What a beautiful week it has been. The past few days have brought 70° weather to the great city of Holyoke of which I am so thankful for. It felt like a Florida vacation after the bitter cold winter we have had this year. I got to sit outside in my shorts, crack open a cold beer, and even fire up the grill a few nights for this week's dinners. I've also managed to set aside some time to make the next dish for this blog, asparagus and ricotta ravioli.
This next dish is similar in theme to the previous one that I posted in that it involves a few great ingredients, minimally altered, and perfectly combined in harmony. A common theme throughout this book. However, unlike the first post where I made pappardelle noodles out of Mario's basic pasta recipe, making ravioli requires a little bit more technique and attention to detail. This is why I have included some extra photos at key points throughout the making of this dish.
I assure you that mastering this technique will open up a whole new realm of possibilities for you the home cook. Ravioli can be filled with virtually anything, made ahead of time and frozen, and quickly retrieved and prepared for a fast meal during the week when time is not on you side, or should an unexpected houseguest pop up at the last minute.
I started by making Mario's basic pasta recipe, beating the eggs and oil in the middle of the well, and slowly working in more flour as I go along the wall's edge until the egg/oil mixture and flour start to come together.
Once this happens I start the kneading process. It will start to come together and form what looks like a shaggy ball.
It looks quite dry at this stage doesn't it? Just keep kneading and the proper amount of flour will incorporate into a dough while the rest will just fall to the side.
In total, it will take about 6 to 8 minutes of straight kneading to get it to look like this:
Next, take 20 good-sized spears of asparagus and slice them thinly on the bias. They get blanched for about a minute and a half and then submerged in an ice bath. You will want to reserve a small handful for the garnish.
The filling is pretty simple. It includes the rest of the blanched asparagus, ricotta cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, olive oil, and a little bit of salt-and-pepper. Mario doesn't pulse the filling in a food processor, but if you prefer to have a smoother mouth feel in your ravioli by all means go for it.
After rolling out the pasta sheets on the thinnest setting, place a spoonful of the filling on the sheets about an inch apart.
Next, the pasta sheet gets folded over and sealed. Make sure to get all of the air pockets out and form a really tight seal. Otherwise when they are dropped in the water to cook, the edge of the dough will open and separate, causing the filling to ooze out into your pasta water.
I used a pasta wheel cutter for the final shaping. It's a good idea to double check the seal of the ravioli at this point, again to avoid future mishaps. When finished, they can be set aside for cooking or frozen to save for a later date.
The final assembly is really quick and simple. As the ravioli cook in boiling salted water, you melt some butter in a seperate pan and heat the reserved asparagus. When the ravioli are fully cooked, toss with the asparagus and shave some good Parmigiano-Reggiano over it, adding a few tablespoons of the starchy pasta water which will help bind it all together.
This makes an excellent appetizer or main course and is perfectly light and so tasty. I opted not to cook all of the ravioli that I made, and I froze the rest for a future Meatless Monday.
I recently listened to a YouTube video of Mario being interviewed and he was asked about meals at the Batali household. His family observes a growing trend amongst many chefs and celebrities called Meatless Monday. It's quite self explanatory. You give up eating meat on Mondays. I haven't officially made the pledge yet but it does intrigue me. It lowers our carbon footprint, reduces the home food bill, and adds the possibility of variety in the weekly meal. Its origins come from the food rations of World War II, when many Americans sacrificed their daily pleasures for the good of the war effort. It kind of ended after the war was over, but regained momentum in 2003. Maybe I'll give it a try. Who's with me?
What do I tackle next? Hmmm...hard to pick. I'll bet sitting out back watching a warm April sunset with a plate of these ravioli will help me decide.
Until next time...
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