Braised Shortrib & Creamed Spinach "Pyramids"

[SiseFromm]

The Boulevard Restaurant Cookbook has an interesting recipe for a trio of veal (Cheeks in Ravioli, Osso Bucco, and Roasted Tenderloin). The ravioli shape really interested me because it was basically a pyramid of sorts filled with luscious and rich ingredients. I decided to give it a whirl. In their version, the ravioli triangles/pyramids are filled with a base of creamed spinach and a small square of braised veal cheeks. For ours we used the creamed spinach (fresh spinach wilted with onions then simmered in cream and seasoned with salt, pepper, and nutmeg) and braised beef shortribs (shortribs braised in red wine, veal stock, and a ton of aromatics for several hours) in lieu of the veal cheeks.

What follows is a step by step photo guide for making these interesting pasta shapes:

1) Fresh rolled pasta (rolled to the 7 setting on the roller) cut into 4.5" squares.

2) One tablespoon of creamed spinach goes into the center and is topped with a small square of trimmed shortribs. The squares are then brushed with an egg wash along the edges.

3) Bring opposite corners together and press along the edges to seal.

4) Once the eggwash has dried and the pasta edges are glued and sealed together, gently hold the filled pasta along the edge of a cutting board to trim the edges with a fluted pasta cutter.

5) The finished pasta are ready to go.

It's important, as with any filled pasta, to make sure they're held on a floured surface and that they do not rip, tear, or have holes in them. For cooking, rather than throw these delicate packages into a big pot of heavily boiling water, we gently submerged them in lightly simmering and salted water in a large, 3" deep pan.

For service I simply garnished the raviolis with butter fondue enriched with the basic components of gremolata (minced parsley, minced garlic, and lemon zest) and some of the reduced braising liquid. Unfortunately, we didn't get any photos of the presented dish. That might have something to do with the bottle of wine we had under our belts by service.

[Peter the eater]

Those look fantastic!

Did you take a picture of the finished product cooked up and ready to go into someone's mouth?

[Habeas Brulee]

These look great! Thank you for the inspiration.

[SiseFromm]

Did you take a picture of the finished product cooked up and ready to go into someone's mouth?

As I mentioned, we did a great job of capturing the production process, but we failed to shoot the finished dish. This was a pasta course so each diner received one filled pyramid in the center of a shallow bowl. I added gremolata ingredients into a butter foundue (beurre monte) and simmered the mixture at low heat just to warm the garlic. The gremolata butter was spooned over and around the pyramid then I used reduced braising liquid to accent the sauce.

[fiftydollars]

I really should go back to Boulevard sometime soon. I had forgotten how much ass Nancy Oakes kicks on a regular basis...

[KLwood]

By happy coincidence ,I happen to have all of the ingredients handy for this !! It reminds me of something similar I had as part of the Pasta Tasting at Babbo. Im still scared of this because of all the stuffed pasta failures that Ive had in the past but I think your technique with barely simmering water may be the trick.. did you use a 'standard ' pasta recipe or something a little more durable to handle the filling ? and what was your egg wash ? whole egg or just yolk ??

[BarbaraY]

Well, it certainly looks like it would be very tasty and I love the idea of the gremolata butter finish. The ravioli are truly beautiful in that shape.

Sorry you did get a pic of the finished dish.

[SiseFromm]

Im still scared of this because of all the stuffed pasta failures that Ive had in the past but I think your technique with barely simmering water may be the trick

Fresh pasta really doesn't take a lot of hard-heat cooking and I don't think a rapid boil is required. The simmer cooked the pasta completely and fully warmed the interior filling. We used salted water as usual but the water was at a nice, gentle bubble. I dropped them in carefully and let them simmer for around 2 - 3 minutes. I was careful to keep them from hitting and sticking to the bottom so as not to tear or rip the pasta.

did you use a 'standard ' pasta recipe or something a little more durable to handle the filling ?

I used a regular pasta recipe which ran at 2 cups all-purpose flour to 2 whole eggs and a little bit of olive oil. I make pasta using the well method and slowly working in flour into the egg. Once the dough comes together I knead it for several minutes by hand until the dough is ready to be kneaded by hook in a standing mixer for another 10+ minutes.

and what was your egg wash ? whole egg or just yolk ??

I used a whole egg to one tablespoon of water, whisked together. I only brushed the edges of one pasta pyramid at a time. The trick was to work quickly, push out as much air as possible, and let the pasta set and the egg wash "glue" completely dry before trimming the edges with the pasta cutter.