Goat Cheese and Sweet Pea Stuffed Beet Ravioli with Mint and Walnut Pesto

I’ve been inspired lately by the colors popping up outside and the great weather we’ve been having here in Fayetteville. I wanted to make something I hadn’t had before that was springy and bright in appearance as well in taste so I decided to make use of the beets and mint I purchased from the Farmer’s Market just up the street. Pasta! I made ravioli this time and they were pretty damn tasty. The only trouble I had was making sure not to leave any air bubbles in the pouches. I guess I’ll just have to practice more. It was a fun experience overall and the ugly ones still tasted great.

Yields: 12-15 raviolis

Beet Ravioli Dough

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup roasted beets
• 2 eggs

Sweet Peas & Goat Cheese Filling

( There will leftovers. Double the pasta dough if you want to ensure you use all of the filling )

• 1 cup petite sweet peas
• 11 ounces plain goat cheese
• 1/2 cup grated romano/parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 egg
• salt and pepper to taste

Mint & Walnut Pesto

• 1 cup packed fresh mint leaves
• 1/2 cup of fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup walnut pieces
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup walnut oil
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
• zest from 1 lemon rind
• salt and pepper to taste

One egg and a tablespoon of water for an egg wash.

First start with roasting the beets for the dough. Cut the stems and tips off of about 6 small beets. This should yield about a cup.

Save the beet stems and greens. You can sauté or pickle the stems for later use. The greens have a mild taste that make a nice addition to salads.

Scrub the beets clean and toss in olive oil, salt, & pepper.

Roast in an oven pan uncovered for about 40 to 45 mins. Let cool. Once the beets are cool enough to handle, pull the skins off. This should be fairly easy. Cut the beets in quarters.

Now add the beets, eggs, and flour in the food processor and pulse until the dough pulls from the sides and forms a ball.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 2 mins. Cover and let rest for 15 to 30 mins.

While the dough is resting make your filling and sauce. Cook the petite peas in salted boiling water for about 1-2 mins. Drain peas and combine and mix all the filling ingredients into the food processor. Set aside.

For the pesto sauce, combine all the ingredients in the food processor and mix until smooth.

Once the dough looks smooth cut it into quarters and run the dough through the pasta roller starting with the largest setting. Be sure to not roll the pasta too thin or your ravioli will possibly tear and fall apart.

Once you have the pasta rolled out you can place the filling down the center of a sheet of pasta. Use about a heaping tablespoon spaced at about an inch apart.

With the egg wash brush the edges and in between each ravioli center.

Place another sheet of pasta over the pasta with filling centers. Press around each center making sure to seal each ravioli. Make sure you don’t trap any air or this will cause the ravioli to be deformed looking and possibly erupt your raviolis.

Using a ravioli cutter (pie cutter tool) cut out each ravioli. Don’t make the squares too big or the filling to pasta ratio will be off. Repeat this with the remaining pasta sheets.

Once all of your ravioli are made cook them in salted boiling water for about 2-3 mins or until they float to the top.

Now you can add your pesto sauce and garnish with walnuts, parmesan, and basil. Enjoy!