This weekend was Ravioli madness for me. I was making Ravioli like crazy! I got a Pasta Kit and Ravioli Template and I was like a kid who got a new toy. I was very excited to play with it. I had mentioned in my Homemade Plain Ravioli – using Ravioli Template post that I was disappointed with the Ravioli attachment that came along with the kit.

But that did not stopped me from making Ravioli. Good news is, there are actually several ways to make Ravioli without using a machine, and they are even better and easier. This is what this post is all about. Homemade Ravioli using cutters, and I did not even have to buy them because I already have them in my pantry. One of those little things that I had collected along the way my baking activities.

I cannot let go of this weekend without trying them. I enjoyed making the pasta dough using the pasta roller, and I wanted to experiment more. I wanted to explore the variations that I could make with homemade pasta, and this Spinach Ravioli was first in my list among the many others that I also want to try.

I think it is a good idea to introduce some veggies in Pasta, not only for coloring but also for additional flavor. There are a lot more that I wanted to make, but let`s get to this one first. Let me show you how easy this method of making Ravioli, and how easy it is to make Spinach Ravioli Pasta. Let’s get started!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup All-purpose flour
• 1 large egg
• pinch of salt
• warm water – as needed
• 2 tbsp blanch and squeeze spinach – Around a handful of fresh spinach

Makes 16 – 18 pieces

Blanch Spinach

Squeeze water

Chop and process with egg

Add flour

Process until dough comes together

Kneed on a floured surface

Wrap and let sit for 30 minutes

Divide into half and manually flatten dough

Note: If you want to make a larger batch, general ratio is  1 large Egg for every 3/4 of  cup of flour.

Instructions:

1. Blanch spinach.
2. Squeeze excess water.
3. In a food processor, add egg, spinach and flour. Process until mixture starts to come together.
4. Transfer in a floured surface and knead until you are able to form dough into a ball. If the dough turns to dry, add a little bit of water . If it turns too wet, add a little bit of flour. Stop as soon as the dough forms into a ball. It should be not too sticky or too dry.
5. Cover with cling wrap or warm towel for 30 minutes.
6. Divide the dough into 2, slightly flatten it with the palm of your hand.
7. Adjust the pasta rollers to #1, the widest setting, and put the pasta through.  Make sure you flour the pasta dough lightly so that it doesn’t stick to the rollers.  After the dough comes through the rollers, fold it into thirds and pass it through the #1 slot again.  Do this 3-4 more times. The pasta will become very soft and velvety.  Adjust the rollers to the next thinnest setting, #2, and put the pasta through.  Do not fold the pasta this time.  Keep passing it through the rollers, adjusting them thinner, until you reach the thickness you like.  For ravioli, I used between #5 or #6  settings. Beyond 6, it will be too thin.  As you pass the pasta through narrower settings, the pasta may become sticky again – keep lightly flouring it.
8. At this point, you now have fresh pasta sheets that you could fill. You are now ready to assemble the ravioli.
   • If you want to make a cut pasta like linguini or fettuccine, they must dry just a little on the counter before cutting them. If you cut them before they have dried a little, the cutters will not cut them cleanly through. Dry them too much, however, and they will be brittle.

Feed into pasta roller , start at settings 1

Fold

Feed again in pasta roller

Continue feeding while adjusting the setting, up to maximum 5

Scoop filling, leaving 1-inch distance between each filling

Brush corners with water

Fold

Press all sides to seal

Run pasta wheel cutter along the sides

remove excess dough

Cut into squares

Dust with flour

Assembly using pastry wheel cutter:

1. Take one rolled-out sheet of pasta dough and place on a well floured surface. Cover any other sheets of pasta dough with a clean towel.
2. Place a straight line of teaspoonfuls of filling about 1-inch apart on the bottom half of the sheet of pasta. The amount of space between the teaspoonfuls will depend on how big you want your ravioli to be. Make sure not to use too much filling otherwise the ravioli may rip or burst while cooking.
3. Gently fold over the top half of the pasta sheet.
4. To form a seal, dip a pastry brush in water and brush the outside of the filling or edges to create a glue.
5. Press the pasta down around each mound of filling, making sure to squeeze out any air pockets.
6. Use a fluted pastry wheel, ravioli stamp or square cookie cutter (see photos below) to cut out ravioli. You may need to trim away extra pasta from the edges. Place the ravioli in a single layer on a lightly floured baking sheet. Fill, seal, and cut out as many sheets of dough as you desire.

Assembly using ravioli stamp or square cookie cutter:

For assembly using Ravioli Template, please click on the link.

Cooking Ravioli:

1. You can cook the pasta in gently boiling salted water for about 2 minutes or until al dente or you can freeze the ravioli for later.The frozen ravioli can go straight into gently boiling salted water for about 5 minutes, or until al dente.

Freezing Ravioli:

1. Lightly flour the ravioli pasta.
2. Arrange in a flat surface or tray and let stand and dry in room temperature for 30  minutes.
3. Cover and put the tray in the freezer for at least 1 hour or until frozen. Preferably arrange ravioli in one layer only to retain the shape and avoid getting squeeze.
4. Remove and transfer in a ziplock bag or air tight container.

Ravioli can be kept frozen in the freezer for 2 months . Place ravioli inside a heavy-duty freezer bag in order to prevent freezer burn.

Ready for initial freezing. Once frozen, I removed Ravioli from the tray and transferred it to smaller ziplock bag. I then put it inside a tight container and store in the freezer for future use.

Filling options:

Easy Cheese Filling Ingredients:

• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan (1 1/2 ounces)
• 1 large egg, beaten
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Easy Cheese Filling Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl combine all ingredients with a spatula until the mixture is smooth. Make ahead: mixture can be covered and chilled overnight.

Mushroom Filling Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter
• 1 pound quartered mushrooms
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 large egg yolk

Mushroom Filling Instructions:

1. Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add the mushrooms, thyme, salt and pepper to taste, and cook until the liquid evaporates and the mushrooms are tender and brown, about 10 minutes.
3. Remove to a food processor bowl and let cool. Pulse the mixture until the mushrooms are finely chopped.
4. Add the ricotta, Parmesan, and egg yolk to the food processor bowl and pulse the mixture until just blended. Make ahead: mixture can be covered and chilled overnight.

Meat Filling Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 pound ground meat (such as beef, veal, pork, or even sausage)
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Meat Filling Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add the garlic and meat and cook, breaking up the meat into small pieces, until browned and cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Drain off the fat and remove to a medium bowl. Let cool.
4. Add the ricotta, Parmesan, egg, basil, salt and pepper to taste and stir until well combined. Make ahead: mixture can be covered and chilled overnight.

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Recipe Adapted from: Handle the Heat and Italian Dish