recipephile

Pumpkin Ravioli With Sage Butter

Raviolis have always been a favorite dish of mine. I grew up in a family that insisted on making homemade ravioli and serving it as a tradition during the holiday season.  The making of the raviolis usually happened a few weeks after Thanksgiving and when I announced that I would be coming home a week before Christmas my mother asked if I would assist with the "rav" preparation.

A few days after my announcement she called to tell me that they had been made. She could not handle not having the task completed as my mother is always UBER prepared for any holiday (the woman sets the table for Thanksgiving weeks before the dinner and covers it with a cloth so it won't get dusty).

So when my friend Jeffrey and I were shopping at the farmer's market a few weeks ago we decided to buy a whole pumpkin, roast it and harvest the "meat" for delicious pumpkin ravioli. They were amazing and so when Courtney and I were planning our menu for New Year's Eve we decided that pumkin ravioli with sage butter should be one of the dishes we prepare.

You DO NOT have to roast and harvest pumpkin meat for your ravioli.  Simplify the process and buy canned pumpkin.  Keep in mind that making ravioli is a time consuming process and not something you want to do on your own. Make the process fun and invite a few friends over to help.

Here is what you will need:

For the pasta
- 3 cups of flour
- 4 eggs
- 1 tbsp of cold water
- 2 tsps of Kosher salt
- A hand crank pasta machine

Combine all of the ingredients into a food processor and process until the dough forms into a ball. Remove from the processor bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Place in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.  This will allow the gluten to settle.

For the filling:

- 1 tbsp of butter
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 4 sage leaves finely chopped
- 2 cups of pumpkin
- 1 cup of ricotta cheese -- make sure you do your best to squeeze out the water -- use a cheesecloth or think towel to do this
- 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a sautee pan over medium heat and sautee the onions and sage until the onions are translucent.  Place into a mixing bowl, add the remaining ingredients and mix well.  Taste and add salt and pepper to your liking.  You may also decide to add more Parmesan cheese at this point.

Remove your pasta from the refrigerator, remove plastic and cut off a ball of pasta (about a handful). Begin feeding it into the hand cranked pasta machine, starting at 1 and ending at the second to last setting.  You may want to flour the pasta a few times while rolling it out.

Lay the rolled pasta on the table and cut 3.5 x 3.5 squares. Place about 1 tsp of filling in the center, lightly brush the dough around the edges with a little bit of water (I use my fingers to do this) and then fold the dough over.  Using your fingers make sure that there is no air around the filling and press the dough together to seal.  Repeat this process until your filling or pasta is gone.

You can freeze leftover filling or pasta for use later.

For the sauce:

- 1.5 sticks of butter
- 10 sage leaves
- 1/4 cup of cream
- Grated parmesan cheese

Place the butter and the sage into a sautee pan and turn heat to medium.  Once the butter has melted turn off the heat and then heat the cream in a microwave for about 10-15 seconds.  Add this to the butter mixture and sert aside. You may have to warm it up before serving the ravs.  Just be sure that it does not boil.

Cook the ravioli in chicken or vegetable broth for more flavor and drizzle with the sage butter.  Then top with some grated parmesan cheese for a little extra flavor.

Quick Bites - Carol's Cheesy Cheese Ball

Last week I flew from SFO to Pittsburgh to begin my ten day home for the holidays with my family.  The day after I landed my business partner and I had to head down to DC for a meeting.  We decided to stay with my cousin Carol and she invited the entire clan over for dinner.  Julee, Paul, Lukey, Tara, Little Paul, Carol, Aunt Joan, Uncle Skippy, Rob, Lissa, Carly, PJ, Amy, Andrew and Kate were all on hand for an incredible meal prepared by my kitchen savvy cousin Carol.

She had me make the cheese ball, which I had never made before, and it was pretty simple.  Just cube up two pounds of sharp cheddar cheese and place into the bowl of a food processor.  Add 1/2 can of good beer -- we used an ale -- two cloves of minced garlic, 2 tbsp of dijon mustard, red pepper flakes (about a tsp) and process until smooth and spreadable. 

