Cheese and spinach ravioli with pasta verde

Homemade cheese and spinach ravioli is simply delicious. In fact I can't think of any food that beats homemade pasta for both its luxury and simplicity. While the recipe below is for pasta verde, if you prefer to make the ravioli with traditional egg pasta simply omit the spinach when preparing the pasta. The quantities below are sufficient for approximately 3 servings.

Ingredients

For the pasta:

• 200g flour
• 2 eggs
• pinch of salt
• 100g uncooked spinach

For the filling:

• 300g soft cheese such as ricotta or feta cheese
• 130g uncooked spinach
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste

Equipment needed to make cheese and spinach ravioli

• 2 large bowls
• 2 forks
• Saucepan and steamer (optional) to cook the spinach
• Sharp knife
• Pasta machine or rolling pin
• Boards/work surface

How to prepare pasta verde for the ravioli

The instructions below are for pasta verde, but if you are making traditional egg pasta then simply omit the spinach from the pasta ingredients.

Lightly cook the spinach (100g uncooked weight) until it has just wilted, this will only take around a couple of minutes or so to steam. Set aside to cool and then squeeze out all the water. (The spinach for the pasta and the filling (see below) can both be cooked, squeezed and chopped at the same time).

Measure the flour (200g) into a large baking bowl. Break two eggs into the flour and add a pinch of salt. Add the chopped spinach (cooked and squeezed) and salt and pepper to taste.

Mix together with a fork and then finally use you hands to combine the dough into one mass. Divide into three equally sized balls of dough.

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If you have a pasta machine take one of the balls of dough and pass it through the thickest setting. Fold the dough over itself and then pass through the machine several more times on the same setting, by this time the dough should be smoother.

Pass the dough through the pasta machine several times reducing the thickness each time until the desired thickness is reached. I find that setting "5" is the best thickness for most recipes including ravioli.

If you don't have a pasta machine then simply roll out the dough to the required thickness using a rolling pin.

How to prepare the filling for cheese and spinach ravioli

Lightly cook the spinach (130g uncooked weight) until it has just wilted and then set aside to cool. When it has cooled, squeeze out all the water. (The spinach for the filling can be cooked, squeezed and chopped at the same time as the spinach for the pasta).

Crumble the cheese (200g) into a large bowl. Add the finely chopped, cooked and squeezed spinach, the lemon zest (from 1 lemon) and a dash of salt and pepper. Mix together with a fork until even.

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How to assemble cheese and spinach ravioli

Lay the pasta out on a well floured surface. Trim the edges of the bands of pasta to form long rectangles. Place teaspoonfuls of the filling close to one edge, at intervals, as shown in the photograph below. Dampen the edges of the pasta with water. Separate each ravioli using a sharp knife, fold over to form a parcel and seal the edges with a fork.

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The unused trimmed edges of pasta can be passed through the pasta machine again and used to make make more ravioli and avoid waste.

How to cook the ravioli

Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and cook the ravioli for around 3 minutes.

Serve the ravioli with pesto or a light sauce of your choice.

Tips

1. If you don't have a pasta machine then the dough can be rolled out using a rolling pin.
2. Keep the pasta dough and work surface/boards well floured to prevent sticking.
3. The prepared pasta can be left out in the air to dry. It can also be dried and then frozen. Do not store in the fridge as it will become sticky.
4. Serve the ravioli immediately after cooking.