This Kitchen Wisdom Gluten Free Cheese Ravioli recipe is delicious and mouthwatering.  When I was a child, my grandmother used to call me the “ravioli kid”; this is because I was always asking for ravioli, even though I knew it would only be served on an occasional Sunday or holiday.  I can’t say how long I have missed this particular pasta. Having grown up in the NYC area with outstanding ravioli found at various Italian specialty food stores (which are seemingly everywhere) there was no need to make them.  The gluten free pre-packaged foods market has improved dramatically in the past 10 years and there are now frozen gluten free ravioli available in many grocery stores; however, I find these lack flavor.  Recently I decided to get into the kitchen and go for it.  I’m so glad I did! 

     These gluten free ricotta cheese filled ravioli are everything I missed and more!  I won’t lie; preparing this recipe is a labor of love, and a day long labor. There was a reason your Nonna used to make pasta all day. If one is to commit to the labor, one should make enough for a few Sundays.   These freeze wonderfully, and I therefore recommend tripling or even quadrupling the pasta dough recipe.  Use a very good quality whole milk ricotta which is as creamy as possible.  If the ricotta is too wet, it will keep the pasta from holding together.  If the ricotta you purchased has any additional liquid, hang it in a cheese cloth for an hour or so to drain.  Thankfully there are a few creamy, smooth and tasty ricottas currently on the market, I encourage you to use a product which is labeled “smooth” and/or “creamy”.   I also recommend eating fresh ravioli immediately, they are so yummy!

 

Ricotta Filling:  Yields approximately 75 Ravioli

12 ounces creamy Ricotta

3 ounces shredded Mozzarella

3 tablespoons grated Cheese (Locatelli, Parmesan, whichever your palate prefers)

Pasta:

2 batches of pasta dough:  Kitchen Wisdom Gluten Free Pasta Recipe click here

Egg wash to Seal Dough:

1 Egg beaten

 

Ricotta Filling:  Use a very good quality whole milk ricotta which is as creamy as possible.  If the ricotta is too wet, it will keep the pasta from holding together.  If the ricotta you purchased has any additional liquid, hang it in a cheese cloth for an hour or so.  In a bowl, combine the cheeses and use a spoon to turn the mixture until fully combined.  Cover the bowl and set aside until ready to use.

Counter Prep for Ravioli Assembly:  Make sure the pasta machine is clean and free from dust or pasta debris.  Attach to counter.  I place parchment paper under the machine extended into the workspace.  Attach the pasta machine to the counter, place handle crank in its slot and set the dial to the thickest setting (usually 0).  Follow the machine’s instruction for making each pasta sheet pass thinner.

Making the Pasta Dough:  click here for Kitchen Wisdom Gluten Free Homemade Pasta recipe.  Once made, knead the dough into a ball and place in a bowl.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and pluck 2” clumps as necessary. Knead each clump a bit to make the dough warm and pliable.

Making the Pasta Sheets:  Follow the instruction of your pasta machine to create pasta sheets.  Using the pasta machine:  run each clump through the maker a few times.  Make the sheet as thin as you can without it shredding, folding the sheets in half before the next pass usually circumvents this issue.  You will use two sheets to make the ravioli.  Place them on parchment.  I make a few sets, then stuff and seal and then come back to the pasta sheets.  I find this (as well as a bit of stretching every so often during the pasta prep day) helps battle repetitive motion stiffness in the neck and back the next day.

 

 

 

Ravioli Assembly:  You will need a pasta wheel to cut the ravioli.  A pizza wheel makes a fine substitute.  Pictured here are ravioli with a flat edge, my pizza wheel having been used when I couldn’t find my pasta wheel.  I place small dollops of filling in the center of what becomes the individual ravioli, egg wash the edges, followed by an additional pasta sheet on top, gentle crimping with my fingers and a finish using a wheel to cut the ravioli at a size which suits me.

 

 

1. Place a dusting of white rice flour on wax paper on an unused counter or tabletop for the completed ravioli to be placed. Beat the egg in a small bowl and set aside.
2. Place the pasta sheet on parchment. Determine how many ravioli you will be able to cut.  Each piece will need approximately three inches of space.  Two inch clumps of dough will yield pasta sheets that are approximately 9” long  x  2½ – 3” wide (roughly 3 ravioli).
3. Retrieve the bowl with the ricotta cheese filling. Determine the center of each three inch space on the pasta sheet.  Use a measuring teaspoon, place 1 teaspoon of filling into the center area of the pasta sheet three inch area.
4. Brush the egg wash around the dollops and gently place the paired pasta sheet over the top. Use your finger to ever so gently press down around the outer area of where the filling sits, be careful not to rip the pasta (when gluten free pasta becomes too wet it loses its ability to bind). With heavier pressure, press down all of the space between each ravioli.
5. Use the wheel to slice the ravioli. You can cut them to a size which suits you and return the leftover dough to the pasta dough.  Set the ravioli on the prepped wax paper.  Lay the ravioli next to other – be sure to not overlap. Gently cover ravioli with wax paper and allow to set.    When paper is full, you can allow them to sit out until you are ready to boil them, or place them in fridge if dinner is many hours away.  Place uncooked ravioli on wax paper dusted with white rice flour, lay the ravioli next to other – be sure to not overlap.  Fold the wax paper over the top and place the packet in a freezer safe plastic bag to save for a future Sunday meal.

Cooking the Ravioli:  Place a large pot of water on stove to boil – when it begins to simmer, add a teaspoon of salt.  When the water reaches a rolling boil, add the ravioli.  How thick the pasta sheets are determines the cook time.  If the sheets are thick you may need to cook the ravioli for up to 10 minutes.  If the sheets are thin, the ravioli are generally cooked when they first reach the surface.

Serve with Sunday sauce or melted butter topped with grated cheese.  Mangia!

“Cheese Ravioli” by Liz Conforti,  Forget What You Know About Wheat(c) 2015

 

Kitchen Wisdom Gluten Free Homemade Pasta Recipe

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“Cheese Ravioli” by Liz Conforti, Forget What You Know About Wheat(c) 2015

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