Spinach, Bacon, and Sun-dried Tomato Ravioli with Creamy Tomato Sauce

Super-simple shrimp recipe to come...

I am stuck. I am in hell, and it has frozen over! I had to come to Cleveland for a very quick--36 hour--work trip. I was looking forward to seeing a new city and having time to explore a little, since I only had a few appointments. Well, the combination of lake-effect snow and a low pressure unit from Michigan (thank you, Michigan) has dumped eight inches on the city of Cleveland thus far, and it's not finished yet. To make matters even more comical, I packed tights, ballet flats, and a light-weight trench coat.

I am crossing every finger and toe I have that I can get out tomorrow morning. If not, I will go stir crazy. I am used to being busy; even if I don't have something I have/need to do, I will create some way to occupy myself. Last year, I reorganized and 'spring' cleaned during the first snow. I'll cook. I'll work out. I'll read or find something to do, some way to be productive. Well, here I am...just sitting...waiting...hoping that divine intervention will occur and the snow will vanish. Leaving me with the freedom to go and do and explore...and not sit. I can't even cook, because I'm not at home.

I have already answered my work emails, an personal emails, and stopped shopping online. I decided there has to be a less expensive way to unproductively spend my time. So I figured I would share another recipe with you. This one is a fresh, but comforting, and extremely versatile pasta dish. There is so much you can do within the basic framework of this recipe, so take your favorite ingredients and make some ravioli out of them. The possibilities are endless.

One day, I will make homemade pasta. That will be right after I invest in the pasta-making attachment for my mixer, but until then, I am going to make these semi-homemade ravioli. The wonton wrappers work so well, that I am in no hurry to make my own. Plus, you want to taste the filling more than you want to taste the noodle in this case. In other dishes, where you're serving noodles and sauce (no filling) the quality of the pasta is much more important. This is great as an entree or side.

As far as fillings, you will see that I used cream cheese, white cheddar, bacon, sun-dried tomatoes, and spinach. They were out of this world. The chewy, sweet, and tart sun-dried tomatoes paired well with salty bacon. Don't feel limited to this recipe; get creative! I'm going to make these again, and I'll be sure to let you know what fillings I use, but here are a few that I have invented in my head.

- ricotta, parmesan, mozzarella, Italian herbs
- cream cheese, artichoke, spinach, parmesan
- cream cheese, caramelized onions (diced, not sliced), sausage, rosemary and sage
- ricotta, crab, sun-dried tomato, parmesan

The sauces are endless, too. I used a creamy tomato sauce, but pesto and alfredo would be delicious, too. Ooo, or a creamy pesto--the best of both worlds. Since the filling is the highlight of this dish, these would be great lightly tossed in an infused olive oil and topped with freshly grated parmesan.

To infuse the olive oil, place your desired herbs and spices in the bottom of a glass jar or bottle. Heat olive oil over medium heat for fifteen minutes. Pour the olive oil via funnel into the bottle or jar, and let the flavors marry for a week or so. This is a great thing to have on hand for dipping or drizzling over dishes. For the artichoke and spinach ravioli, I would infuse the oil with lemon rind, a smashed garlic clove (or two), thyme, and oregano.

If you wanted to serve them as an appetizer, you could fry them. Drop the ravioli into an egg wash and coat with grated parmesan cheese. Drop into a pan of hot oil (about 1/4" - 1/2" oil in the bottom of a pan will suffice). Flip when the bottom is browned and cook until the other side is browned. Drain on a paper towel and serve with dipping sauce, a marinara will probably go best.

2 cups fresh spinach
wonton wrappers
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 clove garlic
1/3 c cheddar cheese
4 pieces of bacon, cooked, broken into bits
1/4 cup diced sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained of course

First, wilt the spinach into oblivion. Add the spinach to a sautee pan over medium to medium-high heat. I salted mine a bit just to ensure that it wasn't totally bland. Stir occasionally. It will shrink to barely anything. Let that cool a bit while you mix the rest f the ingredients.

In a bowl, mix the cheeses, garlic (I used a garlic press, but if you want to mince it finely, then do so), crumbled bacon, and chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Add the spinach and mix well.

At this point, open the wonton wrappers, fill a small bowl with water, and place a large pot of salted water on to boil. The wrappers will dry out, so work efficiently. You may want to keep them under a damp paper towel, but I did not find that necessary. Place a teaspoon or two of filling to one side of the middle--you will fold the dough in half, so you don't want it right in the middle/crease. Before you fold it, dip your finger or a pastry brush in a little bit of water (too much and it will get soggy quickly and stick to the plate) and run it along the edges of the dough. Fold it in half and press the edges together. The water acts as glue and helps seal the pasta, so make sure it seals completely. That way, when you drop it in the boiling water, your precious filling will not disperse. There's nothing you can do to save it at that point.

 

Once you have all of the ravioli completed, drop them in the boiling water in batches. My pot fit five or six comfortably. 

Ready!

Once they float to the top (it only takes a few minutes) they are finished! Top them with sauce as they come out of the water, so they won't stick to each other.

You can also freeze the ravioli between sheets of parchment or wax paper to have on hand. Same deal--they are done when they float to the top.

I won't judge if you use store-bought sauce, but the recipe below is a perfect, simple topping for these tender, creamy, and flavorful pillows of goodness.

15 ounce can of tomato sauce
1 clove of garlic
healthy turns of the pepper mill (not pictured, camera shy)
1 t sugar (it really brings out the sweetness of the tomato and gets rid of the harsh acidic flavor)
1/2 t EACH oregano, basil, and parsley (my herb garden is not in yet, otherwise, I would use 1 T each fresh)
1/4 cup cream

Empty the tomato sauce into a small sauce pan. Add all ingredients, except the cream. Heat until simmering. Cook over low heat for about 20 - 30 minutes so that the flavors have time to develop. Add the cream and bring up to simmering again. Now top your ravioli with it!

Looks better in person.