Spinach dough

As you may have noticed from my posts, homemade ravioli makes me happy. It actually became a Sunday habit. There is something about the process of combining just a few of very simple ingredients, that once mixed together the magic begins. Even though it is very simple to prepare the pasta dough, the whole process of ravioli making can be time consuming. Nevertheless, this process is therapeutic to me and I enjoy it to the fullest. What is interesting is that the ideas can be endless. In an earlier post, I explained you how to make your own Garganelli. Now it is time to color thins up and make some green ravioli with fresh spinach.Spinach ravioli are not just beautiful, but also very tasty.

How to prepare the pasta dough:

You will need 30g of fresh spinach. Saute the spinach with some salt and pepper. Drain it well using a slotted spoon in order to remove as much liquid as possible.On a flat surface, sift the flour and dig a hole in the center into which the eggs will be added. Start mixing with a fork and incorporate the flour little by little. Once the flour is all mixed with the yolk, start mixing using your hands until the mixture is well homogeneous.

Add the spinach, a little bit of olive oil and season with salt. If too dry, add some water. Form the dough into a ball and wrap it inside a plastic wrap. Let it rest aside for at least 20 minutes and prepare the stuffing. For the pasta making, dust your work surface with some flour. Take a lump of dough and press it with your fingertips. Set the pasta machine at its widest setting and roll the pasta dough though it. If the pasta sticks, dust it with flour. Click the pasta machine down a setting and roll the dough through again. Fold the pasta in half, click the pasta machine back up to the widest setting and roll the dough through again. Repeat this process four to five times. The pasta dough becomes smooth and workable like that. Now it’s time to roll the dough out properly, working it through all the settings on the machine, from the widest down to the narrowest. Dust both sides of the pasta with some Cecco flour every time you roll it through the machine. When you’ve got down to the narrowest setting, fold the pasta in half lengthwise, then in half again, and again once more until you’ve got a square piece of dough. Turn it 90 degrees and pass it through the machine at the widest setting. As you roll it down through the settings for the last time, you should end up with a nice rectangular sheet of dough with straight sides. If your dough is a little cracked at the edges, fold it in half just once, click the machine back two settings and feed it through again.

 

Advertisement