February Recipe: Spinach and Swiss Chard Ravioli…errr…Lasagna Filling

Now I don’t want anyone to take this as complaining, but I got in over my head. There may have been tears. There may have been “I’m WHELMED!” sighed exasperatingly into the phone when asked, “Well, how’s it going?” But I have to say, now that I’ve hand-rolled 120+ ravioli in over 8 consecutive hours, whipping up a quick batch for dinner seems like no big thing. Regular ol’ homemade pasta? Easy peasy. So who’s coming over for dinner?

For those of you who may want to undertake homemade ravioli and are familiar with making pasta, I highly recommend this filling. For those of you, like me, who want a more accessible and practical use for the filling, I bet it would be delicious as the ricotta layer in a lasagna. I have to say, the nutmeg and the greens are a wonderful combination! And though the original recipe calls for it to accompany a walnut parsley sauce, it goes great a with a traditional tomato based sauce too.

This recipe is adapted from Deborah Madison’s fantastic cookbook Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. Everything I’ve made from that book has come out great, and I highly recommend it.

Spinach and/or Swiss Chard Ravioli Filling (or Lasagna Filling)

1/2 onion — finely diced
1 garlic clove — minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 large spinach bunch — about 1 pound - or Swiss Chard (I used an equal combination of both) stems removed and leaves roughly chopped
Salt and freshly milled pepper
1 cup ricotta
1 egg
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg

Cook the onion and garlic in the oil and butter in a skillet over medium
heat until the onion is softened, about 6 minutes. Add the spinach and/or chard, season with 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook until tender. Raise the heat to evaporate the remaining juices, then remove and finely chop. Mix with the ricotta and egg and season with the salt, pepper, and nutmeg to taste.

Book Recommendation: Take This Bread by Sara Miles

Pastor Tom G-L and I have been asked on several occasions where the idea of Broken Bread Cafe originated.  There is no single source, only many little things over the past two years leading us gently in a single direction.  One thing is for certain, a significant spark of inspiration came from this book.  I highly recommend it.

http://saramiles.net/take_this_bread