This recipe is for a simple filling that works equally well as a stuffing for cannelloni or squash blossoms. The stuffed blossoms can be poached or baked.
Recipe information
Yield
4 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
In a bowl mix together: 1 cup ricotta cheese, 2 garlic cloves, chopped fine, 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil or softened butter, 1 egg, 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, 2 tablespoons mixed chopped herbs such as marjoram, basil, thyme, savory, parsley, or sage, Salt, Fresh-ground black pepper.
Step 2
Taste the mixture for salt and correct as needed.
Step 3
Roll out: 1 recipe Fresh Pasta (page 89).
Step 4
To make ravioli, roll out the pasta fairly thin and cut into sheets about 14 inches long. Keep the stack of well-floured pasta sheets under a towel to keep them from drying as you work with one sheet at a time. Pipe or spoon 1 tablespoon of the ricotta and herb filling along the lower third of a sheet of pasta. Keep about 1 1/2 inches between each blob of filling. Spray very lightly with a fine mist of water. Fold the upper half of the pasta over the lower half; then, starting at the fold, gently coax all the air out of the ravioli, pressing the two layers of pasta together with your fingertips. When the sheet of ravioli has been formed and pressed, use a zigzag rolling cutter to cut off the bottom edge and to cut between each portion of filling. Separate the ravioli and lay them out on a sheet pan sprinkled with flour; make sure they aren’t touching each other or they will stick together. Cover with a towel or parchment paper and refrigerate until ready to cook. Keep refrigerated right up to the time of cooking to prevent the filling from seeping through the pasta, which can cause the ravioli to stick to the pan.
Variations
Step 5
Wash and stem 1 bunch of chard or spinach. Cook in butter until soft. Cool, squeeze out all the excess water, chop well, and stir into the ricotta mixture. Reduce the amount of chopped herbs to 2 teaspoons.
Step 6
For a different sauce, cook a few whole sage leaves in butter over medium heat until the butter is slightly brown and the leaves are crisp.
Step 7
Sauce the ravioli with Simple Tomato Sauce (page 264) instead of melted butter.
Step 8
Serve in bowls with a ladle of hot broth poured over.
Step 9
For cannelloni use 1/2 recipe pasta; roll and cut the sheets into rectangles about 4 by 3 inches. Cook in salted boiling water until done, cool in cold water, and lay the rectangles out on a cloth. Pipe or spoon a couple of tablespoons of filling lengthwise along one third of a rectangle of pasta. Gently roll the pasta to form a large straw. Place the cannelloni, seam side down, in a buttered baking dish. Cover with 1 1/2 cups Simple Tomato Sauce (page 264) and bake for 20 minutes at 400°F.
