Goat Cheese Filling For Ravioli Recipes

HOMEMADE RAVIOLI WITH GOAT CHEESE AND SPINACH FILLING

Steps:

• Mix flour with salt.
• Stir water with egg until well mixed.
• In a bowl, combine flour and egg-water mixture together and mix until well incorporated. Sprinke some flour over working surface and over your hands as you knead the dough. Knead the dough until well-textured and firm. The dough should not be too wet or too sticky. It should only stick to itself, but not to your hands. It should not be too dry, either. Make the dough into a ball or disk, wrap with plastic wrap. Let the dough stand for 1 hour at room temperature before using. This allows gluten to work.
• This amount of dough enough to make dough for 12 raviolis, using the mold (ravioli mold makes 12 ravioli). If you need to make 24 ravioli, make a second batch of this dough.
• If you don't have cooked spinach on hand, cook spinach until wilted and all liquid is gone. All liquid should be evaporated - it's important. Chop spinach.
• Soften goat cheese by heating it up in microwave oven for about 5-10 seconds.
• Mix all ingredients together in a medium bowl: chopped spinach, goat cheese, Parmesan cheese. Add a little bit of nutmeg to taste. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
• Your filling should not be runny, it should be pretty firm, which is why it's important to make sure spinach has no liquid from step 1. If your filling is a bit runny from softened cheese, put the bowl with ravioli filling in the refrigerator to firm up.
• Unwrap ravioli dough from plastic, divide in 2 equal parts. Flour working area. Roll out each part of pasta dough very thinly, on a floured surface, using a roller. Make sure to flour the upper portion of pasta dough and the roller to avoid sticking. Lift the rolled dough several times during rolling to make sure it doesn't stick to the counter, and flour working surface with more flour, if necessary.
• Flour the ravioli mold. After you have rolled the 2 portions of dough very thinly, place first layer of dough on the ravioli mold, so that it covers all 12 holes.
• Place a small portion of ravioli filling into each indentation, making sure not to overfill. The filling should be at the same level or lower as the flat part of the mold. Place second layer of pasta dough on top of filled ravioli.
• Using a roller pin, roll across the mold and along the edges to separate ravioli. As you roll the pin, it also removes all air from ravioli, which is very important for ravioli success. By now you should have extra dough hanging off the outside 4 edges of ravioli mold - carefully separate it. Continue rolling the pin along the inside edges of 12 raviolis to separate them from one another: you could also use your fingers to press across the edges to separate ravioli.
• Flip ravioli mold to release ravioli. Bring a large pot of water to boil Boil ravioli for 5 minutes, drain and set aside - to be used with sauce below.
• Or, alternatively, if you're not using ravioli right away, place them on a plate or baking sheet in the freezer to freeze. After they are frozen, place them in a plastic bag and keep frozen until needed.
• Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, garlic, a bit of nutmeg and cook for about 7 minutes until mushrooms soften and garlic is fragrant.
• Add half-and-half, bring to boil. Remove from heat, add grated parmesan cheese, mix until cheese is melted and mixture thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste.
• After you have boiled ravioli for 5 minutes, drain them and add ravioli to the sauce to coat. To serve, place ravioli and sauce on plates. Garnish with with chopped chives or leeks.

PEA AND GOAT CHEESE STUFFED RAVIOLI

Steps:

• For the dough: Mound the flour on a clean, dry work surface and make a big hole in the center of the pile. Crack the eggs into the hole along with the extra yolks, olive oil, water and some salt. Using a fork, beat the eggs. Incorporate the flour, a little at a time, into the egg mixture, being careful not to break the well (or the egg mixture will run everywhere). When enough flour is incorporated that you can handle the dough, use your hands to combine everything really well. (If the mixture is tight and dry, wet your hands a bit.) When the mixture is homogeneous, start kneading. Knead until the dough is smooth and supple, anywhere from 8 to15 minutes. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for at least an hour.
• For the ravioli: In a food processor, pulse the peas to make a coarse paste. Mix the pea paste, goat cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano and eggs in a large bowl. Sprinkle with salt. Set aside.
• With a rolling pin, roll out the dough into sheets about 1/4-inch thick and 12 inches long, using extra flour as needed to prevent sticking,. (Reserve the excess dough for another use.) Brush the bottom half of the pasta sheets lightly with water.
• Fill a disposable pastry bag (or a resealable bag with one corner snipped) with the pea mixture. Pipe 1-inch balls of filling onto the pasta about 1 1/2-inches apart on the bottom half of the pasta sheets. Fold the top half of the pasta sheets over the filling so the top edges meet the bottom edges. Use your index fingers to press around the filling and seal the edges shut. Use a fluted ring cutter or fluted pasta roller to cut out the ravioli. Place the ravioli on a semolina-dusted baking sheet.
• Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Heat the chicken stock and butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; season with salt.
• Add the ravioli to the boiling water and cook until they float to the top, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the ravioli to the sauce and cook, shaking the pan frequently, until the sauce begins to thicken and cling to the pasta, a few minutes. (If the sauce seems too thick, add a bit more stock.) Place five ravioli on each serving plate, spoon a little extra sauce on top and garnish with pea tendrils, sugar snap peas and mint. Sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano.

