Handmade Raviolis

Ingredients: 
2 Cups Flour
1 Egg
1 Egg White
1 Cup of baby spinach (optional)

1/2 Cup of Ricotta Cheese
1/2 Cup of Mozzarella Cheese 

*Extra Flour for dusting
* Sea Salt
* Cornmeal - this is used only to keep pasta from sticking together 

Best if using: KitchenAid Pasta Roller And Cutter - KPRA (Google Affiliate Ad)


Preparation:
Using a stand mixer with a dough hook, mix together the flour and egg. Keep the mixer going until all flour has been incorporated and dough has a firm texture (not sticky).[If making the spinach dough, chop spinach finely and add to the dough mixture as it is kneading].  Add flour if necessary to smooth out. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 1 - 2 hours. 

Using a pasta roller attachment on the stand mixer, start rolling dough until you have a long sheet. For reference on how best to roll out pasta dough, see this previous article:Rolling Pasta Dough. Once the dough thins (use flour if necessary to avoid sticking) begin reducing the roller thickness from 1 - 5. Hang sheets on a drying rack but do not allow them to dry out as we will need them to be moist. 

Use a food processor/blender to shred mozzarella cheese into tiny pieces. Mix mozzarella and ricotta together in another bowl.  Spoon this mixture into a ziploc bag and cut the corner off (leaving about a 1/2 - 3/4" hole in the bag. 

Keep a small bowl handy with some water to help seal the pasta together. Lay one sheet of dough down, using the ziploc bag with the filling, squeeze a small dollop approximately every 1 - 1 1/2 inches lengthwise and if you can fit 2 across with a 1/4 - 3/8" border, do so otherwise only use 1 row to start. Once all filling is down, use your finger in the water and outline (square) around each dollop of filling.  Press another sheet of dough over and apply pressure specifically over the seams that were just moistened. Using a pizza cutter (or ravioli stamp) cut out around each ravioli. 

Allow raviolis to sit before cooking on a sheet of parchment paper dusted with cornmeal. If they will not be cooked right away, ensure that the container they are put in has a fair amount of cornmeal and parchment paper and freeze. 

Boil salted water (should taste like the sea) and cook raviolis until they float.  They will rise up quickly, let them cook for about another minute once they float to the surface. 

Serving:
If making a spinach dough, this goes well with: Alfredo Sauce
If making a non-spinach dough, this goes well with: Joe's Homemade pasta sauce