Chorizo and Cream Cheese Stuffed Ravioli

For the pasta dough:
Peel, cut and cube your carrots and boil them in unsalted water for about 10 minutes or until fork tender.

Puree carrots in a blender (or food processor) until smooth. I added a few tablespoons of the carrot water for easier blending (because I do not have a processor).

Into a mixing bowl add the puree and eggs and combine. Add in the flour and salt and blend for about 20 seconds until it forms a slight ball (don’t worry if you have straggler scraps – they will incorporate).

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 5-10 minutes. Form a ball and wrap with plastic and let sit at least 45 minutes.

For the filling:
Remove the sausage meat from their casings and brown over medium heat. Once browned, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly for a few minutes.

In a food processor (or blender), add the meat and carrot puree (you can make this puree following the instructions above in the dough section), and cream cheese and mix until incorporated and it resembles a thick paste. Add the spices and stir by hand.

Set the filling in the refrigerator while you get your dough rolled and ready.

(You will also want to get a large pot of boiling water ready so that once you have filled and cut your raviolis, you can make them and eat them ASAP!)

Take your dough and cut into 6-8 pieces. Working one piece at a time, lightly flour the dough ball and give a little dusting over the pasta roller. Using your pasta maker and starting on your highest setting (mine is #7), feed your dough through. Repeat this step twice. Move down the settings and feed through again. Continue this until you reach setting #3 and your dough sheet is about a foot and a half to two feet long. Don’t be afraid to stretch your dough as you go along. If it tears, fold it over and feed it back through—fixed!

Note: You can now work in 2 ways: you could roll out another sheet that is the same size to use as a topper OR you could use 1 sheet, drop 4 or 5 mounds and fold over the rest. It’s your choice, either works well.

Once you have your sheet, trim it into a rectangular shape as the roller will make it a little uneven.

Mound about 1 tablespoon of filling about an inch from the one shorter side. Space the rest of the mounds about 2 inches apart. Lightly brush egg wash along all edges of the dough and in between each mound of filling. Seal the pockets with another sheet of pasta and press with enough pressure to ensure it is closed—you don’t want any air pockets! Trim the raviolis with a knife to make neat, small squares.

Place on a baking sheet dusted with flour while you continue with the rest. When they are all done, boil for 2–4 minutes in salted water.