May 24th
2007
Most times memorable food experiences are predominantly related to one of your senses. Some dishes are pure eye candy, others are superbly fragrant, phenomenal taste-wise or have a very unique mouthfeel. But what to do when you hit jackpot and all your senses go wild? Simply enjoy!
If you're up for a not so ordinary doses of ravioli, you're in for treat: imagine a just runny egg yolk, its dark orange color which reminds of pretty sunflowers and bright sunshine and its velvety texture, warm enough to make your tongue feel comfortable, bedded on a deliciously seasoned ricotta & Parmesan mix and wrapped in thin home made pasta sheets, voilà, sunny egg ravioli.
Poached eggs require exact timing and therefor wouldn't necessarily be my primary choice for a dinner with more than two guests - time consuming AND risky business. These guys however allow you to prep in advance, have them mise en place and serve them in perfection. I've had similar pasta before, filled with egg yolks and placed on a bed of spinach, but this combo can easily hold a candle to them: the herbed cheese mix is a wonderful creamy companion for the egg yolk and a worthy candidate to kick off any menu!
Sift the flour into a huge mixing bowl or on a chopping board. Make a well in the center, add a pinch of salt as well as the eggs, then incorporate the flour with your fingers and knead for about 5 minutes or until the dough comes together nicely. If the mix is too firm, add a little water, if it's too soft, use a little more flour. Shape it into a ball, tightly wrap in cling film and let rest for at least 15 minutes in the fridge.
Prepare the filling by mixing ricotta, Parmesan, chopped fresh herbs, olive oil and spices in a bowl. Season to taste.
Roll out the pasta dough into thin sheets (EDIT: I used the highest level my pasta machine offers = thinnest sheets), spoon tablespoons of the ricotta herb mix on it and leave enough space in between to ensure proper stamping out afterwards. Form the mix into little, equally shaped cups using a teaspoon or your fingers, their rims have to be high enough to keep the egg yolks from escaping.
Carefully divide the eggs (the egg yolks must stay whole) and place one yolk in the center of each ricotta cup. Take one of the unused egg whites and brush the pasta around the ricotta, in order to make the pasta sheets stick together well. Gently place another pasta sheet over the ricotta/egg yolk arrangements and tightly seal each one to avoid any air trapped inside. Stamp out the individual ravioli with a cookie cuter or the thin rim of a drinking glass. (The filling is also very suitable for normal filled pasta, without the extra egg yolk.)
Cook the ravioli in a large pan of salted, slightly boiling water for two to three minutes until just al dente, but with the egg yolks still runny. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a frying pan and brown for a few minutes if desired. Drain the ravioli using a skimmer, place in a warm serving dish, then top with the butter, freshly ground pepper and extra Parmesan and get ready for a new favorite food moment.
Sunny egg ravioli
Recipe source: own creation
Pasta dough, filling & ravioli shaping:: ~1 hour
.
Ingredients:
for the pasta dough:
200 g flour, Italian Type 00
2 eggs
salt
.
for the filling (by guess and by gosh):
200g Ricotta
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 handful freshly grated Parmesan
chopped fresh herbs, mixed or single (like basil, parsley, thyme)
optional: 1 red chili, chopped
freshly ground black pepper, nutmeg, sea salt to taste
small egg yolks, preferably free range (amount depending on the number of egg ravioli you want)
egg white (to brush the pasta sheets)
.
to serve: freshly grated Parmesan, hot butter, freshly ground black pepper
Yum! This post makes me so happy... like a ray of sunshine. Thank you for gorgeous post. I can\'t wait to try this one.
That is total eye candy. And that is an orange yolk!
You are so fabulous! Someone sent me a recipe for something like this a few months ago with the caption, 'if anyone can do this, you can!' But it seemed impossible. Perhaps this post will give me the confidence. They're gorgeous!
Will not be trying this! Takes all my time to get people to the table...
That looks gorgeous! The runny egg yolk ... Yummy!Have u tried putting in a quail's egg instead of the chicken egg?
These ravioli are beautiful and look soooo addictive.Ive been wanting to make some ever since I saw a similar picture in Jamie Oliver's last book. Cant wait to go back home and try my hands at them. xxx - fanny
This sounds gloriously delicious. Wow!
Wow, very interesting concept, but how many ravioli make a serving? One? Two? In Italian, they would say this seems pretty "pesante" to eat more than one.
First thought: Oh my god, these look so great and I am sure taste perfect as well. Runny eggyolk without runny eggwhite! The second thought: I will never be able to make them myself, what with my Patience Deficit Syndrom. Third thought: But they would be even better with the addition of a few shavings of truffles. Have to try this when truffle season comes; PDS will take a step back when truffles are involved! Thanks for the inspiration.
My God, those ravioli are gorgeous. I saw Mario Batali make these on his show many years ago, and was determined to make them. I had completely forgotten about egg yolk ravioli until this post finally sparked that desire again. Your eggs look gorgeous by the way -- that yolk is a brilliant shade of orange.
That's different! I love the way those ravioli look. Beautiful and appetizing!
That is really a wonderful idea. I am definitely going to try that. In fact I think I might do them with a friend who loves to cook with me. Thank you for that lovely pictorial.
What a treat! I don't do homemade pasta very often, but this recipe is now on top of my list for the next time. Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous!
OMG! This looks so delicious and incredible. Who doesn't love the runny egg yolk? For time's sake, do you think I could use wonton wrappers?
you are a real artist! i am just too lazy to make my own pasta, but with a recipe like this, i might just overcome that. or i might invite myself round to yours one fine day and have the best of both worlds ;-)
so, so, so beautiful! I'm afraid I'd be the only one in my family that would like them... I live amoungst egg-o-phobes. But, then, there would simply be more for me!
these are so cute and unusual. I can see my daughters go crazy for them ; )
That's just stunning. What a cool idea! I'm far too lazy to make these on my own, but oh, if I could only order them! Beautiful.
