Hello my Foodie Friends!
Colder temperatures call for our favorite comfort foods. Pasta can be a perfect comfort food. One of my favorite pasta dishes includes ravioli. Ravioli is an all time favorite traditional food of Italy that has been prepared for generations. The idea of making ravioli may seem daunting, but once you’ve got the hang of rolling out pasta, it’s pretty easy. Ravioli fillings can, and should, go beyond cheese. Think of ravioli as a pasta pocket for just about anything from meat to fish to veggies and more. Homemade ravioli isn’t just for the expert home cook; in fact, fresh pasta is one of the easiest ways to start adventuring into the wide world of cooking. Ravioli is just filled pasta, and ravioli dough is just your basic pasta dough made with flour and egg yolks. Use a pasta maker or a rolling pin to roll out sheets of fresh pasta. You cut the pasta into squares or circles, add your ravioli filling, then lay another same-shape piece of pasta on top. Make sure you brush a little bit of water around the edges first, then crimp the edges shut with a fork. Once you have your ravioli filled, you can freeze them for later or drop them into boiling water to cook. Or you can go for fried ravioli, especially for a fun appetizer. Top your ravioli with tomato sauce or marinara, or try it with alfredo sauce or pesto. The sky’s the limit for pasta sauce and ravioli filling combos. Ravioli makers give us some insurance and add a level of quality-control to the whole process. The little wells mean that each ravioli gets just about the same amount of filling. The maker also helps you get more raviolis from your sheets of pasta, wasting less dough and giving us a better pasta-to-filling ratio. When you roll over the top with a rolling pin, the pockets are simultaneously sealed and cut apart. You get perfectly sized ravioli every time. The Aluminum Ravioli Form will be your way to enjoy fresh, homemade ravioli any time. The deep pockets will be great for stuffing with any meats and cheeses you choose. To use the form you simply place a sheet of dough over the metal base, press down gently with plastic mold, fill with your favorite filling, and cover with an additional layer of dough. You can make up to 12 ravioli at a time, each one will be square with a classic edging. The aluminum base is sturdy and easy to clean while the plastic mold is dishwasher safe.
This winter, upgrade your pasta night by swapping in with filled ravioli for plain pasta. Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutler store for the tools you need to make your winter comfort foods. Remember my Foodie Friends, “Life Happens in the Kitchen.”
Take Care, John & Paula
