How to make Eggplant Ravioli
Here is a vegetarian friendly pasta that was a huge hit with everyone. The filling for this pasta is cheese and roasted eggplant. Silky smooth filling and the vegetables that I through in was broccolini, peppers, fennel, and mushrooms. I decided to make half of the pasta with beets as well. The final result was a beautiful vegetable ravioli that will melt in your mouth. Here is the recipe I hope you enjoy it!
Recipe Ingredients
Eggplant cheese filling
3 oz Spring koe fever gouda
5 oz Chevre pure luck
3 1/2 oz gruyere
3 eggplant roasted
Beet pasta see recipe
Egg pasta see recipe
1 head of Broccolini
1 stalk of fennel sliced thin
1 red Jimmy Nardello's pepper sliced thin
2 cups of chanterelles
3 oz of Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp of chives finely chopped
1 stick of butter and 2 tbsp of olive oil
Mushroom stock see recipe
1 cup of sourdough bread crumbs crushed
Recipe Instructions
How to make Eggplant cheese filling,
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the eggplant in half and drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Then flip over face down on sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Place in the oven and roast for 35-40 minutes until tender and soft. Take out and cool completely. Then scoop out the meat of the eggplant and place all of the ingredients in a food processor and puree until smooth. Season with salt and pepper and place into a plastic pastry bag in the refrigerator to keep cool.
How to make basic fresh Pasta,
Place 2 cups of flour and 1 cup of semolina in a bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour. Add eggs, yolks, water, and salt. With a fork stir the egg mixture until it starts to form a ball of dough. Then use your hands to form the dough. Add more flour if the dough is wet. Knead the pasta for 5 minutes and then cover and rest for at least 30 minutes.
How to make Beet Pasta,
Use the same ingredients and technique except add the beet puree
Take your basic pasta and cut in half. Leave one half covered while you work with the other half. Take the half of the pasta with a rolling pin and roll until the dough is thin enough to fit inside the biggest setting on your pasta machine ( I use the kitchenaid attachment). Then run the pasta all the way down to the lowest setting twice. Dusting the dough with flour if it is too wet.
Repeat the same steps with your beet pasta. Then on the third time you want to roll each the egg and beet pasta thin enough to feed the pasta machine. But before you feed it the third time you want to cut each dough in half lengthwise. Take one half of the egg pasta and half of the beet pasta and carefully pinch them together to make one dough. Repeat the process with the rest of the dough. Take your mixed pasta dough, the egg pasta and the beet pasta, through the first setting of the pasta machine. Continue all the way down to 6.
How to stuff ravioli,
Using your pastry bag pipe the cheese mixture along the bottom of the pasta leaving about a 1/2 inch from the edge. Run it along the whole length of the pasta sheet leaving about an inch or two at the ends (one long tube of filling). Then take a pastry brush or spray bottle of water and brush the top portion of the pasta sheet. Take the bottom part pasta closest to the filling and roll over to the brushed top portion. You should now have a long tube like pasta running all the way down the length of the pasta. Now, at every 1/2 inch use your index fingers and press down with with each index finger to create a little "ravioli" Continue the same thing all the way down the pasta sheet. Then using a pinwheel cutter cut away the excess pasta at the top. Then cut in between each press that you make with your fingers to create each agnolotti. Place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and extra semolina flour to help prevent sticking. Set aside while you aside while you repeat the same process with the other half of the pasta dough.
It should look something like this.
How to make ravioli
How to make ravioli
In a large saute pan with 2 tbsp of olive oil and butter, add chanterelle mushrooms. Cook for 3 minutes and then add your broccolini. Cook for 2 minutes and then add 2 cups of mushroom stock. Place your beet agnolotti pasta in salted boiling water and cook for 2-3 minutes until they float to the top. Strain out and place in the pan with the vegetables. Add the remaining butter and stir in well. Season everything with salt and pepper. Then spoon five or six raviolis on plate with some of the vegetables and sauce. Then top with slices of peppers, fennel, parmesan, and bread crumbs. Drizzle everything with a little olive oil and chives. Serve and enjoy!