GOAT CHEESE RAVIOLI WITH CREAMY WALNUT SAUCE

Steps:

• In a bowl combine the goat cheese, walnuts, basil, oil, garlic and lemon peel, and mix well. Set aside.
• Put a pasta sheet on work surface with long side facing you and put a packed teaspoon of filling 2 inches apart lengthwise along half of the pasta sheet (you should have 10 to 12 mounds). Around each mound of filling brush dough very lightly with water. Fold dough lengthwise in half over mounds of filling, gently pressing around mounds to force out any air, and seal edges well. With a fluted pastry wheel trim edges and cut between mounds of filling to separate ravioli.
• Line a large tray with a dry kitchen towel and arrange ravioli in 1 layer. Make more ravioli with remaining 2 pieces of dough and remaining filling in same manner, transferring to kitchen-towel-lined tray and arranging in 1 layer. Ravioli may be made 8 hours ahead and chilled on towel-lined tray, covered loosely with plastic wrap.
• Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the walnuts and cook, stirring, until brown and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Remove nuts from the pan. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter, shallots and garlic, and saute for 1 minute. Add the wine and cream, and bring to a boil. Cook over medium-high until the liquid has thickened and reduced by nearly 50 percent in volume, about 4 minutes. Stir in the basil, salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and cover to keep warm.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the ravioli until they are tender and rise to the surface, carefully stirring to keep them from sticking together, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain in a colander. Transfer the cooked ravioli to the pan with the sauce, and gently toss to coat and heat through. Divide the ravioli among 6 serving plates or shallow bowls, and sprinkle each serving with grated cheese. Serve immediately.

CHEESE FILLING FOR RAVIOLI

Steps:

• Mix together all ingredients well and fill pasta.

ARUGULA AND GOAT CHEESE RAVIOLI

Steps:

• To make pasta dough in a food processor:
• Blend together all dough ingredients in processor until mixture just begins to form a ball. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface, incorporating only as much additional flour as necessary to keep dough from sticking, until smooth and elastic, 6 to 8 minutes. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature 1 hour (to make rolling easier).
• To make dough by hand:
• Whisk together flours in a bowl, then mound flour mixture on a work surface, preferably wooden, and make a well in center. Add yolks, oil, salt, and water to well. With a fork, gently beat yolks, oil, and water until combined. Gradually stir in enough flour to form a paste, pulling in flour closest to egg mixture and being careful not to make an opening in outer wall of well. Knead remaining flour into mixture with your hands to form a dough (it will be soft and sticky). Knead dough until smooth and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes. Cover with an inverted bowl and let stand 1 hour (to make rolling easier).
• Make filling while dough stands:
• Heat butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides, then add garlic, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic begins to turn golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add arugula and zest and cook, turning with tongs, until arugula is wilted, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer arugula mixture to a fine-mesh sieve and press with back of a wooden spoon to extract excess liquid, then finely chop.
• Stir together arugula mixture and cheeses in a bowl.
• Make ravioli:
• Cut dough into 8 equal pieces. Cover 7 pieces with plastic wrap and pat out remaining piece into a flat rectangle. Generously dust with flour.
• Set rollers of pasta maker on widest setting. Feed rectangle, a short side first, through rollers. Fold rectangle in thirds, like a letter, and feed it, a short side first, through rollers. Repeat 6 or 7 more times, folding dough in thirds and feeding it through rollers, a short side first each time, dusting with flour to prevent sticking. Turn dial to next (narrower) setting and feed dough through rollers without folding, a short side first. Continue to feed dough through without folding, making space between rollers narrower each time, until the second to narrowest setting is used. (Do not roll too thin or pasta will tear when filled.)
• Put sheet of dough on a lightly floured kitchen towel (not terry cloth) with a long side nearest you. Drop 5 or 6 rounded teaspoon-size mounds of filling 1 1/2 inches apart in a row down center of right half of sheet, then lift left half of sheet and drape over mounds. Press down firmly but gently around each mound, forcing out air. (Air pockets increase the chance that ravioli will break during cooking.) Cut pasta (between mounds) with a sharp knife into roughly 2 1/2-inch squares. Line a large shallow baking pan with a clean dry kitchen towel (not terry cloth), then arrange ravioli in 1 layer in it. Make more ravioli with remaining pieces of dough and remaining filling in same manner, transferring to lined pan.
• Make sauce:
• Heat butter in cleaned 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides, then cook pine nuts, stirring frequently, until pale golden, about 4 minutes. Add garlic, pepper, and salt and cook, stirring frequently, until garlic begins to turn golden, about 2 minutes. Add lemon juice and oil, swirling skillet to combine, and remove from heat. (Leave sauce in skillet.)
• Cook ravioli:
• Bring a 6- to 8-quart pot of salted water to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to a gentle boil. While water is heating, reheat sauce over low heat if necessary.
• Add half of ravioli to gently boiling water, carefully stirring to separate, and cook, adjusting heat to keep at a gentle boil, until pasta is just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Lift cooked ravioli with a slotted spoon, draining well over pot, then transfer to skillet with sauce and gently swirl skillet to coat pasta. Transfer ravioli to a platter with half of sauce and sprinkle evenly with half of chopped fresh arugula. Repeat with remaining pasta, sauce, and arugula.

