Ravioli with Ricotta and Spinach

Filling:

400 g/14 oz fresh spinach

175 g/ ¾ cup ricotta cheese (I add more)

Pinch of salt and pepper

1 egg

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Pasta sheets:

3 eggs

2 cups flour

Pinch of salt

Wash fresh spinach well in several changes of water. Place in a saucepan with only the water that is clinging to the leaves. Cover, and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain. When the spinach is cool, squeeze out as much moisture as possible. Chop finely.

Combine the chopped spinach with the ricotta, egg, Parmesan, salt and pepper. Mix well. Cover the bowl and set aside.

Place the flour in the center of a clean smooth work surface. Make a well in the middle. Break the eggs into the well. Add a pinch of salt. Start beating the eggs with a fork, gradually drawing the flour from the inside walls of the well. As the paste thickens, continue mixing with your hands. Incorporate as much flour as possible until the mixture forms a mass. It will still be lumpy. If it sticks to your hands, add a little more flour. Set the dough aside and scrape the work surface clean.

Now, you could either continue by using the pasta machine or by hand.

With pasta machine: Set the machine rollers at their widest setting. Pull off a piece of dough the size of a small orange. Feed the dough through the rollers. Fold it in half, end to end, and feed it through 7 to 8 times. If the dough sticks to the machine, dust with some flour. Keep on resetting the machine to the next setting and pass the dough through until desired thickness. If strips are too long, cut them in half to facilitate handling.

By hand: Lightly flour the work surface. Knead the dough and fold it over. Repeat this action over and over. Work for about 10 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic. Divide the dough in half. Flour the rolling pin, and begin rolling out the dough in a flat circle, rotating it one quarter turn after each roll to keep its shape round. Stretch the dough as you are rolling it. Roll the dough until it is paper thin. Cut long rectangular pieces.

Place small teaspoons of filling along the pasta in rows, 1 or 2 inches apart. Either cover with another sheet or fold the sheet over. Press down around the covered mixture to avoid forming air pockets.

Use a fluted pastry wheel to cut between the rows to form small squares. If the edges do not stick well, moisten with milk or water, and press together with a fork. Place the ravioli on a lightly floured surface, and allow to dry for at least 30 minutes. Turn occasionally so they dry on both sides.

Bring a large pan of salted water to boil and add in the ravioli until cooked.