Ricotta filling 

The herbs and seasonings in this filling can be varied to suit your own personal taste or a specific flavor profile that complements the other courses of your meal. Parsley, chives, basil, oregano, cooked baby spinach, fennel or dill fronds and tarragon – either alone, or in varying combinations – are all good options. 

The dry cheese you use in this recipe serves as both a flavoring agent and a drying agent, helping absorb the egg’s moisture and acting as a binder. Nutmeg is often paired with fresh cream or ricotta, because when used sparingly it seems to augment their fresh, creamy flavor. In this case, less is more: If you can identify it as nutmeg, you’ve used too much. 

Ingredients 

3 cups drained ricotta 

1 egg yolk 

1 pinch chili flakes 

1 pinch nutmeg 

¾ cup to 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan, Asiago, Pecorino or similarly hard, dry grating cheese 

¼ cup finely chopped Italian parsley or other fresh herbs 

Method 

• Drain the ricotta thoroughly for 20 to 30 minutes, then transfer it to a mixing bowl. Add the egg and spices, and stir until mixed. 

• Stir in the grated hard cheese, and then the herbs. Use immediately to fill ravioli, canneloni, crepes or miniature sweet peppers, or make the filling ahead of time and refrigerate for 4 to 6 hours. 

Simple Tomato Sauce 

 Ingredients

 2 cans Jersey Pride tomatoes 

 pinch of salt 

1 large stem fresh basil (whole) 

 Method 

• Pour the tomatoes into a large saucepan or shallow Dutch oven. Simmer over low to moderate heat for approximately 15 to 20 minutes, until the tomatoes have just begun to reduce noticeably. Don’t over-reduce, as the ravioli will finish cooking in the sauce and will need to absorb some of that moisture. 

• Add the large stem of fresh basil, leaving it whole. Stir into the tomato sauce so it’s submerged, and simmer for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and keep warm until you’re ready to finish the dish. Remove the stem of basil before using the sauce.

Fresh Pasta 

Ingredients 

 3 cups all-purpose or Italian “00” flour 

4 large eggs, plus a 5th to make egg wash

Method

• Mound the flour on a clean work surfaces. With your fingers or a spoon, make a large well in the middle. Crack 4 of the eggs into the well.

• With freshly-washed fingers or a clean utensil, incorporate flour into the eggs from the edge of the well. Keep working your way around the well, working flour into the eggs in a circular motion, until the eggs and flour come together in a shaggy dough.

• Work the dough until it forms a smooth mass. It may or may not take up all of the flour; this is normal. The dough should be quite stiff, and not at all sticky.

• Cover the dough and let it rest for at least an hour, so the flour has time to fully hydrate and form the strands of gluten that give the pasta its texture. When it’s ready, the dough will spring back gently if you press a fingertip into it.

• Divide the dough into 4-6 smaller portions, and flatten them with the heel of your hand. Cover all but the first. 

• Mount your pasta roller to the countertop, if it is a manual model, or to the stand mixer if it is a mechanized attachment.

• Set the roller to its widest setting. Unwrap one portion of your dough and dust it lightly with flour, then cut it into 2 or three portions. Flatten the first with the heel of your hand, and cover the rest

• Feed one edge gently into the roller, then position a hand underneath to catch the sheet of dough as it emerges from the bottom. A dough that’s been refrigerated will be slightly stiffer to begin with, but will relax quickly as you work it.

• Fold that sheet into thirds, as if you were folding a letter to go into an envelope. Press it together firmly with the edge of your hand, then feed the end of the dough back into the roller. Repeat this process at least once more, because this helps develop the gluten that gives your pasta its strength.

• Turn your pasta roller’s adjustment dial by one “click,” to make it narrower. Feed the sheet through, again catching it with your other hand as it comes from the bottom. Fold this sheet in the middle, so it’s half the length and doubled over. Feed the folded edge into the machine, and re-roll the sheet.

• Click the pasta roller to the next thickness, and feed the sheet through again. At this point the sheet will usually be inconveniently long, so cut it to lengths of approximately 12 to 18 inches. You don’t need to be terribly precise, just keep it to a length that’s easy to manage. If the dough shows any sign of sticking, dust it with a little more flour.

• Repeat this process, cutting the pasta to a suitable length as often as necessary, until your pasta reaches the second-thinnest setting on the roller.

• Dust the sheets of pasta lightly with flour, place one on your work surface, and set the rest aside. Cover the waiting sheets with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel.

• Using a round ravioli cutter (if you have it) or cookie cutter, press gently on the pasta to mark out the positions of your ravioli. Don’t crowd them if you’re a novice, because you’ll find it easier to fill and cut them if there’s some room between the individual pieces. As you become more skilled, you can successfully make more ravioli per sheet.

• Scoop approximately 1 tablespoon of ricotta filling (see recipe below) onto the center of each marked-out ravioli. Use a spoon or moistened fingertip to make them symmetrical and centered, so there’s a roughly even border of pasta all the way around the filling (this is important).

• Crack the remaining egg into a small bowl and add a teaspoon of water, then whisk with a fork until it is smooth. Use a pastry brush to carefully “paint” this egg wash onto the pasta, all the way around the filling. You don’t need a lot; the pasta should be damp but not running with egg.

• Place a second sheet of pasta over the first, lining it up carefully from edge to edge. Starting at the middle of your sheet working outward, gently press it down so the upper sheet of pasta stretches slightly and forms clear “valleys” between the mounds of filling.

• To seal the two layers of dough, start at the edges of the filling on the first ravioli. Carefully work your way around the filling, squeezing out any air bubbles, and sealing the upper layer of dough to the bottom layer of dough where they meet. Working in a circular motion, work your way from alongside the filling to the outer edge of each marked-out ravioli. The egg will help the layers stick together when raw, and will seal them tightly as they’re boiled and the proteins in the egg set.

• Repeat for the remaining ravioli on the sheet. If you’re using traditional-style Italian ravioli cutters, you’ll have a smaller one to really make a perfect seal around the filling. Use that to tamp down the dough one more time, if you have it.

• Use your ravioli cutter or cookie cutter to carefully cut out each ravioli, rotating and wiggling the cutter slightly to get it through the stretchy dough. Lift each ravioli carefully from your work surface and transfer it to a platter or baking sheet that’s well-dusted with flour.

• Repeat this process with additional sheets of pasta until you’ve used up all of your filling.

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil, then turn it down to a simmer. Cooking at a gentle simmer, rather than a full boil, reduces the risk of your ravioli bursting as they cook.

• Working in small batches, drop the ravioli a few at a time into the hot water. Cook for about 2 to 3 minutes, then remove them from the hot water with a slotted spoon. Transfer to a serving bowl or waiting skillet, and cover with a few ladles of tomato sauce (see recipe below).

• Repeat until you have cooked 6 ravioli per person (fewer for small appetites, more for large). The remainder can be frozen in a single layer, uncooked, then bagged airtight and reserved for future meals.

• Add the ravioli and tomato sauce back to the pan containing the remaining sauce, and simmer, tossing gently, for another minute or two until the ravioli are fully al dente.

• Serve immediately, with a garnish of fresh herbs or freshly-grated Parmesan, Asiago, Pecorino or other hard, sharp-flavored grating cheese.

Notes: it’s normal for one or more of your ravioli to burst or fall apart while cooking. Use your slotted spoon to scoop out any that break, and discard them. You might even want to have a second pan of water at a simmer, so if the first becomes clouded you can switch to fresh, clean water.