My zio (uncle) Dante Pastorini and his wife Dorothy had a restaurant in Sonora California during my childhood. Their son Dante Jr. played quarterback for the Houston Oilers during most of the 1970s. But it is food not football that is relevant here. Their daughter, Annette Aiassa has preserved several of the recipes and was kind enough to give a few of the key ones to me. Everytime I eat these Ravioli, I think of them and of my youth.
Among his many classic recipes was his ravioli with a meat and spinach stuffing. The recipe here down sizes the amounts for a family size production, rather than a restaurant. It also, and this is more important, substitutes ricotta cheese for the traditional ingredient of cow or calf brains. The reasons for the substitution have more to do with availability, in the wake of the "mad cow disease" scare of recent years, than to the sensibilities of modern diners, myself included.
While the ricotta suffices in terms of moisture and consistency, I am very open to other suggestions that preserve the original flavors.
Zio used chicken thighs for the meat, though I have known people to use mortadella. I am about to try pheasant meat. And I will also attempt it with rabbit soon. I have used duck confit successfully. Use your imagination.
FILLING:
1.5 lb ground meat seasoned and sauted in olive oil. Cook, but do not crisp. The original recipe calls for ground chicken thigh meat.
5 eggs
2 pkgs frozen spinach, cooked and drained. Or, an equivalent amount of cooked fresh spinach. Chop this finely.
5 tbls of good quality olive oil
1 cup each of grated parmesian and pecorino cheeses
8 oz. ricotta cheese or brains of cows or calves
1 chopped garlic cloves
fresh thyme and parsley to taste
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup of white break soaked in egg mixture
milk to alter consistency as needed
salt and pepper.
Mix all the ingredients in a grinder or food processor and spread it on the dough, before cooling, or place on individual squares of dough. If the former, fold dough in half and press in ravioli press. Flour them lightly so they don't stick together.
At this point you can freeze them, or keep them on moist cotton towels in the frig until you are ready to cook them.
DOUGH:
3.5 lbs of semolina flour (or mix semolina and all purpose flour 50-50)
3 cups of water
1/8 c salt
6 eggs
1.5 tspl olive oil.
mix eat, need it and roll it out thin.
