Dough
3 cups unbleached white flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup water
Ricotta Filling 1
1 1/2 lbs ricotta cheese (drained)
1/4 lb freshly grated romano cheese (about 1 cup)
2 eggs , slightly beaten
1/4 lb mortadella or 1/4 lb ham or 1/4 lb prosciutto or 1/4 lb salami , chopped fine (optional)
1 dash nutmeg
salt and pepper
Ricotta Filling 2
1 1/2 lbs ricotta cheese (drained)
2 eggs
1/4 cup freshly grated romano cheese
1 1/2-2 tablespoons finely minced fresh italian flat leaf parsley
1/4-1/3 teaspoon cinnamon
salt and pepper
Beef and Spinach Filling
1/4 lb lean ground beef
1/4 lb ground veal
1 tablespoon butter
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup cooked chopped spinach , squeezed dry
1 tablespoon chopped italian flat leaf parsley
2 eggs , slightly beaten
2 tablespoons freshly grated romano cheese
1 dash nutmeg
Sausage Filling
3/4 lb loose sweet Italian sausage link (or casings removed from links)
2 eggs , slightly beaten
2 tablespoons freshly grated romano cheese (If you prefer a less sharp cheese, freshly grated Parmesan cheese may be substituted for the Romano)
Directions:
1MAKING THE FILLING: Ricotta Filling#1: In a large bowl, blend all filling ingredients together until smooth, set aside filling until needed.2Ricotta Filling#2: In a large bowl, blend all filling ingredients together until smooth, set aside filling until needed.3Beef and Spinach Filling: Brown beef and veal in butter with the whole clove of garlic.4Remove garlic and let meat mixture cool.5Mix spinach, parsley, eggs, cheese and nutmeg into cooled meat until well blended, set aside filling until needed.6Sausage Filling: Brown sausage in frying pan, drain fat and allow sausage to cool.7When sausage has cooled, mix in eggs and cheese, set aside filling until needed.8MAKING THE RAVIOLI DOUGH: Sift flour and salt together.9Place flour mixture on a board, making a well in the center of the flour.10Drop eggs into the flour well, using your hand or a fork, break the yolks and beat eggs slightly.11Combine the eggs and flour together, gradually adding enough warm water to make a stiff dough.12Knead dough well, until smooth; cover the dough and let it rest for 15 minutes.13Cut dough in half and roll each half of the dough out on a floured board, into a very thin sheet (about 1/16 to 1/8 inch thick).14FILLING THE RAVIOLI: Drop about 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoonfuls of filling about 1 1/2 inches apart all along the dough.15When the sheet of dough is fully dotted with dabs of filling mixture, cover filling with other sheet of dough.16Using your fingers, gently press dough between each dab of filling to seal it.17Cut ravioli into squares with a (zig-zag edged) pastry cutter, or very sharp knife.18DRYING THE RAVIOLI: Allow ravioli to dry for one hour before cooking.19COOKING THE RAVIOLI: Drop ravioli into 6 to 8 quarts of boiling, salted water and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until dough is tender.20Remove cooked ravioli from pot carefully with a skimmer or a large slotted spoon, and drain well.21Place drained ravioli on a serving platter in layers, alternating layers with your favorite sauce and a sprinkling of grated cheese between each ravioli layer.22Serve hot.