GOAT-CHEESE "RAVIOLI" WITH PARSLEY SAUCE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, use a fork to mash together goat cheese, ricotta, garlic, and nutmeg until smooth; season with salt and pepper, and stir to combine.
• Assemble ravioli: Arrange 6 wrappers on a work surface, keeping remaining wrappers covered with a damp paper towel. Spoon 1 level tablespoon filling in the center of each wrapper. With a fingertip, wet edges of wrappers with water. Fold a corner of each wrapper over filling to form a triangle, and press edges to seal. Flatten area around filling to eliminate air pockets. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling. Place on a baking sheet with parchment paper. (If making ahead, cover ravioli with plastic wrap; refrigerate up to 1 day. Or freeze on sheet for 1 hour, then transfer ravioli to a large resealable freezer bag; freeze up to 1 month.)
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; reduce to a bare simmer. Drop ravioli into water, one at a time, stirring them gently to prevent sticking. Cook until al dente, 5 to 7 minutes. (Cooking time is the same for frozen ravioli.)
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer ravioli to a paper-towel-lined baking sheet, and arrange in a single layer to drain briefly. Divide between two plates; drizzle with parsley sauce, and serve immediately.

GOAT CHEESE FILLING FOR RAVIOLI

Steps:

• Put the goat cheese, ricotta, salt, pepper, cream, chives and egg yolk in a mixing bowl. Blend well.
• When ready to use the filling, scoop out about one and one-half teaspoons of the mixture, and roll into a ball. There should be about 32 balls in all. Fill the rolled-out pasta dough. When the ravioli are cooked, serve with tomato sauce. Serve four or more portions as an appetizer. Serve eight to 10 portions as a main course.

GOAT CHEESE RAVIOLI WITH BELL PEPPERS AND BROWN BUTTER

Steps:

• For bell peppers:
• Char all peppers over gas flame or in broiler until blackened on all sides. Place in paper bag; seal and let stand at room temperature 15 minutes. Peel and seed peppers; chop.
• Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and tomatoes and cook until onion begins to brown, about 4 minutes. Reduce heat to low; cook until vegetables are very soft and onion is brown, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Add chopped peppers and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill.
• For ravioli:
• Lightly sprinkle rimmed baking sheet with cornmeal. Mix 8 ounces goat cheese, 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, and next 2 ingredients in medium bowl. Arrange 6 wonton wrappers on work surface. Place 1 tablespoon cheese filling in center of each wrapper. Using fingertip, dampen edges of wrappers with water. Fold all 4 corners up to meet in center, forming pyramid shape; seal all 4 edges tightly. Pinch top to seal. Place on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling. DO AHEAD: Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover and chill.
• Cook butter in large skillet over medium heat until beginning to brown, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes.
• Cook ravioli in pot of gently boiling salted water until tender, about 4 minutes. Transfer ravioli to skillet with browned butter. Toss over medium heat.
• Meanwhile, rewarm bell pepper mixture; divide among 6 plates. Using slotted spoon, top peppers on each plate with 3 ravioli. Drizzle with any remaining browned butter. Sprinkle with Parmesan, toasted pine nuts, olives, and chives.
• *Brine-cured black olives; available at some supermarkets and at specialty foods stores and Italian markets.

