This weekend I decided to make homemade ravioli. I had a whole Saturday with no particular plans and it just felt like the right time to treat my family to something I knew they would love, Homemade Four Cheese Ravioli. This is how I express my love and appreciation for my sons and it’s also how I guarantee that they would be coming over!
Homemade Pasta
There is nothing quite like homemade pasta. It is light, tender and silky. As much as I appreciate the convenience of buying pasta in the supermarket and I will admit that there are some good dried pastas out there, it is nothing like eating homemade pasta. It is really not difficult to make but there is an art to it and it takes practice to master it. I can tell you that it is well worth investing in the time to learn how to make from scratch. Even the practice rounds are good!
There are only a three ingredients in pasta dough; eggs, flour and a pinch of salt. You can add a tiny bit of water if the dough is dry, but that is it! Once you make the dough, the “pastabilities” are endless! Fettuccini, linguini, spaghetti, lasagna, tortellini, cappelletti and of course ravioli!
What is in the filling
Ravioli have been part of Italian cuisine for centuries and the fillings vary by region. The most common fillings are ricotta, beef or sausage. This recipe uses four cheeses; ricotta, parmesan, pecorino romano and mozzarella. I mix the cheese with egg and parsley to create a creamy filling that works well with the light delicate pasta.
Making Ravioli
I use a pasta machine to roll the dough out and a ravioli template to form the pasta in the perfect size and shape. You don’t have to use a pasta machine or a form if you don’t have them but it does make the process easier. The pasta machine will quickly roll the dough to the almost paper thin thickness that you want to achieve.
Pasta Dough
As I said earlier there are only three ingredients in pasta dough; eggs, flour and a pinch of salt. I use “00” flour which is a finely ground Italian flour. “00” flour is typically used to make pasta and pizza. It creates a chewier dough then all purpose flour. If you can’t find “00” flour, you can absolutely substitute all purpose flour.
To make the dough, spoon the flour into a mound on your work surface and create a well in the middle. Break the eggs and pour them into the flour well. Using a fork or our fingers, mix the eggs, breaking them and pulling in a little of the flour at a time. Continue to mix the eggs until you have created a shaggy dough. Begin to knead the dough, continuing to add in more flour until the dough is yellow in color and it is tacky but no longer sticky. The dough should spring back when you press it with your finger. It should take 5- 10 minutes to knead the dough to the proper consistency. If your dough seems too dry, you can knead in a few drops of water. Once the dough is done, wrap it in plastic wrap and set it aside for 30-60 minutes.
Ravioli Filling
The filling is simply a mixture of the ricotta, parmesan, pecorino, mozzarella, salt, pepper and parsley. Mix it until it is well combined and set it aside while you roll out the pasta.
Assemble the ravioli
Prepare the pasta machine and the ravioli maker( the form). In a small bowl, beat an egg and set it aside. You will use this as a egg was to seal the pasta together.
- Divide the dough into 6 even pieces. Work with one piece at a time and rewrap the remainder of the dough in the plastic warp to keep it from drying out.
- Set the pasta machine on the widest setting. Flatten the dough with your hands so that it can fit in the pasta roller. Roll the dough through the machine and repeat this, continuing to reduce the settings on the pasta machine until the pasta is paper thin and you can see your hands through the pasta dough. I like to take it all the way to the thinnest setting.
- Flour the pasta sheet, set on cookie sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Repeat with the a second piece of dough.
- Lay 1 sheet of pasta dough on the bottom portion of the ravioli press and place the top of the press (this portion will fit into the bottom and will create the pocket for your filling) on the dough. Depending on how long your dough sheet is you may have to trim it so that just hangs over the press.
- Remove the top of the ravioli press and fill each pocket with about ½ teaspoon of ricotta filling.
- Brush the second sheet of pasta with the egg wash and lay it on top of the press completely covering the edges of the press.
- Use rolling pin to roll the dough against the press. Make sure that you use enough pressure to cut through the dough around each ravioli.
