I spent a couple of hours in the kitchen this morning. I was mourning and creating, remembering the journey and thinking ahead...
This
is not the first meal I have made in 2016, but it is the first fresh pasta one… It's easy and great for when you need a little mental solitude. Remember last year when I told you that you can use wonton wrappers for far
more than wonton soup and dumplings?
We used wontons as crispy
cups (baked in muffin tins so that they cooked in the shape of pretty, tiny
baskets). In the tiny cups, we stuffed a cream cheese and kippers filling that
was tart and smoky and delicious.
The leftover wontons sat in
the fridge for over a week before I decided that what I wanted to make was
ravioli. (It was a toss-up between ravioli and guava-cheese empanadas.)
I found a couple of recipes
we’d saved but I tweaked them. The garlic-herb recipe required fresh parsley
that I did not have and I didn’t want to wait. The second recipe called for thawed
frozen spinach (but I was ready right now and thawing takes time I did not
have).
I could have waited, or
used the microwave oven… but it was more a matter of wanting to clear my head –
just dive into creating, and dance and blast Bowie for a little while. What I
was looking for was the opportunity to ponder the art of creation and prepare
myself to make some decisions that I must make.
Garlic-Herb Ricotta Filling
1 ¼ cup ricotta cheese
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons dried chives
1 tablespoon dried basil
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 large egg
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
In a bowl, combine the garlic, cheeses and herbs and mix well. Add salt and pepper and mix thoroughly. Taste and adjust as needed. Add egg and mix.
The ravioli recipe called
for one tablespoon of the filling and a second wonton over the first and a
total of 48 skins (for 24 ravioli). I only had 16 wontons left, so mine are small
ravioli.
The method of filling them and assembling is simple. Place a teaspoon or so of the garlic-herb mixture in the center of the wonton. Wet the edges of the wonton skin, and fold it by bringing the top edge to meet the bottom (a half moon shape for round and a triangle shape for square wontons). Press the edges together and make sure you squeeze out the air in the dough.
I used a rack to let them
dry out (they harden a little too). After cleanup, I put them in a platter – on
parchment paper dredged with a sprinkling of cornstarch so they don’t stick.
They will remain in the fridge until dinner.
Tonight, we will cook the tortellini for some 3-5 minutes in boiling water, in batches of 5-6, and serve them topped with Mom’s fiery red sauce with sausage.
Here’s hoping your year is
full of delectable creations, and lots of deliciousness – some a little savory
and some a little spicy, others a little sweet and nothing bland; and that neither your
cupboard nor your fridge are ever empty. And if you must lose people and things that matter to you, may you have enough good memories to hold close to your heart to sustain you. Happy New Year!
