This homemade whole wheat ravioli filled with a delicious spinach and mushroom filling is well worth the work. I, unfortunately, do not own a pasta maker but after making these raviolis plan on investing in one. It is possible to make by hand but will save a lot of time and effort with a machine. This dough recipe is great but if you are rolling by hand I must warn you that it is a bit tiring and hard to get it as thin as you might like it. But, as far as taste goes the dough is great. And as for the filling my husband ate half of it plain as I was working on the dough. I chose to make circle raviolis but the fun part about it is you can make them whichever shape you like (square, circle, triangle . . .). So, enjoy this recipe and have fun. Be creative!
Ingredients:
Ravioli Dough:
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 eggs
½ cup warm water
Filling:
7 ounces baby spinach
1 cup fresh mushrooms
1 cup ricotta cheese
½ cup parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon fresh minced garlic
Directions:
1. In large bowl add whole wheat flour. Make well in center of flour and add eggs. Scramble eggs a little with a fork then mix in with flour. Slowly add warm water and mix until a stiff dough is formed. This can also be done in a mixer with a dough hook. Need dough for about 5 minutes, wrap in plastic wrap and set aside (for about 15 minutes).
2. Steam mushrooms and spinach then place in a food processor and add ricotta cheese. Blend well. Take mixture out of processor and place in bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
3. Lightly flour the counter or your workspace. Bread dough in half. Need for a few minutes if necessary then roll each half of dough into very thin matching sheets (1/16 to 1/8 inch thick).
4. Drop about 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoonfuls of filling about 1 1/2 inches apart all along one of the sheets of dough. Place other half of dough on top and with your fingers gently press around where there is filling.
5. Take pizza cutter and cut between raviolis. You can then cut them into a square or a circle or whatever shape you like. Press around the filling to get rid of any excess dough and trim.
6. Allow ravioli to dry for 1 hour then boil for about 10 minutes or until ravioli float to the top. Serve with your favorite sauce.
Servings: 4
