Things have been a little hectic around here lately, so we took a little break - but it's time to get back into the swing of things!
Next, we made the homemade ravioli. You will need to decide what you want to fill the ravioli with. We opted to make an Italian sauage/ricotta filling. First, we removed the Italian sausage from its casings, and sauteed it.
After you have placed the filling on the dough, moisten the bottom edge, the sides, and in between each dollop with a bit of water on your finger - this will help to seal the ravioli. After you fold over the top half of dough, press gently where you want to seal: the bottom edge, the sides, and in between each dollop.
Next, you will use this handy tool to cut and crimp the edges around each ravioli.
When you have cut out the ravioli, let them rest on a floured surface until you are ready to cook them. When you boil them, they will take less time than store bought ravioli - we found about 5 minutes was perfect.
Today was 'chore' day around the house and garden and homestead, so we decided to cook something that could simmer while we worked - and cheese/sausage ravioli with gravy and homemade rustic bread seemed to fit the bill.
We started with the Dutch Oven Rustic Herb Loaf:
Ingredients:
1 cup warm water
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 heaping tablespoon fresh herbs such as rosemary, sage or thyme, chopped
4 cups bread flour
2 teaspoons salt
olive oil
Instructions:
Dissolve the yeast into warm water; let sit for 5 minutes.
Melt butter in a small saucepan. once melted, remove from heat and add chopped fresh herbs. Allow to cool slightly.
Add flour to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add salt; slowly add the yeast mixture and the butter mixture. Mix until dough comes together. If necessary, add additional water or flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough clears the bowl, but isn't sticky to the touch.
Knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 7 to 10 minutes. You may also knead by hand - it will just take longer.
Let rise in a greased bowl, covered, about 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Punch down the dough and knead a few times by hand to redistribute the yeast. Reshape the dough. In a cast iron dutch oven, pour enough olive oil to coat the bottom. Place the dough in the prepared dutch oven. Use a sharp knife to cut an "X" into the dough. Drizzle the dough with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt. Cover with the dutch oven lid, and let rise an additional 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Bake for 30 minutes, covered. Remove the lid of the dutch oven and bake for an additional 15 to 30 minutes until loaf is browned. Let cool completely before slicing.
We enjoyed the bread as a first course with some amazing spanish olive oil (L'estornell Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil - available online) and a lovely 2004 Isole e Olena Cepparello Sangiovese
Next, we removed the sausage from the heat, and placed it in a bowl. We added ricotta cheese, shredded mozzarella cheese, and fresh basil and mixed well.
We let the filling sit while we made the ravioli dough.
For the dough, all you will need is 1 cup all purpose flour and 1 large egg. If the resulting dough is too dry, you made need to add a tiny bit of water; if the resulting dough is too wet, you may need to add flour.
Place 1 cup of flour on the work surface and create a 'well' in the middle.
Add the egg to the well, and using a fork, whisk the egg, slowly incorporating the flour from around the well.
Take your time here. You will eventually work in all the flour and form the dough into a ball. At this point, evaluate the dough to see if it is too dry, too moist or just right. It shouldn't be tacky, and it shouldn't be crumbly. Address any issues with the dough here. When you are happy with the dough, let it rest for 15 to 30 minutes.
While dough is resting, you can get your Atlas pasta machine set up. You will want the rollers to be at their furthest apart setting.
Divide the dough in half, covering with a moist towel the half you are not working with. Flatten the dough half into a disk, and run it through the pasta maker.
Fold dough over by thirds, and run it through again. You will need to do this several times until the dough is smooth and flawless in appearance.
Now, start adjusting the setting incrementally to bring the rollers closer together. Run the dough through, and then re-adjust the setting, bringing the rollers closer. Continue with this process until the dough is the thickness you desire. If the dough becomes too long, you can always cut it in half. For ravioli, I have found that the "6" setting seems to work well.
Lay the dough on a flat surface, and trim the angled ends off so you have a rectangle. imagine a line running lengthwise down the middle of the dough. You will want to keep your filling below this imaginary line because you will eventually fold the dough over the filling that you placed on the bottom half. Be sure to space the filling dollops evenly apart.
Next, we made the vodka sauce - super easy!
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
28 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
1/3 cup vodka
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup fresh chopped basil
1/2 to 3/4 cup half and half
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Fresh black pepper, to taste
Instructions:
In a large saute pan, heat olive oil over medium heat; add onions and garlic and cook until soft, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add red pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute. stir in tomatoes and vodka and continue cooking the mixture for 5 to 7 minutes until slightly reduced, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the tomato paste, balsamic vinegar, salt and black pepper to atse. reduce heat to low and simmer partially covered for 20 minutes until reduced by half, stirring occasionally.
Transfer tomato mixture to a food processor or blender, add basil, and puree until smooth. return sauce to the pan and stir in half and half. You want a creamy and slightly sweet consistency. Start with 1/2 cup of half and half, taste, and add more if needed. cook until warmed through, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in Parmesan cheese.
Now, back to the pasta. You will need to get a pot of water boiling. Once boiling, carefully add the ravioli. It is worth noting that fresh pasta takes less time to cook than dried pasta. Normally, it cooks for 5 to 7 minutes, but this may vary so check it periodically.
Drain the ravioli and place on plates. Top with vodka sauce, and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Enjoy!
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