Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Crab Ravioli!

While your pasta is doin' it's thing in the fridge, you can go ahead and make your filling! Today I'm making a crab ravioli and I found the most simple recipe by Martha Stewart. It's usually the simple recipes that have the most flavor and of course it makes it so easy to prepare! Plus I got to try out my brand new mini food processor - WIN!!!

Crab Filling:
1 cup crabmeat
1 cup ricotta cheese
salt and pepper
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp (approx) lemon juice

First I put the crab in and pulsed it until broken up. Then I added the cheese and just left it on until well mixed. Then I added the seasonings. (Next time I think I'll use some bay seasoning for an extra "kick"!) Scrape sides as needed to mix thoroughly. I added the lemon juice to the recipe as I love the lemon taste to any seafood! But you don't want to water down your filling too much! So I just added small amounts at a time and then blended.

This is what it looked like when I was finished.

So...now to shape the dough!
 Out of the fridge!

 I cut about 3/4" slices and work with one slice at a time.

 Put slice on floured surface, and roll thin enough to use on pasta machine.

Bella is rolling out this slice. Easy enough for a kid to do it!!!

 She really concentrates on it, lol!

I put it through the pasta machine roller (starting at one, and working up to five in thickness). For ravioli, my attachment comes with this cutter so the pasta sheets are the exact width you need for it. The pasta left over goes back to the "log" and will be used!

I fold the sheet in half, and put the folded end in first, then turn the handle just enough so that it catches.
Then I put a bit of filling in the middle, but not to the edges! Just add more filling if needed as you turn the handle!
Turn, turn, turn and out pops a sheet of finished raviolies!! I only have a pizza cutter, so the edges aren't pretty, but I have a proper pasta cutter on it's way from Amazon.
As I cut apart the raviolies, I place them on a cookie sheet sprinkled with corn meal to dry. Keep repeating the process until all the dough has been used.
My triple batch of pasta made nearly 3 cookie sheets of ravioli!! There is very little waste of the pasta dough. I let it dry for about an hour, flip over, wait another hour. They should feel dry and rather "leathery". Then I put them in a 1 gallon ziplock bag and put them in the fridge if I'm not going to use them right away.

Easy Alfredo Sauce:
1/2 cup of butter (one stick)
1 - 8 oz. package of cream cheese
2 tsp of garlic powder
2 cups of milk
6 oz. grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp pepper

Melt butter in a medium, non-stick saucepan over medium heat. Add cream cheese and garlic powder, stirring with wire whisk until smooth. Add milk, a little at a time, whisking to smooth out lumps. Stir in Parmesan and pepper. Remove from heat when sauce reaches desired consistency. Sauce will thicken rapidly, thin with milk if cooked too long. Serve over hot pasta.

 Soooooo yummy good!!!

11 comments:

Heatherlyn said...

Wow! That looks and sounds fabulous!!! You have got your own private gourmet restaurant for 3. I bet the leftovers are divine!

Intense Guy said...

Drools...

*ponders the cost of airfare to Germany*

Rita said...

Okay--now I am really hungry! :)

Bella is doing really well with her own little rolling pin, too. ;)

Welcome to the Garden of Egan said...

Oh my heck that looks so delicious!!!!!
I need a pasta machiny thingy!

No wait.
I need you to cook for me instead.

AliceKay said...

Looks like you're having a good time making your raviolis and other pasta. Bella seems to be great little helper, too. :)

Regina said...

OMGOSH....I so need to try this. The Chazman loves LOVES Ravioli. Love your little helper too...such concentration!! ^_^

Hope you don't mind but you are in my post today and I put a link back to this post. Everyone should know how to make this yummy recipe.

Hugs,
Regi

KatheD said...

omg, Jeanne, i saw this on Stampin' Connect (excellent hijack, btw) and just had to pop over here to tell you how incredible it looks! great tutorial, too, even though i'll never get around to having a pasta machine, it does look easy enough!

Anonymous said...

YUM! Makes me sad that I sold my pasta machine after we stopped selling polymer clay. (Guess you're not supposed to use it for pasta, though, after it's had clay rolled through it.) Wonder how much it would cost to charter a flight to Germany? Because it sounds like a LOT of us want to live with you.

Mary said...

Super Yummy!! Maybe if the boys ever grow out of their wheat/egg allergy, I'll give it a try :o)

Mary said...

Those look really good!

Unknown said...

I ate enough this last week to make me cringe....however now I want Pasta.