A study in ravioli, parts 1 and 2

I don't mind taking the time to make something a little labor intensive on a weeknight. It's a nice chance to spend time with my sweetheart, chatting about our day over a drink and working on creating a nice meal to share together. Aren't we so sacharine sweet you could just barf? Ha! But for reals, y'all - it's such a nice way to transition from workday to evening. But I will draw the line somewhere - for example, take these ravioli. After making the (rather quick) fillings, I was not about to mix together and roll out homemade pasta dough. But wonton wrappers make a really good substitute. And you and your dinner partner(s) can regale each other with amusing anecdotes whilst stuffing.

Note: We both of these made these on a night when we were starving, and had to hold  ourselves back from eating the entire two batches. We prepared them at the same time, but did boil them one after another (so as to only wash one pot, yet keep them separate.) If you made a nice big salad, bread and dessert, you could probably serve 4 people.

Sweet potato ravioli, from Bon Appetit February 2003
1 1/2 lb. sweet potatoes
1 1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
24 wonton wrappers

crushed spicy nuts, to garnish (I was lucky enough to be Christmas-gifted delicious spiced pecans from my friends Henry and Erin)


1/2 stick of butter
1 sprig rosemary, chopped
(this is the sauce for BOTH ravioli dishes)

Prick the sweet potatoes with a fork, then microwave them until soft, about 10 minutes. Turn them once during the cooking. Let them cool briefly, them peel the skin off, put the flesh in a bowl, and add the sugar, nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Take about a tablespoon of filling and place in the middle of a wonton wrapper. Wet the edges of the wonton wrapper, then fold over into a triangle. You can leave it at that, but we made little hats by putting a dab of water in the middle bottom of each wrapper, then folding in the two edges.

For butter sauce, melt butter in a skillet, let the foaming subside, then add the chopped rosemary, stirring until fragrant, about a minute or two.

Boil in a large pot of water for 2-3 minutes, then toss with half the butter sauce, and garnish with chopped nuts.

For ravioli recipe number two, see below

Mushroom Ravioli, from Vegetarian Times January 2010
*Note - this was the winner of our ravioli-taste off. Really, unbelievably delicious for such few ingredients.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 shallot, minced
4 oz. shitake mushrooms, stemmed and finely chopped
2 tablespoons white wine
1/4 cup minced parsley
salt and pepper to taste
24 wonton wrappers (conveniently, wonton wrappers come in a pack of 48! Perfect for making both recipes...)

parmesan cheese, for garnish

For sauce, the two recipes share the butter sauce above.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the shallot for about 2 minutes, then add the mushrooms and cook until softened, about 7-10 minutes. Add the parsley and wine and cook 2 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Take about a tablespoon of filling and place in the middle of a wonton wrapper. Wet the edges of the wonton wrapper, then fold over into a triangle. You can leave it at that, but we made little hats by putting a dab of water in the middle bottom of each wrapper, then folding in the two edges.

Boil in a large pot of water for 2-3 minutes, then toss with half the butter sauce, and garnish with parmesan cheese.