nife is life: authentic italian produce to your door.

Stroll down the aisles packed with parmigiano reggiano and brimming with balsamic vinegar, Simply add to your shopping bag and await your Italian treasures. No you're not in a Tuscan deli or a Venetian wine shop, for this is nife is life. From pasta flour to prosciutto, this fantastic Italian delivery service stocks sweet, savoury, fresh and dry ingredients all in one place. 

homemade spinach, ham and ricotta ravioli.

having made my usual rustic parcels in previous ravioli making, i was so excited to try out this proper ravioli press. it was a little gem i found in my local tk maxx - amongst a pretty impressive baking section of various sized piping bags, decorating tools and cake tins. fellow foodies i urge you to go check it out, this ravioli maker set me back about £2. 

i feel like instead of a crazy cat lady i'm going to be a crazy foodie gadget lady found cuddling my bamboo steamer and pasta maker. i've previously made crab and dill ravioli, boursin and sundried tomato ravioli and red wine venison ravioli so this time i really fancied something with a thick ham and cheese - so i thought i'd try spinach, ham and ricotta filling!

homemade red wine venison ravioli.

my lovely pasta maker has had a little break lately - i seem not to have made anything italian inspired in so long! i recently discovered the somerset produce from field&flower - with everything from classic british sausages to the more unusual game cuts - and thought this would be a brilliant opportunity to try out a posh ravioli with some delicious venison. i ordered a few different meats which will be posts to come. but for now, how did i make it? :)

homemade crab ravioli with mascarpone, lemon and dill.

shopping list.
makes one large portion or two small.

for the pasta
♥ 100g "00" grade white flour
♥ one egg

for the crab filling
♥ one tin of white crab meat
♥ 100g mascarpone cheese
♥ the juice of one lemon
♥ one tablespoon of dill

begin by making pasta, with a machine, like in my first attempt at homemade pasta post. you pretty much use 100g flour to one egg. this was a really big portion for myself and i didn't actually end up eating it all. but it was very therapeutic to make! :) the actual pasta making takes around 15 minutes and the crab filling takes next to no time to mix together.