Sausage and Ricotta Ravioli

I decided to give homemade ravioli a try again. Since I don't have a pasta machine, the easy Carpi pasta is more appetizing to me because I only need two ingredients: flour and hot water. The trick to this pasta is to roll out pretty thin and to work quickly because the pasta tends to dry out fast. Anyhoo, I created this recipe and it was delish! I used homemade meat sauce and it only made the meal more fabulous. Thick, sliced garlic bread is a must for this dish.

INGREDIENTS (Makes about 24 ravioli)

• 1/4 lb. bulk Italian sausage

Dough:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1 cup very hot water, or more or less depending on the humidity

Filling:

• 3/4 cup whole milk ricotta
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup pre-cooked mini sausage meatballs
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Sauce:

• Homemade meat sauce or your favorite jarred pasta sauce

DIRECTIONS

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Form mini meatballs with the bulk sausage, about the size of a pearl. You'll get about 40 to 50 mini-meatballs. Place them in an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 5 minutes, then turn meatballs over and bake another 4 to 5 minutes. Let cool and set aside in refrigerator.

For the dough: In a large bowl combine the flour and the water; I used 1 cup + 2 tablespoons hot water because it was 72 degrees with 7% humidity here in San Diego. If you're in a very humid area, you may want to use slightly less than a cup. Using a wooden spoon, stir to combine into a large ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 10 minutes.

For the filling: Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl and gently stir to combine.

To form the ravioli, cut the dough into 4 evenly sized pieces. The dough should be slightly sticky. Add extra flour as necessary for rolling, but use only a little as necessary. Form each piece into a 2 by 6-inch rectangle. Recover the dough with the plastic wrap.

Lightly dust the work surface and a rolling pin. Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, roll the dough into a 4 by 15-inch rectangle. Place 5 rounded tablespoons of filling about 1-inch apart down the center of the dough. Fold the dough over the filling. Press down around the edges of each of the ravioli with your fingertips. Cut the ravioli into small squares and press down around the edges again with your fingertips to seal, or use a ravioli cutter to make life easier. Place the finished ravioli on a baking tray and continue forming the remaining ravioli.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add half the ravioli and cook until the ravioli float stirring occasionally, about 3 to 4 minutes. Drain into a large bowl and cook the remaining ravioli. Serve ravioli with spoonfuls of pasta sauce and enjoy the goodness.

Gnocchi di Ricotta alla Gorgonzola

Oh my goodness...I made these deadly ricotta gnocchi last night and I'm pretty sure I went into some type of cholesterol shock. For me, the gorgonzola sauce was a bit too rich, so next time I will cut down on the amount of cheese. Additionally, you just need a little sauce on the gnocchi because the gnocchi are already rich enough. For me, 4 or 5 gnocchi as a side dish (or even a light lunch) is enough. Nevertheless, I think I like the ricotta gnocchi better than the regular potato gnocchi. I also tried the ricotta gnocchi with just a regular marinara sauce, and they were quite yummy, too. Anyway, if you have high cholesterol or are some type of diabetic, you should probably not try this...but, dang, is it sinful!

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 container (15 ounces) ricotta cheese
• 6 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour or as needed
• 5 oz. Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled or chopped
• 3/4 cups cream
• 2 oz. butter

DIRECTIONS

In medium bowl, combine ricotta, Parmesan, parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Sprinkle flour over ricotta mixture and, with your hands, work mixture into soft, smooth dough. If dough is sticky, add some flour. Work dough just until flour is incorporated into cheese mixture; do not overwork.

Break off piece of dough; on lightly floured surface, roll into 3/4-inch-thick rope. (If rope doesn't hold together, return to bowl with remaining dough and work in more flour.) Cut dough rope into 3/4-inch lengths. Place one piece of dough on inside curve of fork tines, gently pressing on dough with thumb as you roll dough along tines. Allow dough to drop off fork, slightly curling in, forming an oval. One side of gnocchi will have ridges and opposite side will have an indentation. Repeat rolling, cutting, and shaping with remaining dough. (Gnocchi can be made up to 4 hours ahead to this point. Arrange in floured jelly-roll pan; cover and refrigerate. Make sure your gnocchi rest at least 15 minutes in the fridge for the gluten to develop.)

The sauce: Melt the chopped Gorgonzola cheese in the cream with the butter and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper over a low flame.

In 5-quart saucepot, heat 4 quarts water to boiling over high heat. Add half of gnocchi and cook until gnocchi float to the surface, 2 to 3 minutes. With slotted spoon, transfer gnocchi to warm shallow serving bowl. Repeat with remaining gnocchi. To serve, pour the Gorgonzola sauce over the gnocchi, mix gently and serve at once.

If gorgonzola cheese sauce is too much for you, you can also use a regular jarred marinara sauce on the ricotta gnocchi. I kind of liked the tomato sauce a little better.