Sunday, November 23, 2008

Stuck a feather in my cap and called it ravioli!


Why?

Because I love fresh pasta, but it can be a chore to make (and besides my pasta maker broke and went in the recycle bin two months ago!). So, do we do without homemade ravioli? Not on your life. Wonton wrappers to the rescue.

What?

This recipe was inspired by a cooking class I took at the Food and Entertainment Expo last year. In the class we made fresh pasta sheets and hand chopped all the ingredients. It made for a fun time chatting with other students, but who has time for that on a regular basis? With a food processor and wonton-wrappers these raviolis are quick and versatile. The recipe below calls for walnuts, but you could easily substituted left over rotisserie chicken or cooked winter squash or sautéed mushrooms. I served mine with left over ragù (see my Going for Baroque! post from 1 Nov.) but you could easily doctor up some store bought sauce with sautéed sausage or hamburger.

How Much?

Wonton Wrappers – $3.99

Ricotta Cheese - $2.49 (8oz container)

Walnuts - $3.79 (8oz container)

Parmesan Cheese - $4.99 (6oz container)

Pesto - $3.29 (10oz jar)

Total - $15.26

The Recipe:

Pesto and Walnut Ravioli

Serves 2 (generously!)

Ingredients

8oz Ricotta cheese

8oz Walnuts

1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (plus more for garnish)

3 tablespoons pesto (homemade or store bought)

½ teaspoon each salt and pepper

24 wonton wrappers

For filling:
Place all ingredients, except wrappers, in a the bowl of a small food processor fitted with a steal blade and process until very well mixed and finely chopped. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill.

For ravioli:
Arrange 6 wonton wrappers on work surface. Place approximately 1 tablespoon cheese filling in center of each wrapper. Using fingertip, dampen edges of wrappers with water. Fold in half, pressing out air, and pinching edges to seal tightly. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling. DO AHEAD: Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover and chill.

Cook ravioli in a large pot of gently boiling, generously salted water until tender, about 3- 4 minutes. Transfer ravioli to plates and top with a sauce of your choice. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve.

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