Video of the Day: Making Ravioli Using Wonton Wrappers

Cooking is just as much about technique as it is about the recipe and ingredients. If you screw up on the technique side, then no one will taste your ingredients.  So please try to forget that demonstration in this video is being done by a dude sporting a mohawk and boys scout uniform, and just check his technique using wonton wrappers to make raviolis. Then try your hand at my Bake Ravioli Recipe Part 1 - the Filling and Part 2 - the Preparation, and tell me what you think!

LET'S GET COOKING!

Extraordinary Entree: Ravioli Pasta; Baked Ravioli Part 2

Part 2 of this 2 Part series is a combination of tips of found on the back of my wonton wrapper package and Youtube.   How did we learn to do stuff before Youtube?  Oh yeah...family members and school!  Well, absent a desire to go to culinary school and Italian heritage, I'm glad I could rely on the internet for a clue on how to finish my dish.  I've included in pitfalls to avoid and that fell head first into!

Again, if you've got a recipe for the pasta, then please share it with us here!

So LET'S GET COOKING!

Directions

1.  Flour a landing surface for the pre-boiled but finished ravioli. I like to use a baking try, but not the one that I'll be using to bake the ravioli.

2.  Lightly flour your work surface so that your wontons wrappers don't stick to the surface.  Layout two rows of wonton wrappers on the floured surface.

3.  Cut the wonton wrappers into rounded shapes.  I like to use a round cookie cutter with ridged edges. I cut the wonton wrappers into rounded ridged shapes but you can leave them square if you prefer. After you cut them into the shape cover the wonton wrappers with a damp cloth so that they do not dry out.

4.  Place about 1 teaspoon of Ravioli Filling directly into the center of the wonton wrapper.  I like to use a teaspoon measuring spoon. Before I used this method my raviolis were exploding in the boiling water because they were overstuffed.  Sometimes the wonton wrappers broke before they left my work surface. You're going to have a mess on your work surface or in your pot if there are any tears in your wonton wrappers or air finds its way between the two layers.

5.  Moisten the outer edge of the wonton wrapper with hot water.

6.  Leave a thick border around the Ravioli Filling.

7.  You can either place a second wonton wrapper on top or gently folder the filled  wonton wrapper in half.  I've successfully done both. The folding half method allows you to make more.

8.  Seal the edges gently but tightly working your way from the center out. Use a fork to help seal the edges. Press out any air pockets with your fingers by pushing down around the thick border.

9.  Gently place ravioli in simmering salted water for 4-5 mins or until they float to the top.

10.  Estimate 5-7 ravioli per person for one serving.

11.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

12.  Cover bottom of 9 x 13-inch glass baking dish with 1/4 inch of Marinara sauce. Place the ravioli in single layer over the Marinara sauce.  Ladle the remaining marinara sauce on one side of the ravioli.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. 


13.  Bake at 400 degrees F for 10 minutes, or until bubbling. Run under the broiler about 4 inches from the heat for 2 minutes, or until golden.

Extraordinary Entree: Ravioli Filling, Baked Ravioli Part 1

Part 1 of this 2 Part series is the filling only.  Part 2 is my preparation of this dish using wonton wrappers. This recipe fills about 200 raviolis if you use a teaspoon in the ravioli.  Now I'm no pasta maker, so I used wonton wrappers for my ravioli. If you've got a recipe for the pasta, then please share it with us here!


MEAT SAUCE:
1 diced onion
2 stalks celery
5 baby carrots, grated
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground mild Italian style sausage
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 1/4 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon oregano
1 Bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
2 yolks

PARSLEY PARMESAN CHEESE SAUCE - See Alfredo sauce recipe
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup half and half
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

MARINARA SAUCES:
1 (16 ounce) jar high quality marinara sauceOR
TRY THIS HOMEMADE RECIPE


Directions

GROUND MEAT MIXTURE:
Heat the olive oil in a deep skillet. Add onion, celery, carrot, and garlic and cook over medium heat until softened.

Season meat with oregano, garlic powder and onion powder and mix by hand. Add meat to the skillet.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until meat is no longer pink. Drain excess liquid and grease thoroughly.  Stir in broth. Add bay leaf, salt, and pepper.

Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. Uncover, and reduce until almost dry. Discard bay leaf. Set aside to cool


PARMESAN CHEESE SAUCE:
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan set over moderately low heat. Whisk in flour for approximately 2 minutes. Whisk in milk, grated nutmeg, and salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until thickened. Stir in parsley and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. 


Transfer the cooled meat mixture to a large bowl. Mix in egg yolks. Mix in the Parmesan Cheese sauce. Set aside to cool. Place 1/3 of the cooled meat sauce into a blender or food processor. Pulse or blend until a smooth texture is achieved, about 2 minutes. 
Repeat with remaining mixture until all filling ingredients are processed. 


You can do the filling in advance and freeze for up to 3 days or refrigerate for 1 day.  Now, how did I put this together into the baked ravioli dish below? Part 2 coming soon...

