I was raiding my bottomless freezer yesterday and came across an open package of cooked langoustines from Trader Joe’s. I remember they tasted quite unremarkable and that’s why were exiled to the freezer in the first place.
I thought that putting them into a ravioli filling wouldn’t be such a bad idea. And it really did work. A company of slightly sweet, creamy ricotta, earthy spinach and bitey garlic has brightened up the flavor of cooked langoustines and brought to it to a new level.
Ilya likes soft pasta so I used eggless pasta dough which has les bite in it, when cooked. But I have a traditional egg pasta dough recipe here, so you can use that one if you like your pasta more toothsome.
You will need:
- About ½ batch of eggless pasta dough
Filling:
- 1 lb cooked langoustines (or substitute with cooked shrimp or crab meat)
- About 7 oz whole milk ricotta
- Two large handfuls of spinach
- 1 medium garlic clove, minced
- 1 Large egg yolk
- A pinch of salt and black pepper
Roughly chop langoustines. Blanch spinach in hot water for about half a minute and then immediately transfer to ice cold water. Take out and squeeze between your hands to remove as much water as you can. Chop roughly.
In a bowl, stir together the langoustines, spinach, ricotta, egg yolk, salt and black pepper. Put the filling into the refrigerator for at least half an hour so it gets chilled, thicker and easier to handle.
Make the ravioli following the instructions here. I made mine using a round fluted ravioli cutter this time.
The indicated amounts of the filling and dough yield about 40 something ravioli. I only cooked about two dozen for two of us and the rest are waiting their 15 minutes of fame in the freezer.
I served the ravioli with a simple lemon brown butter sauce which accentuated perfectly the lightness of the dough and filling.
Lemon Brown Butter Sauce (amount is for half a batch of ravioli):
- 2 Tbsp butter, cubed
- 2 tsp lemon
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 tsp minced parsley
For the sauce, put butter in a pot and cook on a medium heat until it first melts, then foams, and then the milk particles in it start to turn brown, but not black. The butter should smell nutty at this stage. Remove the pot from the heat and strain the butter to a pan wide enough to accommodate a couple of dozen of cooked ravioli. Stir in lemon juice, parsley, salt and black pepper.
Cook ravioli in a large pot of water for about 3-4 minutes. Meanwhile, make sure that the sauce is hot. Transfer the cooked ravioli to the pan and toss well to coat with the sauce all over.
Divide between individual bowls and serve right away.
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