This is a simple, pure version of cheese ravioli, without the eggs that are usually added to firm up the filling. Use fresh whole-milk ricotta with large curds and drain it thoroughly to get the best consistency. With creamy fillings such as this one, I feel that a slightly thicker dough provides more texture and is preferable to a very thin dough. If you roll your dough strips to get eighteen or twenty ravioli—following the guidelines below—that’s better than trying to stretch them to get twenty-four. All you need is enough sauce to coat the ravioli lightly. So those small portions of sauces you have saved in the freezer might be just enough to dress a batch.
Recipe information
Yield
for filling about 20 ravioli
Ingredients
For Finishing
Preparation
Filling the Ravioli
Step 1
Following the master method, page 189, roll dough strips for filling.
Step 2
For each raviolo, scoop a scant tablespoon of ricotta, shape it round, and drop in place. Press a shallow well in the soft top of the round and fill with drops of olive oil—barely 1/4 teaspoon on each portion.
Step 3
Press two or three cubes of mozzarella into the ricotta round, covering the oil. Sprinkle a good pinch of sea salt on and around the ricotta; do the same with a pinch of white pepper. Cover and cut ravioli as detailed in the master method below.
Finishing the Ravioli
Step 4
Cook and sauce ravioli as on page 192. Remove pan from heat, sprinkle over them the freshly grated cheese, and serve.
Variation: Ricotta and Goat Cheese Ravioli
Step 5
Use the formula and procedure for Simple Ricotta Ravioli, but replace half the ricotta (about 6 ounces) with an equal amount of fresh, creamy goat cheese.
Step 6
I recommend the same tomato sauces or “cacio e pepe” sauce (see facing page).
Good Sauces for This...
Step 7
Tomato sauces, the fresher the better: Slow-Cooked Summer Tomato Sauce (page 256), Marinara Sauce with Fresh Basil (page 130), or the Two-Minute Fresh Tomato and Basil Sauce (page 183), even frozen Simple Tomato Sauce (page 132), with shredded fresh basil.
