Homemade Ravioli with Spinach and Ricotta cheese filling, in Tomato sauce

Ingredients:

Ravioli dough(12 ravioli):

• 1 and 1/4 cup flour
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup hot water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Filling:

• 3/4 cup DeLallo Whole-Milk Ricotta
• 1/2 pound fresh spinach, chopped
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano
• A pinch freshly grated nutmeg

Sauce:

• 3 tablespoons DeLallo Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 chopped shallot
• 4 ounces lean ground veal
• 4 ounces lean ground pork
• 4 ounces sweet Italian sausage
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 1/2 cup beef or chicken broth
• 1 (28-ounce) can DeLallo Imported Crushed Tomatoes
• A pinch of fresh sage, rosemary and 2 bay leaves
• Salt and pepper

Directions

Homemade ravioli:

Mix flour with salt. Stir water with egg until well mixed.In a bowl, combine flour and egg-water mixture together and mix until well incorporated.  Knead the dough until well-textured and firm.  The dough should not be too wet or too sticky.  It should only stick to itself, but not to your hands.  However, it should not be too dry,  either.   Make the dough into a ball, cover with plastic wrap.   Let the dough stand for 1 hour at room temperature before using.  Divide the ravioli dough into 2 equal halves and roll each half into a very thin sheet with a rolling pin.  Make sure to have flour on hand and dust the working surface or rolling pan when necessary, because the dough will be sticky. It’s important that the ravioli dough be rolled very thinly (paper-thin), otherwise ravioli will be too solid when cooked, because dough expands during cooking. Also it will be really hard to use the ravioli mold if the dough is not thin enough. Once you rolled sheets of dough, shape individual raviolis. When you are done shaping ravioli, bring a big pot of water to boil, add ravioli and cook for 5 minutes, then drain. Or, alternatively, freeze ravioli until you’re ready to cook them.

The filling:

In a large bowl, combine the spinach, ricotta, one egg, half of the Parmigiano, some grated nutmeg, salt and pepper. Mix well.

The sauce:

Heat a skillet on a low; add the olive oil and then the shallot. Stir for 2 minutes, then add the herbs, meat and sausage-breaking up the sausage with a wooden spoon. Raise the flame to medium-high and cook for 5 minutes, or until meat is cooked through. Add the wine and season with salt and pepper. Cover and continue to cook on a low flame. Add broth to keep the mixture moist. Cook for 1 1/2 hours, stirring often. Add the crushed tomatoes and continue to simmer for another 30 minutes.

If you are making your own fresh filled pasta, roll out your dough fairly thinly, and using a dough-cutter wheel, cut two long rectangular strips of equal size, a little more than 3 inches wide. (Keep the rest of the dough covered with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel.) Dab a generous amount of filling every 2 to 3 inches along the dough. Place the other sheet on top and press it lightly all along the edges. Using the wheel cutter, first trim off the four sides of the rectangle; then cut out each square to form the tortelli. Seal each one well with your fingers. Lay them on a tray with some semolina flour on the bottom to avoid sticking.

Continue this procedure, preparing as many tortelli as you can, balancing the amount of filling with the remaining dough.

To cook:

In a large pot, bring a gallon of water to boil; add a half handful of salt and then add the tortelli one by one. Stir them very gently and cook for 8 minutes. Drain them with a colander or a sieve and then place them in a warm pasta bowl, alternating them with the hot meat sauce, sprinkled with Parmigiano. Be sure to offer more Parmigiano on the side.

Enjoy!