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spinach and ricotta ravioli in sage butter sauce.


inspired by my travels to malta, i wanted to get back into making pasta again with my trusty pasta machine; possibly the best christmas present my grandparents have ever bought me. in a sicilian bistro called la giara, i had a delicious course of homemade fresh ravioli filled with ricotta and spinach, then drizzled with an earthy sage sauce. so here is my take on the recipe! 


shopping list.
(serves two)

for the pasta

♥ two eggs
♥ 200g strong "00" pasta flour
♥ a pinch of salt
♥ a dash of olive oil

for the filling

♥ 200g spinach 
♥ 200g ricotta cheese
♥ salt and pepper to season

for the sauce

♥ 10 sage leaves
♥ 20g butter

tools

♥ mixer with dough hook
♥ pasta cutter (or mini tart tins!)
♥ rolling pin
♥ pasta machine
♥ mini chopper or blender


after spending so much time making pasta the traditional way by making a well of flour and cracking the eggs slowly in the middle, i've finally realised you can simply make it with a good mixer and dough hook. 


i put the flour, eggs and salt in and allowed to mix together. if it needs a little help pulling together, i add in a dash of olive oil. for three people simply use 3 eggs and 300g flour, and so on. knead with the dough hook for around 10 minutes, checking the pasta dough comes together as a ball.

then using a rolling pin, roll out small sections of the dough on a floured surface. this is to make it easier to put through the pasta machine. 


keep churning it though the pasta machine and folding back in itself. as it gets thinner, gradually decrease the pasta machine gauge to get smaller and smaller. be patient, this is a labour of love. 


eventually you will end up with reems of pasta sheets with nowhere to put them. just make sure you keep the surfaces dry and floured as you lay them out.


to make the filling, simply blend together the ricotta and spinach with salt and pepper to taste. 


when you're ready, cut out the pasta with your preferred size cutter and have a few ready to fill. the new pasta cutter i've ordered actually didn't come in time so i used a 4" across tart tin! 


leave at least a 2cm gap around the side, then use a sprinkle of water on your finger to smooth over and seal two ravioli pieces together like so.


the sage butter will take around 5 minutes and your pasta will take around 3 minutes, both can be prepared a few hours ahead of serving. just ensure the ricotta doesn't make the pasta go soggy in the fridge.

boiling 3 or 4 ravioli pieces at a time, i prepared the sage butter alongside just by melting the butter and letting the sage infuse for 5 minutes. this will foam a little and then settle down.


three minutes should be the perfect time for in really boiling water, but you will know for definite your pasta is ready when it rises to the top. drain and serve, drizzling the sage butter on top and finishing with cracked black pepper and parmesan cheese. 


aaand this is the original. how did i do? i'd love to learn that fold and pinch pasta making technique. 


this was another post using the gorgeous nife is life italian products i chose from their online shop to review. here i featured their delicious ricotta cheese and "00" grade pasta flour. find out more about them here ♥

i've also entered this recipe in the cook, blog, share series over at supergoldenbakes! head over to see what other lovely recipes have been shared...

this recipe is part of the domu online cookbook, which you can download here.
 photo 9af5d0df-b279-4c3c-92ad-fc98f562a39a_zpsaca21226.jpg
note: i was sent a selection of products of my choice from nife is life, for purposes of review. all opinions are my own.

9 comments:

  1. I have been meaning to make my own pasta for well over a year (and never got round to it). Your recipe looks great and achievable and most of all YUMMY.Thanks so much for linking to #CookBlogShare

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    1. Thanks :) You really should - now I've discovered the cheat mixer method I'll be making it much more. Great link up xx

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  2. God making pasta really is one of the easiest things isn't it, my mum has always used a food processor to mix it all quickly and efficiently.

    We've got friends coming over for lunch tomorrow and this has given me food for thought! Looks so delicious! x

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    1. Glad I've inspired you! :) Looking forward to seeing what you make xx

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  3. Mmm, very appealing - one of my favourite dishes. Love the look of that sauce.

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  4. Wow, this looks amazing! There's nothing quite like homemade pasta.

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  5. It looks delicious. It's worth making pasta at home.

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