Pancetta and Pea Ravioli in Asiago Beurre Blanc

Note: You will need a pasta roller for this recipe.

1. First, prepare the pasta dough since it needs to rest. Take the flour and make a large well on a clean surface with it. Crack the eggs into the well along with the salt. Start breaking up the eggs with a fork while you slowly stir the flour into them (without breaking the well so that the egg doesn’t run everywhere). Once a dough begins to form, bring it all together with your hands into a ball. Knead the ball of dough for 3 to 4 minutes until it is uniform, soft and pliable. Wrap the ball of dough in plastic and let it rest from all of that kneading for 30 minutes to an hour. This is going to allow the gluten to relax in the flour and make the dough really tender.

2. While the dough rests, prepare the filling. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium high heat. Add the diced pancetta in and cook it until it is cooked through and starts to get crispy, about 5 minutes. Add the peas in with the pancetta and let them heat through in that gorgeous rendered out pancetta fat for another 2 minutes. Take the pan off of the heat and stir in the garlic to just let it get fragrant. Let the mixture cool.

3. While the mixture in the pan cools, put together the rest of the filling. Combine the ricotta, Parmesan, Asiago, salt, basil, paprika and eggs in a mixing bowl. Stir it all together completely. Fold the cooled pancetta and pea mixture into the rest of the filling, including the rendered out fat for extra flavor. Cover the filling and refrigerate it until you are ready to form the ravioli.

4. When the dough is rested, it’s time to roll it out. It’s my favorite part! Cut the ball of dough in half, and cover the half of dough you are not working with in a tea towel or plastic wrap while you roll out the other one. On a clean, floured surface with a floured rolling pin, roll the dough out enough so that it is thin enough to put through a pasta roller. Then put that piece of dough through the roller once on the thickest setting. Fold it into thirds and flatten it out again with the rolling pin. Then put it through the roller once again on the thickest setting. Then it goes through on the setting two notches thinner twice. By that time, the piece will be so long that you need to cut it in half. Then put each of those halves through on the setting two notches thinner than the last one. On my Kitchen Aid roller attachment, there are numbers so I use notch 1 as the thickest, then go to notch 3 and then notch 5 as the thinnest. Lay the those two pieces out gently on a floured half sheet pan and cover them with tea towels. Repeat this with the other half of dough. You will end up with four rolled out pieces of pasta dough.

5. Take the first sheet of rolled out dough and lay it on a floured surface so that the length of it goes away from you (short end closest to you). Get the pancetta and pea ravioli filling out of the refrigerator. Place tablespoons of the filling two inches apart along the length of the half of dough closest to you. Brush the edge of dough closest to you with some water, then bring the other half over to seal in the filling. Press firmly around each scoop of filling to get out any air and really seal the pancetta and pea ravioli. Take a fluted pastry cutter and trim the two outer ends, then trim the bottom edge closest to you. Make a cut between each scoop of filling to cut out the pancetta and pea ravioli. If you have a round or square ravioli stamp, that would be totally great here too! Repeat this with the other 3 sheets of dough and remainder of the filling. Get all of the ravioli back onto the floured half sheet pan and cover them.

6. Get a large pot of water on the stove and let it come to a boil. In the meantime, make the beurre blanc sauce. It’s really easy! In a large rondeau pan combine the white wine, apple cider vinegar, shallots, salt and crushed red pepper. Bring it to a gentle boil over medium high heat. Reduce it to a simmer, letting the liquid reduce by half. It takes about 3-4 minutes for that to happen. Then add in the first cubed stick of butter and whisk it in until melted. Repeat with the second stick of butter. Then whisk in the Asiago cheese. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting to keep the sauce warm.

7. The water should be boiling by this point, salt it until it tastes like the sea. Get the pancetta and pea ravioli into the water and cook them until al dente. It doesn’t take any time at all, only 2 to 3 minutes. With a slotted spoon transfer them into the pan of beurre blanc sauce and toss the ravioli thoroughly with the sauce. Then just plate them up and serve!

This is enough ravioli to feed 4. I got 25 out of the recipe. Translation, 4 servings of 6 plus one for the chef to taste test. It’s a rough job, but somebody has to! I just sprinkled a little chopped parsley on top for some green freshness. This is such a special dish that really spoke to my Italian roots. My ravioli-loving Nana Lulu would go nuts for this dish!