Remove the cheese and roll into two separate balls.  You can serve both or freeze one for later use. If you do not want that much just cut the recipe in half.   Serve with crackers and if you want, you can roll the cheese ball in crushed walnuts.

Adventures in Cheesemaking - Fettucine with Cherry Tomatoes, Basil and Homemade Mozzarella

Jeffrey and I continue to experiment with making cheese.  On Sunday we unsuccessfully tried our hands at goat's milk mozzarella.  It was a total flop.  Our curds did not marry with one another and so we were unable to form the stretchy, taffy-like ball of tasty cheese.  The curds tasted amazing however, so I am sure that once we figure it out the goat's milk mozzarella will be a welcome treat.

We of course made cow's milk mozzarella and I used it in a dish prepared for my friends Scotty, Chris, Erika and Kate.  Scotty wanted something simple and specifically asked for pasta.  My goal was to do a variation on a Caprese salad, which is basically tomatoes, basil and fresh mozzarella.  I decided to use cherry tomatoes for their uber sweetness and cook them with extra virgin olive oil and garlic.  The dish was finished off with fresh mozzarella, freshly chopped basil, salt and pepper and sprinkle of Parmigiano cheese.  It was truly simple and absolutely delicious.

Here is how this dish is prepared:

- 1 lb. of Fettuccine and a big pot of boiling water
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil, about 2 or 3 tbsps
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 packets of cherry tomatoes
- 1 handful of fresh basil, chopped
- 2 cups fresh mozzarella , cut into bite sized pieces
- Grated Parmigiano cheese
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Boil water and cook the Fettuccine.  While the Fettuccine is cooking, cover the bottom of a sauce pan with about 2 or 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil.  Over medium heat saute the garlic for about 1 or 2 minutes (being careful not to burn) and toss in the cherry tomatoes.  Cover and let cook for about 5 minutes.  Remove lid. Once the lid is off immediately take a potato masher and carefully mash the tomatoes so they release their juices ad continue cooking for an 5 additional minutes.  The juice from the tomatoes will slightly thicken.

Drain the pasta and toss into a warm bowl.  Add the basil and mozzarella cheese to the sauce and toss with the pasta.  Add Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste and serve with a sprinkling of Parmigiano cheese.

Pear Galette With Bourbon and Brown Sugar

For the next few days I am visiting my good friends in San Diego, Ken and Grant.  I also have the pleasure of working with my friend Patrick.  This evening we are hosting a party for about 15 people.

Ken and I have decided to serve a beef stew served over homemade egg noodles, spinach, grilled romaine and for dessert pear galette with bourbon and brown sugar.

The galettes are so easy to make and everyone always loves them.  You can do what my mother does and buy crust from the grocer or make your own pate brisee, which is so very easy to prepare.  I personally like to make the crust on my own, but my mother chooses to purchase her's to save time.  Either is good.  For the recipe at the link above I use brown sugar instead of regular sugar.

For the galette you will need to prepare one brisee recipe, which will give you enough for two crusts.  The nice thing about brisee is that it can be frozen. If you want to make two just double the recipe below.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare the filling by removing the skin and seeds from the pear and cutting into thin slices. Place into a mixing bowl and squeeze the juice of one lemon onto the pears.  Add 1/2 cup of brown sugar that has been packed, 1/2 cup of bourbon (I use Maker's Mark), 1/2 cup of flour and 1 tsp of salt. Mix very well and set aside.

To prepare your crust roll out the dough onto a large piece of wax paper that has been sprinkled with flour (you may need to use two pieces). Flour your rolling pin as this will make the process much easier.

Flip over the wax paper and transfer the dough to a cookie sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Roll up the corners of the dough to form an edge; this will help to keep your pear mixture in.  Place the pears into the crust and then brush the edges with egg wash (egg whites and a little bit of water all mixed up - use one egg and a 1/2 tbsp of water).

