While making yogurt yesterday I figured while I was at it I would make some cheese as well. And that plan turned out to be a good one, for I used it tonight for dinner. Homemade Ravioli was on menu. Its really quite simple and a wonderful feeling when you make an entire dish from scratch.

The Pasta

First get your pasta ready. If you are unsure how to make pasta I wrote the article Preparing Fresh Pasta some time ago to help you along.

The Filling

Ingredients

1/4 pound Ricotta cheese, drained. Learn to make your own here.

2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

1 lightly beaten egg

dash of black pepper to taste.

If you are making your own cheese it is important to drain it well. The excess liquid will cause your raviolis to break when cooking them off. I would even drain store bought ricotta as well.

You can add some extra flavor in the filling as well, but watch your moisture content. Tonight I cooked down some spinach before hand and added it in chopped. Your fresh pasta should only need a minute or so to cook off, so if you plan on using a meat product of something that needs to be cooked, make sure it is before mixing it into your filling.

Procedure

Once your pasta is rolled out spoon you filling to desired size onto your pasta, leaving roughly 2 inches in between. Now, around your filling spread a thin layer of egg wash (you could also use water). This will act as an adhesive and seal your filling in tight. Lay another equal size sheet of pasta over and smooth down the sides. When sealing your filling in make sure you work from the middle outward to prevent air pockets from forming.

Once your filling is sealed cut into squares are fork the sides to make it look all fancy and professional. Cook off in boiling water for 1-3 minutes until finished and enjoy!