We hosted an open house and instead of serving store-purchased treats, we decided to feature some of my home-created items. The menu included: home smoked chicken with zesty peach barbecue sauce, homemade mozzarella, chips with peach salsa, fermented carrots, quick-pickled vegetables, and crackers topped with homemade ricotta and peach jalapeño jam. All of the peach items had been canned back in the warmer months of last summer.
But when the event was over, I had some leftovers.
So, I decided to make some ravioli with the leftover ricotta and some of the smoked chicken.
Making ravioli at my house starts with wheat berries. I used soft white winter wheat for this pasta session. I put the berries in my Komo mill and ground them as fine as possible. After grinding, I scooped out 3 cups of the flour and added it to the mixer with a little salt. I then added in eggs until I got a ball of dough that was pulling away from the bowl. It took 5 eggs today. This can vary due to the type of flour and the general humidity.
After letting the dough rest of about 20 minutes, it was time to roll. I have a Kitchenaid attachment that makes this job so much easier. I rolled the dough through each of the settings until I reached number 5. Whole wheat pasta is not quite as flexible as white flour pasta so I have to leave the dough a little thicker.
Then, I brushed a beaten egg over the whole sheet of pasta. Next, a generous teaspoon of filling was added. I then folded the sheet of pasta over the filling and carefully sealed it while trying to avoid any air pockets.
I used the rolling pasta cutter to trim them out. The ravioli were then placed on a sheet of parchment and frozen. I had a good amount of dough after using up all of my filling so I put the trimmings back through the pasta roller and then cut them into fettuccine.
After freezing, I bagged everything up and it is ready for a quick dip in boiling water when we need a yummy dinner!