SPINACH, GOAT CHEESE AND HERB RAVIOLI

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Liberally season with salt.
• While the water comes to a boil, heat a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Drizzle in the olive oil and garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the spinach in batches, stirring to wilt, before adding more. Once all of the spinach is added, season with salt and pepper and cook until wilted and you no longer see any liquid in the skillet, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and add the goat cheese, Parmesan, chopped basil and parsley. Stir together until thick and creamy. Scoop the filling into a medium bowl.
• Fill a small bowl with water. Place 1 gyoza wrapper on a clean work surface and add 1 tablespoon of the spinach filling to the center. Dab a finger in the bowl of water and run it around the edge of the wrapper. Top with another wrapper and press around the edges to seal the ravioli, pushing out any air bubbles. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling to make a total of 10 ravioli.
• Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Add the butter and cook until you see little brown bits on the bottom and it smells nutty, 3 to 4 minutes. Keep warm over low heat.
• While the butter browns, add 5 ravioli at a time to the pot and boil for 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, carefully transfer the cooked ravioli to the brown butter. Spoon the brown butter over the ravioli. Repeat with the remaining 5 ravioli.
• For each serving, spoon some of the ravioli into a shallow dish and drizzle with the brown butter. Finish with a sprinkling of Parmesan, chopped parsley and a few basil leaves.

MINT RAVIOLI STUFFED WITH GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Make the pasta: Prepare an ice-water bath. Cook mint in a small saucepan of boiling water until bright green, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer mint to ice-water bath. When cool, drain, and squeeze out excess water.
• Transfer mint to a food processor. Add eggs, and process until mint is finely chopped. Combine flour and salt on a work surface; make a well in the center. Add the egg mixture, oil, and water to the well. Using a fork, lightly beat wet ingredients. While beating, draw in the flour mixture, a little at a time, until fully incorporated. (Dough will be shaggy.)
• Knead dough by hand or in a mixer fitted with a dough hook until very smooth and supple, 10 to 15 minutes by hand, 8 to 10 minutes with a mixer. Wrap in plastic, and let stand for 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, make the filling: Beat ricotta, goat cheese, salt, and pepper with a mixer on medium speed until well combined and smooth, about 2 minutes.
• Divide dough into 4 portions. Feed 1 piece of dough (keep remaining pieces covered with plastic) through a pasta machine's widest setting (#1) twice. Continue to feed through ever-finer settings, 2 passes on each setting, ending on setting #6. (The sheet will be very thin.) If dough is sticking, dust very lightly with flour. Cover dough sheet with plastic. Repeat with remaining dough.
• Using a round cutter, cut pasta sheets into 3 1/2-inch circles. Spoon 1 generous tablespoon of the filling in the center of 1 round. Wet edges of pasta with a finger dipped in water. Top with another pasta round; press edges tightly to seal. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
• To serve: Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add 1/2 of the ravioli, and cook until they float, 1 to 2 minutes. Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. With a slotted spoon, transfer ravioli, along with 1 to 2 teaspoons cooking liquid, to the skillet. Cook, turning occasionally, until just glazed, about 2 minutes. Transfer to serving plates. Repeat with remaining ravioli and butter.
• Garnish with lemon zest and mint, and serve immediately.

BEET AND GOAT CHEESE RAVIOLI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Individually wrap beets, onion, and head of garlic in aluminum foil. Place on a baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until beets are fork-tender, about 1 hour depending on size. Remove garlic once soft, after about 30 minutes. Allow beets, onion, and garlic to cool to room temperature.
• Meanwhile, prepare the dough. In a large bowl, mix together all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Make a well in the center and add in eggs. Gradually add in the water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough comes together (more water may be needed depending on how dry your dough is).
• Turn dough out onto a work surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Divide dough into 4 portions, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
• For the filling: Peel skin off beets, onion, and 3 cloves of the roasted garlic. Reserve the rest of the garlic for another use. Cut beets in half, and place them in a food processor. Add onion and garlic cloves; pulse until smooth, scraping down sides as necessary. Add in 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon fresh dill, and 4 ounces goat cheese; pulse several times until thoroughly combined.
• Remove 1 piece of chilled dough from the fridge. Shape into a rough rectangle about 3x4 inches. Set pasta maker to the widest setting, and run dough through 3 times. Reduce pasta width setting to the next narrowest setting, and run pasta through twice. Continue to run pasta through pasta maker, dropping the width each time, until about 1/16-inch-thick. Cover pasta sheet with a kitchen towel to prevent it from drying out. Repeat with additional pieces of pasta dough, as needed.
• Lay one sheet of pasta on your work surface. Scoop teaspoon-sized portions of beet filling onto the dough about 3 inches apart. Lightly brush water around the edges of the filling. Gently place another sheet of pasta over the filling and press pieces together around the filling, removing as much air as possible. Seal firmly.
• Using a 2 1/2-inch cutter, cut raviolis from the dough, ensuring the filling is as centered as possible. Gently press edges again to seal. Place finished ravioli on a lightly floured baking sheet. Continue making pasta and filling raviolis until all the beet filling is used. Reserve any extra dough for another use.
• When ready to serve, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add a few ravioli at a time to the boiling water. Boil until they rise to the top, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from water with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• Melt 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter in a second saucepan over medium heat. Add a few ravioli at a time to the pan and cook for 2 minutes. Flip over and cook an additional 2 minutes.