Spinach, Lemon and Ricotta Ravioli
-a recipe from the potager-
Filling Ingredients
-1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
-10 ounces fresh spinach, cleaned and trimmed
-1 large free range egg
-1 cup good quality grated Parmesan cheese
-1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
-Zest of one lemon plus the juice of half of the lemon
-Kosher Salt, to taste
-Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Method
Set a fine-mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth or a couple over a bowl. Add the ricotta and allow it to strain out excess liquid for 5 to 10 minutes as you continue with the prep.
Boil a large saucepan of salted water. Plunge the spinach in to blanch it, then remove it 30 seconds later.
Drain and cool the spinach under cold running water to stop the cooking.
Squeeze the liquid from the spinach until dry and finely chop
In a medium bowl, combine the chopped spinach with ricotta cheese, egg, Parmesan cheese, and nutmeg, lemon zest and juice.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Store filling covered in the fridge while you make the pasta dough.
Pasta Ingredients
-2 cups all-purpose flour, or more as needed
-1teaspoon kosher salt
-3 free range large eggs
-2 large free range egg yolks
Method
Making the Pasta Dough
Place the flour in a clean surface and create a well in the middle.
Gently pour the egg mixture into the well, careful not to let it overflow.
Using a fork, gently incorporate the flour into the egg mixture a little at a time.
Once you have incorporated all of the flour together with the egg using a fork, switch to a dough scraper if you have one, or use your fingertips to really blend the mixture together.
After the wet and dry ingredients have been well combined, using the dough scrapper, bring the mixture together with your hands to form a ball. If the dough seems too dry, beat an extra egg and add some of it to the dough a little at a time. You might not need a whole extra egg. You need to end up with a dough that doesn't stick and is malleable, so more moisture is sometimes needed.
If the mixture is too wet and sticks to your fingers, rub your hands with flour and form the dough into a ball. Do the same once more if needed but be careful not to overdo the amount of flour because you'll end up with a dry ball that might need more moisture.
Once you have a dough that is easy to handle, doesn't stick to your hands, and keeps its shape when formed into a ball, knead the pasta dough as you would with bread dough.
Continue this until the dough is smooth, for about 7 to 10 minutes.
Using the dough scraper, cut the dough into 3 equal sections. Alternatively, you can weigh your dough and divide it into 3 equals parts.
Form each section into a ball, and cover the dough balls with a towel or bowl. Let rest for 15 minutes
Roll the Pasta
A pasta machine is best for rolling and cutting the dough. Although expensive, these machines cut the rolling and cutting time in a third, and are convenient because they give you many options depending on your preferences.
If you're using a pasta machine:
Flatten one of the dough balls with the palm of your hand until it's about 1/2 inch thick and no wider than the slot of the pasta machine.
Sprinkle it with flour to make sure it doesn't stick to the machine.
Turn the handle while feeding the dough into the slot with the slot of the pasta machine on its widest setting (usually 1).
Hold the flattened dough as it comes out of the pasta machine, but don't pull on it.
After the dough has completely passed through the pasta machine, turn the slot down to the next smallest setting and pass the dough through the slot. Continue to do this, making the slot smaller by 1 each time. Don't try to skip a number, as this will only cause the machine to jam and you'll end up with a crumpled dough.
As you continue rolling the pasta, your sheet of dough will get longer and longer. Try to gently hold the dough as it exits the pasta machine so it doesn't tear.
Continue passing the dough through the machine until it's about 1/16th of an inch thick.
Lay out one sheet of pasta and space your filling of choice around two finger spaces apart.
The amount of filling will depend on the size of ravioli you want to make but I usually go for 1 heaped teaspoon per ravioli.
Next, lay your second sheet of pasta directly over the first and lightly cup your hands around the filling, pressing lightly to seal whilst pushing out any air.
Finally using a pasta wheel or sharp, non-serrated knife, cut the sides of the ravioli and cut them into individual squares. You can neaten them up and make them smaller if you like.
Once cut, crimp the edges with a fork.
Cooking the Ravioli
When you’ve made all of the ravioli bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well. Add your ravioli to the boiling water, stir to make sure none of them stick to the bottom then boil for 3 minutes.
Transfer the ravioli to the sauce of your choice using a slotted spoon and toss to coat. Serve in bowls topped with extra grated Parmigiano Reggiano.