Place in the oven for about 30-40 minutes or until the curst is golden brown.  Serve with fresh whipped cream.

Chemistry, The Making of Cheese and Pumpkin Ravioli

During high school there are always one or two classes that you take and tell yourself... "I am never going to use this when I get older so why in the world are they making me take this now?" That thought came racing back to me as Jeffrey and I continued our adventures in cheesemaking last Sunday.  Never EVER did I think chemistry would play a role in my adult life, but it is now rearing its ugly head in some of the tastiest ways.

Making cheese is part art, part science and lots of passion.  The science part is probably the most challenging for a person of many words (and few numbers and periodic tables) like myself.  A few weeks ago I attempted cheesemaking in Sonoma only to learn that the combination of everything from the water to the milk, citric acid, rennet and heat all play a vital role in product perfection.  My results were rubbery and tasted a little strange.

So of course Jeffrey, my fellow urban artisan, and I tried again and followed the process to the letter.  Our mozzarella was perfect and we decided to use the leftover whey to make ricotta cheese.  The ricotta cheese would be used in the pumpkin ravioli that we were planning to prepare for our friends Jaiden, Christopher and Jim.

We wanted to ensure that practically everything in the ravioli was made from scratch.  We made the cheese, the pasta dough and roasted a pumpkin so we could harvest the flesh for the filling.  The entire process, from shopping to preparing the ingredients, assembling the ravioloi and enjoying the tasty pasta took about 3 hours.

When Jeffrey and I make ricotta we always make mozzarella first.  Our goal is to get the most from that one gallon of milk. It is all about yield my friends.  So you can learn about making mozzarella here and making ricotta cheese here.  Note that you can also make ricotta cheese from whole milk.

The rest of the ravioli is pretty easy.

Before you make your cheese begin preparing the pumpkin and make the pasta.

You can always use canned pumpkin, but there is something extra special about roasting your own pumpkin.  So if you choose this route, heat the oven to 375 degrees and roast for about 75 - 90 minutes.  Cool, cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds (set aside to roast the seeds if you want) and then remove the flesh from the skin of the pumpkin. If the flesh still feels as though it need to cook more, then place back into the oven for 15-20 more minutes.  You will know this by the feel of the pumpkin flesh against the knife.  If it slides easily it is done, if there is some pressure then you need to cook it more. Once it is ready, transfer the flesh to a food processor and process until smooth.

To make the pasta you will need 3 cups of flour, 3 eggs, 2 tsps of Kosher salt and 1 tbsp of water.  Place all of the ingredients into a food processor and process until the dough forms into a ball.  Remove from the bowl, roll into a ball, cover with plastic wrap and place into the fridge until ready to use.

For the filling:

- 2 cups of pumpkin (fresh or from the can)
- 2 cups of ricotta cheese (fresh from your kitchen or store bought -- drained well, very well -- you can use a cheesecloth to do this)
- 1 small onion chopped very fine and sauteed with 1 tbsp of butter and 2 or 3 sprigs of sage
- 2 tsp of nutmeg
- 2 tsp of allspice
- 1 tsp of kosher salt
- 2 tsp of freshly ground black pepper

Melt butter over medium heat and sautee onions and sage until translucent.  Let cool, combine with the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

Roll out the dough (we go to the number six -- you want it to be thin, but not too thin that it falls apart when cooking) and cut into 3x3 pieces. Lightly wet the edges with water and add about 1/2 tbsp of filling in the center of the dough.  Fold over and crimp with your fingers making sure to remove all of the air from the center with the filling. Repeat until all of the dough is gone or until all of the filling has disappeared. You can freeze the leftover dough or filling for another time.

When you cook the pasta you should use veggie broth, chicken broth or the leftover whey from your cheesemaking. It should only take about 5-8 minutes to cook through.

For the sauce -- melt one stick of butter with a few cloves of minced garlic and 5 or 6 sage leaves.  Remove the cooked pasta, plate and spoon the sauce over the pasta.  Top off with some freshly grated parmesan cheese and serve.