Served in a Calabrian honey + brown butter sage sauce

One of my favorite things about Italy is its fierce dedication to preserving tradition and quality, especially when it comes to food. This recipe involves prosciutto di San Daniele and Grana Padano cheese, two glorious Italian products that are made using centuries old methods in very specific locations. For that reason, they’ve been awarded PDO certification (protected designation of origin), which guarantees their quality + authenticity. So basically, they’re special AF and by extension so is this recipe so let’s get to it!  

Ingredients

Dough:

• 2 cups flour
• 3 eggs
• Drizzle of olive oil
• Pinch of salt

Filling:

• 1.5 cups whole milk ricotta (I prefer Calabro or Polly-O brand)
• ½ cup grated Grana Padano cheese  
• ½ cup chopped prosciutto di San Daniele
• ¼ cup chopped parsley
• S+P to taste
• 8 egg yolks, separated

Sauce:

• 1 stick + 2 tbsp butter
• 2-4 tsp Calabrian chili oil or Bomba Calabrese (depends how spicy you like it)  
• 2-4 tsp honey
• Fresh sage leaves
• Pinch of salt

Directions

Start by making the pasta dough: combine all ingredients to form a ball. You can knead the dough by hand or using your KitchenAid with the dough hook attachment. After dough is properly kneaded, cover in plastic wrap and allow to rest for 30 minutes.

While the dough is resting, put together the filling by mixing together the cheeses, prosciutto, and parsley. Be sure to taste the filling before adding salt as the prosciutto and cheese are naturally salty.

Cut the ball of dough into quarters, leaving 1 quarter out and placing the rest back in the plastic wrap so they don’t dry out. Using a hand crank, KitchenAid pasta attachment, or a rolling pin, roll one of the dough quarters out until it’s almost translucent – a setting 7 on the KitchenAid. Place the sheet of dough on a well-floured work surface.  

Cut the pasta sheet in half so you’re left with 2 rectangular pasta sheets. Place two dollops of the filling (about 2 tbsp each) on the exposed pasta sheet 3-4 inches apart. Create a well in the center for the egg yolk.

Separate the yolk from the egg white over a bowl and place the egg yolk into one of the ricotta wells. Repeat for the second ricotta well. Important: if the egg yolk breaks, don’t use it – it needs to be fully intact.  

Using a pastry brush or just your fingers, brush some water around the mounds of filling. Place the second sheet of pasta on top of the first and gently press around the ricotta, taking care to press out as much air as possible.  

Using a large mug, cookie cutter or fluted pastry cutter, cut the filled ravioli from the dough. They should be about 3-4 inches in diameter.  

Repeat this process with the other dough quarters until you’ve made 8 or so ravioli.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. While you wait for it to boil, begin your sauce*:  add butter to a large skillet on medium-high heat. Cook for 3-5 minutes until the butter begins to brown – you should notice the butter foaming and there should be a nutty aroma coming from the skillet. Add sage leaves and remove from heat. After the sauce cools a bit (2 min or so) add the Calabrian chili oil or Bomba Calabrese + honey and stir so that they both dissolve into the sauce. Add a tiny pinch of salt if you’d like.  

Boil the ravioli for just 3 minutes and take care not to overcrowd the pot! You may need to boil in shifts based on how big your pot is. Using a spider strainer or a fine mesh strainer (or any tool that allows water to drain) retrieve the ravioli from the water and plate each separately. I wouldn’t recommend using a colander for fear of breaking the egg yolks. Drizzle each ravioli with sauce and garnish with the crisped sage leaves. Enjoy!  

*The ingredient measurements I listed above make enough sauce for 8 ravioli but if you’re making less, here’s a good rule of thumb: you should be using about 2 tbsp of butter per raviolo, ¼ tsp each of the Bomba calabrese + honey and a couple of sage leaves. Multiply accordingly and better yet, use your own personal taste to tell you how sweet or spicy you want the sauce!

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