Rainbow Ravioli
Rainbow Ravioli
When a friend and I decided to plan a dinner party that was Italian inspired I knew I wanted to make pasta. I enjoy homemade pasta so much, but don’t find myself making it that often. It really is worth the effort. To make the meal even more festive I made a variety of vegetable based pastas and mixed them with some basic pasta dough to create these ravioli which are so pretty as well as tasty. Good news is that if you make a nice big batch- the leftover ravioli can be frozen to enjoy anytime. Recipes for all the pastas and the filling follow below. Unused dough can also be frozen and used later.
To make the rainbow effect just grab a piece of the plain dough and add a few pieces of each of the veggie pastas. As you roll out the dough the colors will begin to spread out and blend. I fold and re-roll the dough a few times to get the colors to blend a little more. Every batch is a little different.
I often use a food processor to make pasta dough, especially the vegetable pastas because I often use vegetables that need to be pureed. I have a small processor which is perfect for small batches using no more than 1 cup of flour. I often use my stand mixer for larger batches and for plain dough. Always best to make pasta dough at least 30 minutes ahead and let it rest. You can even make it the day before and chill until ready to use.
Assorted pastas
Cooked beets and flour
Process until dough forms
Freshly rolled sheets of dough
Simmer ravioli 3-5 minutes
Ready to enjoy
Basic Homemade Pasta
3 c. flour, more if using electric pasta machine. See note.
1 1/2 t. salt
4 eggs
Water, if needed
Mix flour and salt and stir in eggs, kneading until dough is smooth and elastic. Dough will be very stiff. Add a little water if needed to hold dough together. You may wish to mix the dough in a mixer or food processor. Cover dough and let rest 15-20 minutes before rolling. Under kneading your dough will result in coarse, crumbly pasta. This batch makes about 1 pound. Serves 4-6.
Roll dough out on well floured board or in pasta machine (non-electric) until desired thickness in reached. Add flour as needed to prevent sticking. Cut into strips or whatever shapes are desired. You might want to let the noodles dry 1-hour or more before cooking, but this is not necessary. Pasta can be hung to dry or separated and allowed to dry flat on a table. When pasta is not hanging to dry it must be turned occasionally to dry evenly. Although you may hear otherwise, homemade pasta, even when dried, should be frozen for long term storage. Storing at room temperature can lead to spoilage. Fresh pasta can also be stored in the refrigerator for a day or two.
Note: All electric pasta machines vary slightly and you should use their recipes as much as possible. Still, for most models, adding 1/4 c. flour for each cup in a hand rolled recipe works the best. Also recipes that contain seeds and vegetables may clog an electric pasta maker. Follow your manufacturer’s instructions.
These are smaller batches which can be mixed in a processor or by hand. If you want to mix a vegetable based pasta by hand, puree the vegetables first.
Carrot Pasta
1 c. flour
1/2 t. dried dill
1/3 c. carrot puree
1-2 T. water, if needed
Beet Pasta
1 c. flour
1/2 t. dill
1/3 c. beet puree
1-2 T. water, if needed
Spinach Pasta
2 c. flour
1 10 oz. package frozen spinach, cooked, drained, reserving some of the liquid
Mix this dough as for other pastas, but don’t be too quick to add reserved liquid. While kneading you’ll get water out of the spinach. May require more kneading and rolling than other pasta doughs. Be patient, it’s worth the work.
Broccoli Pasta
1 c. flour
1/2 c. broccoli puree
Ravioli Filling
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
2/3 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
2/3 c. ricotta or cream cheese
1/3 c. grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Combine all ingredients well and chill until needed.
Roll a batch of dough into a rectangle, 18×12 inches and 1/16 inch thick. Arrange well rounded teaspoonfuls of the cheese filling two inches apart on the pasta sheet. Roll out additional dough into an 18×12 inch rectangle. With a pastry brush moisten bottom sheet of pasta around edges with water. Place second sheet of pasta on top, using fingers to seal the dough around the edges of the filling. With a pastry wheel or sharp knife, cut between the ravioli to separate them. You should have 24 ravioli.
To cook the ravioli- just drop them into simmering water and cook 3-5 minutes. If using frozen ravioli increase cooking time by about 2 minutes. Time will differ depending on how thick you rolled the dough and how many you are cooking at one time.
