Some friends wanted to learn how to make home-made ravioli, so last Sunday I came over for a ravioli workshop! It was a lot of fun and very rewarding to see that by the end of the evening everyone was getting the hang of it. We made five types of stuffing:

• spinach-ricotta with butter & sage
• mushrooms
• goat cheese (served with asparagus)
• mozzarella, prosciutto and sage with butter & sage
• meat (veal, prosciutto and mortadella) with butter & sage

…and had a different matching wine with each type. We had a great evening! Home-made ravioli tastes so much better than the stuff from a factory you can buy at the supermarket. It will take a bit of practice, but if you already know how to make fresh pasta it’s not very hard if you follow my instructions for making home-made fresh pasta. With a group of 8 we had a full meal out of the 5 ravioli courses, using 8 eggs and 800 grams of Italian 00 flour. Below are the recipes for the stuffings. Unfortunately we did not take pictures of all the steps or all the finished dishes, but as you will see most preparations are very similar.

Spinach-ricotta (Ravioli ricotta e spinaci)

For 48 ravioli

• Cook 400 grams (0.88 lb) of fresh spinach (with just the water attached to the leaves after washing) for 5 minutes, turning halfway for even cooking.
• Drain spinach and let it cool a bit. Use an old kitchen towel to squeeze the moisture out of the spinach.
• In a food processor mix the spinach with 250 grams (9 oz) ricotta, 1 egg, 4 tbsp fresly grated parmigiano reggiano, freshly grated nutmeg, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Process until smooth.
• Taste to add more parmigiano, nutmeg, salt or pepper. Take into account that the stuffing should be tasting a bit stronger/more salty than you’d like the final dish to taste.
• Keep the stuffing in the refrigerator for at least an hour, covered with plastic wrap, to let it firm a bit.
• Make the ravioli and cook them for a few minutes in salted boiling water.

• Serve the ravioli with melted butter in which you have gently sautéed some chopped sage and sprinkle with fresly grated parmigiano.
• Wine pairing: we had it with a Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi. Many dry Italian whites will work with this.

Mushrooms (Ravioli ai fungi)

For 24 ravioli

• Soak 25 grams (1 oz) of dried porcini mushrooms in hot water for 15 minutes, drain and reserve the soaking liquid
• Chop 250 grams (9 oz) of fresh cultivated mushrooms into thick slices
• Sauté reconstituted porcini mushrooms and fresh mushrooms in olive oil in batches to avoid crowding your frying pan
• Add chopped flatleaf parsley and minced garlic for the final minute of sautéing
• Season mushrooms with salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Keep some mushrooms separate for garnish

• In a food processor mix remaining mushrooms with 120 grams (4 oz) ricotta, 4 tbsp freshly grated parmigiano reggiano.

• Process until you obtain a course mixture.
• Taste to add more parmiginao, salt or pepper. Take into account that the stuffing should be tasting a bit stronger/more salty than you’d like the final dish to taste.
• Keep the stuffing in the refrigerator for at least an hour, covered with plastic wrap, to let it firm a bit.
• Filter the reserved porcini soaking liquid using paper towels. Simmer to reduce the liquid to around 1/4. Reheat the reserved mushrooms in some butter.
• Make the ravioli and cook them for a few minutes in salted boiling water.
• Serve the ravioli with the reserved mushrooms, the porcini liquid and sprinkle with freshly grated parmigiano.
• Wine pairing: we had this with Malvirà Arneis Trinità 2009. Many dry Italian whites will work with this.

Goat cheese (Ravioli di Capra)

For 30 ravioli

• In a food processor mix 120 grams (4 oz) of ricotta with 120 grams (4 oz) of soft raw-milk French goat cheese such as crottin de chavignol, an egg and 4 tbsp freshly grated parmigiano reggiano.
• Process until smooth.
• Taste to add more parmigiano, salt or pepper. Take into account that the stuffing should be tasting a bit stronger/more salty than you’d like the final dish to taste.
• Keep the stuffing in the refrigerator for at least an hour, covered with plastic wrap, to let it firm a bit.
• Make the ravioli and cook them for a few minutes in salted boiling water.
• Serve the ravioli with melted butter and sprinkle with fresly grated parmigiano. Garnish with asparagus (white steamed asparagus or green roasted asparagus).
• Wine pairing: definitely sauvignon blanc, outstanding with Sancerre or Pouilly-Fumé.

Prosciutto, mozzarella and sage (Ravioli mozzarella, prosciutto e salvia)

For 40 ravioli

• Cut 250 grams (9 oz) buffalo mozzarella into evenly sized cubes
• Wrap each cube of mozzarella together with half a sage leave in thinly sliced prosciutto di parma (in total you will need around 200 grams or 7 oz)
• Make the ravioli and cook them for a few minutes in salted boiling water.
• Serve the ravioli with melted butter in which you have gently sautéed some chopped sage and sprinkle with fresly grated parmigiano.
• Wine pairing: full-bodied Italian dry white, such as a Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore (rather than the lighter verdicchio with the spinach-ricotta). We had the Bucci Classico 2009, which was outstanding with this dish.

Meat: veal, prosciutto, mortadella (Ravioli di carne)

For 32 ravioli

• Dice 100 grams (4 oz) of tender veal, boneless and skinless chicken thigh or pork tenderloin and sauté in butter until golden.
• In a food processor mix the sautéed meat together with all of the cooking juices with 1 egg, 50 grams (2 oz) of sliced prosciutto di parma and 50 grams (2 oz) of sliced mortadella. (Do not use too much mortadella because then you will only taste mortadella.)
• Add 50 grams (2 oz) freshly grated parmigiano reggiano and freshly grated nutmeg. Process until homogenous but not pureed.
• Taste to add more nutmeg, salt or pepper. Take into account that the stuffing should be tasting a bit stronger/more salty than you’d like the final dish to taste.
• Keep the stuffing in the refrigerator for at least an hour, covered with plastic wrap, to let it firm up a bit.
• Make the ravioli and cook them for a few minutes in salted boiling water.
• Serve the ravioli with melted butter in which you have gently sautéed some chopped sage and sprinkle with fresly grated parmigiano.
• Wine pairing: we had it with a very nice Barbera d’Alba. A full-bodied Italian white or another light Italian red would also work.