Radicchio Ravioli

Italians don't make Christmas cookies. They make Panettone, which I would never make for multiple reasons, the biggest one being that it takes something like 20 hours to make because the dough has to rise three times. And also, I don't like it, but you're not allowed to say that in Italy.

This December though, instead of Christmas cookies or Panettone, we decided to make ravioli.

Radicchio is everywhere in Italy, and it comes in all different shapes, sizes and colors.

Italians eat it raw or grilled; they stuff it into things, mix it into salads and use it as a garnish. So if you don't feel like making Christmas cookies this year....here's another idea:

Radicchio Ravioli
(Serves 2)

For the pasta:
Here's a previous post on how to make pasta, but for two people, we used one cup of flour, one egg and a little water for the dough

For the filling:
1 cup cooked and finely chopped purple radicchio
1/2 cup ricotta
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste

First make the filling by cooking the radicchio in 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat, then chop it finely and add to a bowl followed by the Parmesan and ricotta. Mix together and add salt and pepper to taste. Roll out the pasta dough into strips and place about a tablespoon of the filling on the dough. Depending on how long the strip of dough is, repeat, leaving about an inch or two in between each dollop of filling.

Using your finger, trace a line of water around each spot of filling (this will help the top layer of dough adhere). And a side note - when we made this, Ryan accidentally dipped his finger into my wine glass and that worked fine too...

Place another strip of dough on top of the first and seal the top strip to the bottom by pressing your finger around the filling - make sure that you get all the air out for cooking. Cut out each ravioli square using a ravioli stamp or a knife.

Bring a pot of salted water to a gentle boil and cook in batches for about 3 minutes each. We like to eat our ravioli topped with olive oil, black pepper and extra Parmesan.

PS - Spinach and ricotta ravioli