MKR Episode 11 Recipe: Ricotta & Spinach Ravioli with Butter & Sage Sauce

Ricotta & Spinach Ravioli with Butter & Sage Sauce

Prep Time: 1 hr 20 mins + resting

Cook Time: 15 mins

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Serves 4.

Ingredients

Finely grated parmesan, toasted pine nuts and finely grated lemon zest, to garnish

Pasta

300g OO flour

1 tsp salt

3 eggs

Spinach & Ricotta Filling

250g English spinach, stems trimmed, coarsely chopped

200g firm ricotta

¼ tsp finely grated fresh nutmeg

50g finely grated parmesan

1 egg yolk

Butter & Sage sauce

125g butter, chopped

16 fresh sage leaves

Method

1. To make pasta, sift flour and salt onto a clean work bench. Make a well in the centre. Add eggs and whisk lightly. Gradually incorporate flour into centre, adding a little water if necessary, to form a soft pliable dough. Dough is correct consistency if your thumb comes back clean when pushed into it.

2. Knead dough on a lightly floured bench for about 5 minutes or until smooth and elastic (it will lose it’s rough, floury texture). Stand, covered, for 20 minutes to rest.

3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, heat a large lightly oiled frying pan over medium heat. Cook spinach until wilted. Transfer to a processor (or use a stick blender) with the ricotta and nutmeg. Season generously and process to form a coarse puree. Add parmesan and egg yolk. Process to combine.

4. Divide rested dough into quarters. Pass quarters through a pasta machine on the widest setting, dusting dough with flour between rolls, increasing settings until about 2mm thick.

5. Place walnut-size balls of filling at 2cm intervals along half the pasta sheets. Lightly brush around filling with a little water. Top with remaining pasta sheets and press gently around filling to remove any air and seal the ravioli. Cut out ravioli squares using a sharp knife or pastry wheel. Transfer to a lightly floured tray

6. To make butter and sage sauce, place butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add sage and cook over low heat until butter foams and turns a nut brown and sage leaves are crisp. Season generously. Add ravioli and toss to coat.

7. Serve ravioli and sauce garnished with parmesan, pine nuts and lemon zest.

Tip

If your ricotta filling is a little wet, you can add a tablespoon of breadcrumbs.

We have given a free-form method to make the ravioli here, but on the day we used a 24-hole ravioli mould, which ensured each one was an even size.

For a zesty hit, try adding a squeeze of lemon juice and some crushed garlic to the butter sauce.