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ricotta and spinach ravioli

The other night, I made ravioli from scratch. Dough, filling, and sauce. I was really proud of the finished product, but alas, it was date night and did not want to ruin the mood by pausing to snap a plethora of photos... so instead I snapped one via instagram. It will have to do :)




for the dough: i used this recipe. pretty standard, but i doubled it and it was the perfect amount for our ravioli. 

for the filling
6 cups of fresh baby spinach
1 glove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 oz of ricotta

heat olive oil in large pan over medium heat and add spinach and garlic. saute until spinach is entirely wilted and cooked through (about five minutes). allow to cool and then blend with ricotta cheese. add salt and pepper to taste. 

to assemble: roll out dough as instructed into thin sheets (about five inches wide). place small spoonfuls of filling onto dough about 2 inches apart. take a second sheet of dough, and lay over the first. use your fingers to smooth down the area around each spoonful of filling and seal two sheets of dough together. using a small circular cookie cutter {or ravioli cutter if you want to get fancy} cut out each ravioli, making sure not to get too close to the filling. lightly flour each ravioli so they don't stick together or to your working surface. set aside. 

to cook: boil a large pot of water and cook ravioli for about 4 minutes. 

for the sauce
4 large vine ripe tomatoes
10 basil leaves
1 clove garlic 
1/2 a small onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 tsp italian seasoning
1/2 tsp parsley
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

add first 4 ingredients to a blender/food processor and puree {leaving some chunks if you like a thicker sauce}. heat olive oil in pan over medium heat and added blended mixture. stir in tomato paste and spices and simmer for 20 minutes until sauce thickens. 

then, you are done! and if you'd like to, you can take some photos and blog about it - but for this meal, i recommend you just eat :)

15 comments:

  1. I hear you! I post recipes on occasion, but they don't always make the cut for the exact reasons you posted. And I get jealous of food bloggers too. It seems they must have an infinite pantry, 8 hours to prepare dinner, and access to a beautiful farmers' market during the entire year.

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  2. looks amazing!! eager to try it! www.fashionifancy.com

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  3. I think that you are in extremely good company for your reasons to not stop and ruin the night by taking a million photos. My bf hates when I am on my phone with him, or working when it is time to unwind from the day - sometimes just being needs to take priority over the blog. Your recipes are amazing and you capture your food perfectly, my mouth is always drooling by the time I finish reading your posts!

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  4. I always think your food pictures are perfect!! And trust me, I agree that sometimes having to be a blogger and a take a picture just ruins the moment. Don't let it. Skip the picture, we won't know it ever happened.

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  5. I think your photos are fabulous and your recipes sound amazing. That's really the most important thing, isn't it? I agree with you, just eat! :)

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  6. Katie Carlin7/17/12, 8:34 AM

    Can totally relate! Love your blog though and keep up the good work I love reading!
    xo Katie
    http://dailycrushes.blogspot.com

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  7. i separate my food blogging moments from life moments all the time, because i hate stopping and photographing! don't get discouraged though, you're doing great! :) xo

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  8. cute girl. love ya much and your blog is awesome...the balance in your life is admirable (little bit of indulgence, lotta bit of hard work). so proud xx

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  9. I barely cook at all and if I do, no one wants to see a photo of it! Haha! I feel the same way about my clothes and interiors though.Your blog is fantastic so don't get too caught up!! :) xoxo

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  10. You're doing great! Food blogging is a serious commitment. Even after doing it for over 2 years, I'm still learning so much and definitely jealous of the people with hundreds of props and time to cook and photograph with natural light. It's just not realistic for most of us! I try to cook food that real people would eat for a real dinner, after work, using a real (tiny) kitchen. Of course, I do need a bit of extra time to take pictures, so I try to do my cooking on dedicated nights or on the weekends. And I've learned to just let the other people with me eat while I photograph haha!

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  11. Lara that looks fantastic! I think you're doing a fantastic job and I absolutely love your blog for all the foodie fabulousness that comes from it!

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  12. It is definitely hard and I have to say I honestly stopped worrying about it. I post recipes on my blog because I want them to refer back to for myself. It is an added bonus when blog followers love the recipe/photo and want to try it for themselves. If people don't love the photos (I've had commenters tell me that the item "probably tasted good but wasn't pretty") oh well. I'm not going to take an extra 30 minutes for my food to get cold just to get the "perfect" picture. Believe me when I tell you, people like me just appreciate whatever photos you have and the recipes. End rant. :)

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  13. That picture makes me want to cook it asap, it looks so delicious! Jealousy is a normal human emotion and everyone experiences it from time to time. Don't worry and know that you are great, just the way you are and the way you do thing. Thanks for sharing!

    Hannah from I am a lifestyle blog

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  14. I think your ravioli looks great! I think we all struggle with comparison-syndrome but it's best to just take it as motivation and inspiration. For me, it's important to do what's important to me. Sometimes I just want to sit and eat my food with the company I'm with and setting up props and lighting just ins't part of it. Sometimes I have the time and energy to set that all up. Either way, just be sure you're enjoying yourself. :)

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  15. Um, Lara...I feel this way all the time. Like I don't have the right plates and OMG I need all these props to shoot this properly and why don't I have pretty kitchen linens! Why do I have to work when the lighting in the kitchen is so great!? So you are not alone and that instagram photo is just fine by me :)

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