I’m giving these a little bit of a mixed review. Taste-wise, they’re spot on. Very, very yummy and even healthy. My hesitation is that I’m not sure they’re worth the work that goes into them. This is the fourth time I’ve made homemade ravioli and the third time I’ve done it with wonton wrappers instead of homemade pasta.
Since I had some experience, they definitely went together faster than they have in the past, so that was nice. However, I have yet to figure out how to keep the first batch of boiled raviolis from sticking together while the second batch cooks. They get extremely sticky after cooking and so far neither olive oil nor the cream sauce has prevented this. (My mom suggested putting oil into the water)
Having the prior experience helped in other parts of the process though. I was more organized while putting them together, it didn’t take nearly as long, and they stayed moist without drying out. Also, thanks to the pot that has the strainer insert, cooking them was significantly faster and easier.
As for the sauce, I was surprised at how healthy and good it was! It was made from 1% milk, some fresh grated Parmesan, flour, chives, and salt and pepper. Truly surprising.
If you’re going to make this yourself, this is what I suggest:
* Set everything up before you begin stuffing the wonton wrappers. Have everything in reach so you don’t have to move. On the left – wonton wrappers under a damp cloth. In front of you – mushroom mixture and small bowl of water. On the right – a cookie sheet with corn starch sprinkled on it and a damp cloth waiting to cover the ravioli.
* Definitely use the wonton wrappers and skip the homemade pasta. They taste exactly the same and are made of basically the same ingredients. I’ll never use homemade pasta again after having such good experiences and tastes with the wonton wrappers.
* When you’re ready to cook them, take the strainer insert out of the pot, put in half of your raviolis, then set the whole thing in the water so that they cook evenly. Since they only cook for 2-3 minutes, it works much better and faster if you have them all in the strainer and then can simply set it in the boiling water, as opposed to dropping them in the water one by one.
* When taking the first batch out of the water, I put the raviolis into a pasta dish, covered them with sauce and then put them into a 200 degree oven to keep them warm. This is what I would change – put them in a single layer in an oiled cake pan. The single layer will prevent them from sticking together and using olive oil instead of the sauce will save the sauce for later and prevent them from absorbing it.
So, maybe this dish is one of those dinners where you just have to do it over and over to get it right. Or you need someone like me to do it over and over so you don’t have to. I’m not giving up though; it’s too good of a recipe! (One last thought - I don’t think it will ever be a “dinner party dish” since it would just be too much work, but it’s good for 2-4 people)
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Tonight is either crab cakes or Penne with spinach, tomatoes and Gorgonzola – I haven’t decided yet. Tune in tomorrow to find out.
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