Makes Enough Dough For 3 to 4 Dozen Ravioli or Enough Pasta For 6 As A Main Course
2½ Cups Double Zero Flour, Plus More for Rolling Out
1 Cup Semolina Flour
3 Large Eggs
2 Large Egg Yolks
½ Teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
A Bowl of Water to Keep Hands Moist
Place the flour and semolina directly on a work surface and make a well (hole) in the flour leaving some flour at the bottom of the well.
Lightly beat the eggs with the salt and pour into the middle of the well. With a fork gently incorporate the eggs into the flour by taking a bit of the flour from the inside sides of the well being careful not to break the walls of the well. If this happens the eggs will escape from the well and run all over your work surface. Once the eggs are incorporated enough to not run finish incorporating the flour and eggs with your hands. To help pull the dough together, wet your hands every now and then. The reason for this is to keep out as much excess water as possible. Once it is completely incorporated scrape any hard bits off the work surface, lightly flour it and begin kneading the dough. Constantly turn the dough over itself and, by using the heel of your hand, push the dough away from you. Do this for about 10 minutes to create a soft, pliable dough. The dough should be smooth, not sticky, and not hard. (Kneading dough is a good upper body workout.)
Divide the ball of dough in half and cover with a damp tea towel. Let the dough rest for 1 hour before rolling out.
After an hour, cut each half into halves. While working with a piece of dough keep the others covered with the damp towel. On a lightly floured surface, roll the first piece of dough with a rolling pin to about 1/2 inch thick. This will help the dough go through the rollers of the pasta machine easily and not squeeze out the moisture you want. Set your machine on the number that is the thickest and roll the dough through 3 or 4 times folding it over itself each time. Turn the number to the next lowest and roll the dough through 2 times folding the dough over itself each time. Continue lowering the numbers and rolling the dough twice through each number until you reach the thickness you like. (I go to number 3 on my machine when making long noodles, the same when making ravioli. Remember every machine is different) Once the dough has gone through all of the settings to achieve the thickness you want, cut into noodles to the thickness you like by hand. To cut even noodles by hand sprinkle flour on the pasta sheet and roll it loosely lengthwise. Cut the noodles to your desired thickness and gently loosen them into long strands. Place the pasta on a lightly floured towel on a sheet pan into nests. Continue with each piece of dough until all is rolled and cut. Remember to do each piece individually. Rolling all of the pieces first and then cutting them does not work. The dough begins to dry and will not cut without cracking.
When making Ravioli, on the pasta sheet place 1 tablespoon of filling on the lower third of the sheet about 2 inches apart. (For the filling use either recipe for Ricotta Filling or Wild Mushroom Duxelles Filling.) Fold the top of the dough over the filling and gently press the air out between the each tablespoon of filling. Cut the pasta with a pizza cutter in between each dollop of filling leaving about an inch all the way around 3 sides. Trim to even up the edges and press the dough with a fork to seal.
Place the ravioli on sheet pans lined with a towel and sprinkle with flour. Leave the ravioli uncovered for about 30 minutes and then cover with a tea towel. They can stay like this for a couple of hours or you can refrigerate them until ready to use. If you refrigerate, bring the ravioli back to room temperature before dropping into the boiling water.
When ready to cook, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and gently place 12 to 16 ravioli into the boiling water. Bring the water back to a boil and cook the ravioli for 3 or 4 minutes. Remove the ravioli from the water with a slotted spoon or skimmer and transfer to a colander to drain well. Once drained, place them on a dish and cover with your favorite sauce (my Roasted Marinara is the favorite for Ravioli filled with Ricotta). I like to serve them up on individual plates. With this size ravioli, 5 each is a perfect portion. Put a little sauce on the plate then top with ravioli and more sauce.
Hints and Tips: Folding the dough over itself and rolling over and over makes for a perfectly elastic dough that will not fall apart when you cook it.
If the dough starts to get sticky when rolling it out don’t be afraid to sprinkle a little flour on it. When you fold it over itself while rolling don’t put extra flour on the sides that will meet each other.
When you put the cut pasta on the floured towel in nests let it air dry uncovered. After a bit, gently lift the nests to be sure they are not sticking to each other.
I use the cut scraps for soup. Let the scraps dry at room temperature and then place in a plastic bag and freeze for up to a month.
Cooking the pasta or ravioli should be done in a large pot with lots of boiling, salted water. The pasta will take only a few minutes to cook as opposed to the longer cooking time for dried pasta.
The pasta freezes well. I IQF (Individually Quickly Froozen) the nests and then place them in a large plastic container or plastic bag. It will last in the freezer for a month.