Sensational Sides: Veggie Pasta Salad

Ingredients

1-16 ounce package tri-colored pasta, cooked al dente
1 cucumber, seeded and peeled
1 stalks celery, diced
2 cups frozen green peas, defrosted

Dressing:
1/2 cup low fat mayonnaise (I prefer the Olive Oil flavored)
1/2 low fat sour cream
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
2 tablespoon Vidalia Onion Vinagrette
1/4 cup half and half
Salt and Pepper to taste


Directions

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.

Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente.

 Rinse the pasta under cold water until cool and drain.

While the pasta is cooking prepare the veggies. You can add any variety that wets your whistle, but these veggies moved me when I was in the supermarket the day I put this together:  

Dice the celery as small as you like. 

With a spoon scoop the seeds out of a peeled cucumber.

Diced the cucumber into small bite size pieces.

Run hot water over the peas to defrost.

In a large bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing.  Adjust the salt and sugar until you have just the right balance of sweet and savory.  

Add veggies to the dressing, and stir to combine.

Add the chilled pasta to the dressing-veggie mix.

Adjust the seasoning again as necessary.

Chill several hours before serving.  If the pasta is not creamy enough for you, then whisk up a quick batch of the dressing ingredients using about 1/4 of the ingredients, adjust the seasoning again and serve! ENJOY!

NOW, LET'S GET COOKING!

I Love Pasta!

I seriously think I eat too much pasta! Actually, is there such a thing? It's quick to make (so long as you're not making the pasta from scratch), comforting, and very versatile.  Even though no part of me is any part Italian, you'll find me fakin' the funk quite often while I share my lasagna, macaroni, ravioli, spaghetti, and all kinds of pasta recipes with you!

Today's featured recipe is my Turkey and Spinach Penne Pasta! I use the same meat sauce for my White Sauce Lasagna Muffins! Also check out my Alfredo Sauce, which I use in place of the jarred stuff.  Both dishes are super duper DEE-LISH!

LET'S GET COOKING!

Extraordinary Entree: Spinach and Turkey Penne Pasta

Ingredients

1 tablespoon  olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 pound ground turkey
Alfredo Sauce (try this recipe)
1 pound penne pasta
2 cups fresh spinach, chopped
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Directions

Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite.  Pasta will become al dente during final cooking stage. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the starchy pasta water.

Heat oil in large deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic, onions, and fennel seeds and sauté until translucent, about 7 minutes. Add ground turkey. Sauté until cooked through and beginning to brown. When completely cooked, adding spinach in batches and tossing until wilted.

In a separate pot prepare or heat the Alfredo Sauce, and bring to simmer.  Add pasta to the Alfredo  sauce. Cook over medium heat.  Add the meat-spinach mixture and toss until completely coated with the sauce.

Stir in 1/2 cup cheese and enough cooking liquid to moisten. Transfer to large bowl. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cheese; serve.

Extraordinary Entree: Italian Meatballs

I love Italian food! Pizza, ravioli, stuffed shells, the list goes on and on, but nothing makes this girl happier than a simple plate of spaghetti and meatballs!  I LOVE serving this at my dinner parties for two reasons: 1) my meatballs are to DIE for and 2) the sound of slurping spaghetti is music to my ears. I love watching people enjoy my cooking! The sound of slurping spaghetti is the icing of on the cake for this dish!

To be clear, I'm not Italian, but I know a good recipe when I see one.  I adopted this meatball recipe from a combination of recipes I've seen around the web and put this winner below together. Every time I make it I purposely make enough to have meatball sliders the next day for lunch (or sometimes breakfast!). My preparation may be a little different, my ingredients may be a little non-traditional, but believe me when I say you'll enjoy these moist morsels of deliciousness!

Ingredients

1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup fresh flat leaf Italian Parsley, chopped fine (no stems)
1-1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 lb mild bulk sausage
1/3 cup plain breadcrumbs
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
Olive Oil cooking spray
3 - 6 cups of your favorite marinara sauce (or use my recipe below)

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 

Place the onion, garlic, and parsley in a blender or food processor and puree.  Slowly add the chicken stock to form a paste. You may not end up using all of the stock.

 

In a large bowl, whisk together the puree, remainder chicken stock, spices, salt, red pepper flakes, and eggs. I like to call this the flavor mix.

Combine the flavor mix, meat, bread crumbs, and Parmesan cheese.  Mix by hand until the mixture is uniform, do not over mix.

 


Put a little olive oil on your hands.  Using an ice cream scooper, scoop out the meat mixture, and form mixture into balls about the size of golf balls.

Lay foil on a sheet pan. Spray with olive oil cooking spray. 

Cook for 25 minutes. Turn meatballs, drain excess oil, and cook for another 25 minutes.

 

While meatballs are cooking, heat the marinara sauce in a large pot.

Transfer the meatballs to the pot with the marinara sauce and simmer for at least one hour.

 Serve alone or over your favorite pasta.  Use any leftovers for a delicious Italian Meatball Slider!

 

Makes about 20 meatballs.