Conte's Gluten Free Ravioli

I was super excited when I was browsing through HEB the other day and found Conte's gluten free ravioli in the frozen food section. It's been SO LONG since I've eaten ravioli. I've tried making it before and it was good, but it is pretty labor-intensive. This is quick & easy.

And tasty!

These babies are nice & big, not like wimpy wiener ravioli that I've had before. They're plump and full of cheesy filling, and the pasta is good. It's -almost- chewy like regular pasta. I detected a hint of an unusual texture, but I was being picky and it does not detract from the deliciousness of the ravioli.

I'd feed gluten-eating guests with it, and I will be buying it again. The company also offers several other products, including stuffed shells and pierogies. I can't wait to try them!

Cross section:

Cheese Ravioli

I had the day off work because of a "hurricane," which I think is ridiculous how everybody overreacts to what normally turns out to be a simple rain storm. But there are some good things about that:

1. my car gets clean.
2. it's about 15 degrees cooler!
3. my rainy day off = cooking!

I usually don't crave something until my family cooks it or I see it in the store. This time it was ravioli. I used to LOVE cheese ravioli and haven't eaten it since way before the diagnosis. This was not as labor-intensive as I expected it to be, probably since I finally bought a rolling pin. Although they are not exactly like normal ravioli, I ate them right up.

Pasta:

1/4 c. tapioca starch
1/3 c. corn starch
2 T. potato starch
3 T. brown rice flour
1/2 t. salt
1 T. xanthan gum
2 eggs
1 T. oil

Put a pot of water on to boil. Add salt and a few drops of olive oil.

Combine the dry ingredients. Combine the wet. Add the wet to the dry and mix into a dough. Roll it out (flouring all surfaces with rice flour) and cut it into equal-sized squares.

For the Filling:

Mix 1 c. ricotta cheese, 1 egg, a handful of shredded cheese (I used a pre-made italian mix of parmesan, romano, mozarella, etc), a few shakes of italian spices, a small dash of garlic powder, and some salt & pepper. [Note: this made way more than was needed for the recipe. Either double the pasta recipe or halve it using an egg substitute. I plan to use the leftovers with some penne and bake it into a mac & cheese type of thing]

Anyway, next plop a bit of filling onto a square. Wet the edges and layer another square on top. Pinch the pillow closed with your fingers, then press the edges with a fork to make it look pretty and further seal the pasta.

Boil the pasta for 5-7 minutes, depending on how big you make the ravioli. Drain and top with a red pasta sauce (my favorite, but it's really whatever) and gobble them down.