That's the greatest thing I've ever seen.
Oh, that looks & sounds devine! I want some!!!
i love egg and i love pasta so you can just imagine how hungry i am now just looking at the pictures.
love your blog! it's brill. am planning a weekend in munich next month and am studying your blog diligently for tips on where/what to eat.
wow you are so creative! and they're beautiful to look at!
Einfach nur genial!
i'd rather use the whites. i usually toss out yolks
Holy Hell, I am making this soon.
ME RA VI GLIO SO !!!!!!!!!
WON DER FUL!!!!"!!
Brilliant idea, thanks!
Greatttttttttttt!!!!! :)
OMG, this is too pretty. Brilliant.
I love you. My wife maked this for me today.
Thanks!
Peter
Fantastic, I have to do this. Love it, love it, love it, love it, just absolutely love everything about it. You should be very proud of your creation. Gorgeous!
So gorgeous !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
wow, these look beautiful! I wouldnt have the patience and the courage to try this recipe so my hat's off to you!!
Wow - I love this idea! I think 'sunny' is the perfect word to describe this dish.
sweeee-eet!!!
i'm always looking for creative ways to cook with eggs and this is absolutely PERFECT! given that i'm meeting up with my mum this weekend to make fresh pasta - the timing is just right. :)
how did you ever come up with a brilliant idea like that?!
I love running into things like this. It put a smile on my face!
I made this over the weekend and I'm sure my approach is far from being perfect (clumsy, clumsy fingers), but they turned out to be so good! Thank you for making me more adventurous in the kitchen!
Oh wow! This is the recipe that will finally conquer my laziness and inspire me to make my own pasta.
Wow- I love to make ravioli and my husband is crazy about "dippy eggs" as we call them. I usually use wonton wrappers (time saver) since they're so easy to find in local grocery stores. But your creations are a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach!
i love the idea of this - and such a beautifully executed dish. somehow i doubt i'd manage the precision required!
Oh my ... that looks delicious. Runny egg yolks - perfect.
I'm a big fan of homemade ravioli although I still don't master the craft. Come thinking about it, the process usually makes me quite frustrated. It worth it, though.
i've been reading your blog for a while now and i gotta say you never cease to amaze me. these raviolis look amazing! and your photographs look fabulous as ususal. hopefully i can summon some courage to make these sometime.
Wow, these look wonderful! I'll be sure to try them when I have a chance!
when i made these yesterday i had to chose between undercooked pasta and overcooked yolks. however, la cucina italiana featured a recipe some time ago suggesting to deep-freeze the yolks before assembling the ravioli. i'll try that next time and hopefully it will also solve the timing-problem.
Oh my God! I love eggs, and this combination here with another element i also adore ( pasta) just made my day. You are always pushing the bar way up there. How wonderful to read yours posts.always.
Hi Deb, If you can properly divide an egg (and I am sure you can!) and can make pasta dough (I know from reading your blog!), there is not the slightest reason not to try this! Please let me know when you do ;)
Serene, Quail’s eggs are a brilliant idea!
Fanny, I just checked back with my copy of the book and found another version I am dying to make. And I will tell Hande about his recipe, as he also uses truffles!
Sara, I would make the number of ravioli served dependent on the rest of the menu (and probably on the number of egg lovers among your guests). To kick off an extensive menu, a single one should be just fine.
Hande, What a great idea to add truffle shavings, I'm sure it makes them even more addictive!
Deborah, Wonton wrappers sound like an interesting idea, but then I would probably steam them instead? At least I have never prepared them in boiling water...
Johanna, I take your word and see you in Munich soon ;)
Rach, I'm sure you will enjoy Munich during summer time! Let me know, if you need any more recommendations ;)
Chris, Thank you for your kind feedback, but I cannot take credit for inventing this :) I once ate quite similar ravioli (egg yolks on a bed of spinach) in a restaurant, which planted the seed and I started thinking about different variations...
Emilia, I'm glad they turned out fine! And be assured, sometimes my first attempts trying a new dish are far from being perfect...
Anja, Deep-freezing the yolks, now that is new to me, but maybe it would indeed solve your problem. My suggestion would be to make the pasta sheets even thinner - I used the thinnest level my pasta machine offers and the pasta was just al dente, but the yolks were still pretty runny.
Beautiful. I agree with truffle comment. A few shaving on top and I'd die of happiness.
You should check out Schwa restuarant in Chicago where they do a very similar thing with quail egg ravioli. One of my favorite dishes of all time--it's very impressive to see how you made them.
It's really good!like the sun in the sky.
I'll try it in my cookhours,and devote it to my family.I'm sure all my family will love it.
Thank u!
Wow!
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Wow! I've NEVER seen anything like this! So unique! I can't wait to try it myself :)
Wow! Beautiful recipe. I can't wait to try. Love your photography.
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Very impressive! My senses look forward to tasting this recipe. :)
you definitely want to make the pasta thin. the thinnest setting (9) on my Marcato Atlas is way too thin but 5 seemed to work just fine (if you have an Atlas). i played around with settings 4 and 5 and there was a huge difference. nice recipe. osteria mozza in los angeles (new mario batali + 3 other famous chefs collab. place) does a handkerchief sized version of this but it's easy enough, albeit a bit labour intensive, to do yourself. totally worth the effort.
[...] for a while what exactly to do with it. Then I remembered another recipe I’d bookmarked from Delicious Days (whose photography just kills me) for Egg Yolk Ravioli and dinner was taken care [...]
wow, that looks amazing!! so imaginative; i've been meaning to make ravioli for a few weeks now, and ive just found my recipe. thanks!!