Make Ravioli

Homemade ravioli will boost your gourmet cooking credit in short order. You can stuff it with cheese, meat, or virtually anything you like. Best of all, you can prepare this inexpensive meal for 2 in just a couple of hours—but it will taste like you worked all day! Here’s how to do it.

  • Prep time: 60 minutes (active prep: 30 minutes)
  • Cook time: 5-6 minutes
  • Total time: 65 minutes

Ingredients

To Make the Dough

  • 375 grams (3 cups) plain flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 cup (50 ml / 3½ tablespoons) olive oil
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml / 8 tablespoons) water
  • Extra flour for dusting

To Make Cheese Filling

  • 15 ounces (425 grams) container Ricotta cheese
  • 5 ounces (142 g/about 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons) "3 Cheese Italian Blend" (Parmesan, Romano & Asiago)
    • Note: grate these cheeses yourself and create your own custom blend.
  • 1/2 cup cheddar cheese
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Extras

  • Your favorite sauce for the ravioli (i.e. marinara)
  • Parmesan cheese
  • Basil
  • Fried vegetables
  • Shrimp
  • Fish slices
  • Chicken pieces

Steps

  1. Make the ravioli filling.
    • In a small mixing bowl, add the ricotta and mash with a fork.
    • Add in the 3-cheese blend, Cheddar cheese, eggs, salt, and pepper.
    • Mix all ingredients thoroughly until you have a smooth, paste-like consistency.
    • Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.
  2. Make the ravioli dough.
    • Crack eggs into a large mixing bowl and beat them with a fork. Add water, oil, and salt. Mix.
    • Add 1 cup flour to the bowl. Use a fork to mix the flour with the eggs, water, oil, and salt. Repeat with the rest of the flour. Mix until a smooth dough is formed.
    • Clear and clean off a large work surface and dust it with flour. This is where you are going to roll out your dough.
    • Take the dough out of the mixing bowl, shape it into a ball, and place it on your work surface. Knead for at least 10 minutes or until it becomes elastic.
    • Dust a rolling pin with flour to prevent the dough from sticking. Roll out the dough until it is about 1/8 inch (1/3 cm) thick, or about the thickness of 2 stacked quarters.
    • With a cookie cutter or upside-down water glass, cut out circles in the dough (will make about 15-20 dough circles).
    • Ball up the unused dough and either roll it out and make a couple more raviolis, or wrap it and put in the freezer for another time. Dough can keep for weeks when frozen. Just make sure to wrap well so that it doesn’t suffer from freezer burn or absorb freezer odor.
  3. Fill the ravioli shells.
    • Take the ravioli filling out of the refrigerator and place a tablespoon of it in middle of a dough.
    • Fill a small bowl with water, dip your fingers in, and moisten around the outer edge of the dough circle.
    • Fold the dough in half over the filling, making a half-moon shape. Be sure all the filling stays inside. Pinch the edges together and then seal the edges of the ravioli with a fork. Make sure to press firmly and go all the way around. This will add a “homemade” touch as well.
    • Repeat this process for all your dough circles.
    • Dust the finished ravioli with flour to keep them from sticking together.
  4. Form the shells and fill using a ravioli maker.
    • Roll the dough into two sheets
    • Place one sheet on the ravioli maker, and form the filling cups.
    • Fill with the ravioli mixture.
    • Lay the second sheet of dough on top, and roll it out. This will seal in the filling.
    • Remove and separate the finished raviolis.
  5. Cook the ravioli.
    • Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.
    • Place the ravioli in boiling water for 5-6 minutes, or until they float. You can also test for doneness by nibbling on the edges to test.
    • If you don't want to make all the ravioli at one time, you can freeze the rest (see Tips section).
    • Take ravioli out of boiling water with large slotted spoon and place on warmed plates
  6. Serve it up. Top with your favorite sauce, grate some fresh cheese over it, and enjoy!



Tips

  • If you’re going to freeze unused ravioli, place them about a 1/2 inch apart on a sheet, dust with flour to prevent sticking, and then freeze. Once frozen, you can transfer the raviolis into a smaller container. Cover well to prevent freezer burn and freezer odor. You can also do this with unused dough circles.
  • There are many ways to fill ravioli. This particular recipe focuses on ricotta, but you can also make filling with meat, mushrooms, spinach, squash, cheese, lobster, butternut squash, etc.
  • You can make raviolis in any shape—circles, squares, triangles—use your imagination. Just be sure you seal the tops and bottoms together well so your filling doesn’t escape.
  • You can make ravioli with a pierogi maker.
  • Don't let the dough get thinner than 1/8th inch (1/3 cm) because it will rip open when placed in boiling water. If dough gets too thin, ball it up and roll it out again.
  • Make sure everything is well floured while cooking (e.g ravioli, rolling pin, working surface) to prevent anything from sticking.

Warnings

  • Overcooking ravioli will cause it to break or disintegrate.
  • Don't put too much filling inside the ravioli dough, or it will burst while cooking.
  • Marinara sauce may splatter when being heated. It's best to cover it with a lid while it’s heating.
  • Boiling water is dangerous and can bubble a lot. Be careful placing in and taking out the ravioli.

Things You'll Need

  • Utensils:
    • Large mixing bowl (for dough)
    • Small mixing bowl (for filling)
    • A set of measuring cups
    • A set of measuring spoons
    • Rolling pin
    • A water glass or cookie cutter
    • Ramekin or small serving bowl
    • Fork
    • Large pot
    • Small pot
    • Slotted spoon
    • Plates
  • You’re also going to need:
    • Plastic wrap

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Sources and Citations

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