- Remove the excess dough around the edges of the press and carefully pop the ravioli out of the press.
- Dust the ravioli with flour and place on a cookie sheet. Cover with plastic warp while you continue making the remainder of your ravioli.
- The ravioli can be cooked immediately or you can place them on a cookie sheet in a single layer and freeze for 30-40 minutes. After they are individually frozen you can transfer them to a smaller container or a freezer bag. The ravioli can be frozen for up to 6 months.
- To cook ravioli, bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt generously. Drop the desired number of ravioli into the water and cook until the ravioli float to the top of the pot. Drain and serve with your favorite sauce.
Try these traditional Italian recipes:
How to make Nonna’s Meatballs with Tomato Sauce
Homemade Four Cheese Ravioli
Equipment
- Ravioli press
- Pasta Machine or Mixer with a pasta attachment.
Ingredients
Pasta Dough
- 3 cups Flour "00"
- 4 Eggs large
- 1 pinch Salt
- Water optional, as needed
Four Cheese Filling
- 16 oz Ricotta Cheese
- 1 Egg beaten
- ¼ cup Parmigiana Reggiano grated
- ¼ cup Pecorino Romano grated
- ⅓ cup Mozzarella shredded
- 1 tbsp. Parsley fresh, chopped
- ¼ tsp. Salt
- ⅛ tsp. Black pepper ground
Egg wash
- 1 Egg beaten
Instructions
Pasta Dough
- Pour the flour into a mound on a work surface and create a well in the middle.
- Add the eggs to the center of the flour well and sprinkle with a pinch of salt.
- Using a fork mix the eggs breaking them up and stirring in a little of the flour from the edges of the well.
- Continue stirring the eggs and pulling in the flour a little at a time until a shaggy ball of dough starts to form.
- Using your hands combine the rest of the flour into the dough ball. Knead the dough taking up as much flour as the dough will take. If the dough feels too dry you can add a few drops of water.
- Continue kneading the dough until it forms a smooth yolky colored ball of dough anywhere from 5-10 minutes. The dough is ready when it springs back up when you press it with your finger.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and set aside to rest for about 30-40 minutes.
- Divide the dough into 6 even pieces. Work with one piece at a time and rewrap the remainder of the dough in the plastic warp to keep it from drying out.
- Set the pasta machine on the widest setting. Flatten the dough so that it can fit in the pasta roller. Roll the dough through the machine and repeat this, continuing to reduce the settings on the pasta machine, until the pasta is paper thin and you can see your hands through the pasta dough.
- Flour the pasta sheet, set on cookie sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Repeat with the rest of the dough.
Filling
- Prepare the filling before you start to roll out the dough.
- If your ricotta has any liquid in it you will want to drain it. You don't want the filling to be too wet.
- Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl and stir well.
Assembling the Ravioli
- Lay 1 sheet of pasta dough on the bottom portion of the ravioli press and place the top of the press (this portion will fit into the bottom and will create the pocket for your filling) on the dough. Depending on how long your dough sheet is you may have to trim it so that it just hangs over the press.
- Remove the top of the ravioli press and fill each pocket with about ½ teaspoon of ricotta filling.
- Brush another sheet of pasta with the egg wash and lay it on top of the press completely covering the edges of the press.
- Use a rolling pin to roll the dough against the press. Make sure that you use enough pressure to cut through the dough around each ravioli.
- Remove the excess dough around the edges of the press and carefully pop the ravioli out of the form.
- Dust the ravioli with flour and place on a cookie sheet. Cover with plastic warp while you continue making the remainder of your ravioli.
- The ravioli can be cooked immediately or you can place them on a cookie sheet in a single layer and freeze for 30-40 minutes. After they are individually frozen you can transfer them to a smaller container or a freezer bag. They can be frozen for up to 6 months.
- To cook ravioli, bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt generously. Drop the desired number of ravioli into the water and cook until the ravioli float to the top of the pot, about 3 minutes. Drain and serve with your favorite sauce.
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