Normally I'm not a fan of raviolis with just ricotta. Luckily these raviolis have four cheeses! The raviolis are soft, cheesy, and go perfect with a tomato-based sauce. I made a double batch and frozen the leftover uncooked ravioli.
To learn how to make: the creamy sundried tomato sauce
The recipe is here and pictures of the process are below:
Ingredients:
Pasta:
~3 to 3 1/2 cups flour
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tsp. salt
Ravioli Filling:
1 15 oz. container ricotta cheese, strained for 1-2 hours in the refrigerator to remove excess liquid
1 8 oz. package cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
2 eggs
1 Tbsp. dried parsley
1 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 1/4 tsp. dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp. salt
Egg Wash (if necessary):
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
Directions:
If making pasta dough by hand: Pour about 3 cups flour into a mound on a clean work surface. Create a well in the middle and crack four eggs into the well and add olive oil and salt. Use a fork to scramble the eggs while pulling bits of flour in at a time. When the dough gets too difficult to easily stir, use your hands to fold flour onto the dough and then start mixing with your hands. When a shaggy dough as formed, start kneading the dough and knead for 10 minutes until it’s smooth and soft. If the dough it sticky while you knead, add a little more flour at a time. Shape dough into a ball, cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.
If making pasta dough with food processor: To the bowl of a food processor, add 2 1/2 cups of flour, eggs, salt, and olive oil, and pulse until the dough comes together into a large ball (there may be some stuck to the bottom but that’s okay). Dust a work surface with ¼-1/2 cup or more flour and plop all the dough onto it. Knead the ball for ~5 minutes, adding flour a bit at a time until all the flour is used up and the dough is much less sticky. Shape into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and rest it for 30 minutes at room temperature.
Make the four-cheese filling: Combine the ricotta cheese and cream cheese together. Add in the eggs and mix. Then add the mozzarella, parmesan cheese, and spices and mix well. Refrigerate until ready to use (this will also help it firm up).
Preparing the dough: Cut the dough into 3 parts. Working with one part at a time (cover the other parts in plastic wrap), use a rolling pin to roll it into ¼ inch thickness, then fold the rounded edges inward, like a letter to form a square/rectangle. Use your fingers to squish the “letter” down and then roll out again to ¼ inch thickness. If using a pasta rolling machine, set it to the widest setting (1 on mine) and roll the dough once through each setting, adding flour if it starts to get sticky. Make sure to always add flour if the dough is getting sticky because it tears easily. If the dough gets caught in the machine, gently pull it out and cut off that piece of dough so it rolls through easier the next time. Continue rolling the dough to the 2nd most thin setting (8 on mine). Don’t roll to the thinnest setting because the dough will easily tear once filled.
Important Note: any dough that you’re not rolling thin or using to make ravioli should be covered in a container or wrapped in plastic so it doesn’t dry out. You want the dough to be sticky, it makes the ravioli process easier.
To make raviolis: Lay a pasta sheet onto a floured table. If the dough surface isn’t sticky to the touch, brush the sheet lightly with egg wash. Place 1-inch mounds (1-2 tsps.) of the cheese filling every inch or so along the middle of the sheet. Either fold the sheet in half around the balls of filling to make mezzelune (pictured below) or lay another sheet on top to make ravioli. Press around the cheese filling with your fingers to secure each mound, making sure there's no air bubbles. Use a pizza cutter to cut between each ravioli. Make sure to pinch the edges of each ravioli very well, use egg wash like a glue if necessary.
Note: The raviolis may seem very full but they will even out when you boil them.
To freeze unused raviolis: Lay them flat on parchment paper/saran wrap on a baking pan. Place in the freezer for 30-60 minutes until firm. Then store in an airtight container or bag for up to 1 month. Before using, separate each ravioli and lay out to thaw (on parchment paper) before boiling. Frozen raviolis should be boiled right out of the freezer, but may need a minute or two more to cook.
To cook raviolis: Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Stir in the ravioli, and return to a boil. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the ravioli float to the top and the filling is hot, 4 to 8 minutes. Drain well.
Makes about 1.5 lbs. (~24 oz.) of ravioli.
Add eggs, olive oil, salt, and flour to food processor. To see how it's mixed by hand: https://brock280.wixsite.com/mysite/blog/homemade-pasta-noodles
Pulse until a large dough ball forms.
Scoop everything from the processor onto a work surface dusted with 1/4 cup of flour. Start kneading the dough, adding in flour a bit at a time until it's less sticky.
Roll the dough into a ball
Wrap and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
While the dough rests, make the four cheese filling. First mix together the ricotta and room temperature cream cheese.
Then add in the eggs and mix.
Lastly, add in the other cheeses and spices and mix in. If the sauce seems very runny, add more mozzarella/parmesan to make it a little thicker.
The sauce will be wet, but during refrigeration it will set. Now back to the pasta.
On a floured work surface, smoosh the dough with your hands into a flat disk (about 3/4 inch thick).
Cut the disk into thirds
Then, working with one piece at a time (cover the rest with plastic wrap to keep moist), roll out until ~1/4 inch thick.
To turn that piece into a square, simply fold up the curved edges like a letter.
Use your hands to "smoosh" the letter down slightly and then use a rolling pin to flatted it into a 1/4 inch thick square.
Repeat the rolling and folding process with the other two pieces. Now it's time to roll them thin. (Cover the pasta dough you're not working with with plastic wrap).
The first run through of the pasta on the widest setting of the pasta roller.
Halfway through the rolling process (4th or 5th setting).
2/3rds of the way through the pasta rolling. REMEMBER to flour the dough because from this point onward it gets quite sticky.
The final run through. Repeat this process with the other 2 pieces of dough, but make sure to cover finished dough with plastic wrap to keep it from drying out.
With the sheets on a floured surface (don't flour the top of the sheet, plop on blobs of the cheese mixture. You can do two rows sandwiched between 2 sheets of dough, but my sheets were a little narrow so I did the fold-over method.
Gently fold 1/2 of the dough over itself, encasing the cheese.
Use your fingers to shape and press the dough around each cheese mound. If the dough isn't sticking to itself well, add egg wash to help it stick.
Use a pizza cutter/knife to cut the individual raviolis.
Then use the pizza cutter to cut off the corners of the ravioli so they are rounded.
And there they are!
To cook the ravioli place them in a pot of boiling, salted water and cook for 4-8 minutes until soft and they rise t the top of the water. Strain.
To freeze uncooked ravioli, place in a single layer on a lined baking pan and freeze for 30-60 minutes. When firm, add to a container or ziploc bag. Try to suck air out of the bag. (see below)
Frozen ravioli in a ziploc bag.
And viola!
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