egg at a time, mixing on low speed. Do this until a ball of dough forms, then knead it by hand on a floured surface. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
If you don't have a stand mixer, you can mix the dough by hand. Mound the flour onto a clean surface. Use your fingers starting in the middle of the mound to create a well. Add your eggs, oil, and salt to the middle and work in the flour. Knead by hand until the dough is formed.
Tip: If the dough is too dry add a teaspoon of water or more as needed. Or, if the dough is too wet add a little more flour.
Getting ready to roll the dough. Cut the dough into four equal sections. I know, here you only see three, that's because Sammy has one in the roller.
Easy Homemade Ravioli Recipe: Rolling the Dough
Again, if you don't have a KitchenAid or a pasta machine, get out the rolling pin. Take one section of dough and, on a floured surface, roll it into a circle as thin as possible without holes or tears. Cut about 4-inch strips.
Lay the strip of dough on a floured surface and cut it in half. Sammy used a 1-1/2 tablespoon scooper to place the filling onto the dough. With two fingers, Sammy spreads a little water on both halves of the dough. The water helps stick the dough together.
Place the second half of the dough over the filling. Lightly press around the filling to form the ravioli.
Now Sammy centers this handy ravioli cutter over the filling and firmly presses to cut out the ravioli. Tip: If you don't have one of these handy cutters, just use a mason jar; you'll get the same tasty ravioli, just round.
After cutting the ravioli, carefully pull the extra dough away. Roll out the extra dough into another strip and make more.
Sammy yielded about 30 delicious ravioli from this recipe.
As I said, in the beginning, there are so many options for ravioli fillings here is our typical ricotta cheese filling recipe.
Ricotta Cheese Filling:
1 lb. ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons parsley
1 clove garlic, minced (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
Here is a link for 20 more ravioli-filling ideas
You might also like this easy-to-make marinara sauce
You might also like this easy-to-make marinara sauce
As always, thanks for stopping by, and I hope you enjoy
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