What do most Italians make on Sunday? Sauce and sometime of pasta. No I will not get into the Sauce vs Gravy debate, but those who are from Italy, our family, have never heard the word Gravy. Gravy is an Americanized word. With it being so cold and I am home, lets making something from scratch!
I have decided that I will make homemade raviolis. So let's prep and start the sauce on the stove and let it cook. I won't lie, I cheated and used my Mother In Laws homemade sauce tonight. Sometimes it is nice not to have to worry about simmering sauce all day, but yet still eating homemade fresh sauce! Now onto the pasta dough!
Homemade Pasta Dough
2 Cups of Flour (1 cup of flour extra)
3 eggs
Olive Oil
Salt
Start by measuring out 2 cups of flour. On a big surface, make a mound and then create a hole in the middle. Crack the 3 eggs in the middle and then with a fork scramble them. Add a splash of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Slowly work the flour into the egg kneading it into a ball. Pour some of the extra flour on the dough if it is still sticky. Keep working the dough till it is in a nice ball. Then wrap in a piece of plastic wrap and set aside. I normally make two balls when making ravioli.
Now most of the time you can use a pasta machine to thin out the pasta but I do it the old school way. Roll it out with a rolling pin. I have to get my exercise somewhere before I down these carbs! Not the best picture of me getting my arm workout on, but my Miss Milana Valentina captured this for my blog.
I have decided that I will make homemade raviolis. So let's prep and start the sauce on the stove and let it cook. I won't lie, I cheated and used my Mother In Laws homemade sauce tonight. Sometimes it is nice not to have to worry about simmering sauce all day, but yet still eating homemade fresh sauce! Now onto the pasta dough!
Homemade Pasta Dough
2 Cups of Flour (1 cup of flour extra)
3 eggs
Olive Oil
Salt
Start by measuring out 2 cups of flour. On a big surface, make a mound and then create a hole in the middle. Crack the 3 eggs in the middle and then with a fork scramble them. Add a splash of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Slowly work the flour into the egg kneading it into a ball. Pour some of the extra flour on the dough if it is still sticky. Keep working the dough till it is in a nice ball. Then wrap in a piece of plastic wrap and set aside. I normally make two balls when making ravioli.
Now most of the time you can use a pasta machine to thin out the pasta but I do it the old school way. Roll it out with a rolling pin. I have to get my exercise somewhere before I down these carbs! Not the best picture of me getting my arm workout on, but my Miss Milana Valentina captured this for my blog.
Now you want to start browning your ground beef. While that is cooking, unwrap your dough #1 and cut it in half. Flour the surface you will be working on so that you do not have your dough stick. Then flour your dough and rub some on your pin. Roll it out nice and thin, working it front to back and side to side. Then slowly move it to the side without tearing it. Roll out the second half of the dough the same you did the first half. Go and drain your meat and then bring over and spoon out your ground beef into four pieces going down in two columns. Then take your other dough you rolled out and place on top. Slowly and gently press down around the circle of meat inside and then take a pizza cutter and cut into squares. Pull away gently from the rest and take a fork and press down on the ends of the ravioli creating a seam. It normally makes 6-8 big raviolis. If you would like more, unwrap your second dough and repeat the process you did with the first dough. Now bring a pot of water to a boil and gently put in 3 at a time. Once they float they are ready. It does not take that long for them to cook. Remove without breaking them and plate, then add some sauce on top.
Now you may have some dough scraps leftover. Do you chuck them in the garbage? NO! Take your pizza cutter and make thin cut strips with them and flour so that they do not stick together. It will look like fettuccine. Once your ravioli are done cooking, throw them into the pot and cook, remove, and drain. Then add the remaining sauce to it and you now have fresh pasta to eat now or the next day! It will taste so light and amazing.....fresh is best!
Buon Appetito!!
Now you may have some dough scraps leftover. Do you chuck them in the garbage? NO! Take your pizza cutter and make thin cut strips with them and flour so that they do not stick together. It will look like fettuccine. Once your ravioli are done cooking, throw them into the pot and cook, remove, and drain. Then add the remaining sauce to it and you now have fresh pasta to eat now or the next day! It will taste so light and amazing.....fresh is best!
Buon Appetito!!