Wonton wrapper cheese ravioli

I love pasta!

This is cheesy goodness all wrapped up in a delicious ball of dough. They fit the bill for 1) tasty  2) relatively quick-making, including prep-ahead if needed 3) somewhat healthy 4) fairly impressive and suitable for guests!

Chris likes these with meat added, but I don't feel the need (in fact I find I like it better without).

  

The below serves one, but can be easily doubled or more for more servings:

For the ravioli itself, the ingredients are as follows:

- 8 wonton wrappers (find them in either the chilled produce area near bagged salads, or the refrigerated area with tofu and other vegan products; personally, the type I use from the produce section have kinder nutrition facts, a bit smaller size and definitely nicer packaging, if that's relevant)

- 1/4 cup low fat ricotta cheese

- 1/4 cup part skim mozz cheese

- about 8 leaves (or at your discretion) fresh basil. I adore basil so I use a lot, but use less if you prefer. I like to do a nice little chiffonade, as fancy as that sounds. Just stack the leaves and roll them up tightly and then thinly slice the log you've made. It makes little ribbons.

-salt and pepper to taste

First, mix the fillings well with a spoon or spatula. Add the ricotta, mozz and fresh basil together along with salt and pepper.

I find it helps to spread a wide sheet of wax paper on the kitchen counter on which to build the ravioli.

Now, your ravioli can either be 8 small triangles or 4 big squares (or something in between). The small triangles are maybe a bit prettier and more fun to eat, but the large squares are a bit easier to make and tend to break less when boiling. To be honest,  I can never make up my mind between the two so I usually end up doing 4 small triangles and 2 big squares.

Use about one eighth of the mixture for each triangle or one quarter for each square. Put the proper amount in the center of each wonton. If it's to be a triangle, moisten two edges with water, then carefully fold over the middle and press the edges together, getting rid of as much extra air as possible. If it's to be a square, moisten the edges of all sides and then lay the second wonton on top, again getting rid of the extra air while sealing as tightly as possible. You may also want to crimp the edges with a fork for a tighter seal.

When all your ravioli are made, carefully drop them into boiling water one at a time. They should be done in about 3 to 5 minutes.

I love to serve these with my Roasted Garlic Marinara, a healthy shred of fresh parmesan, olive oil on top of all of that and some freshly ground black pepper. And a leaf or two of basil for garnish if you're feeling fancy :)

The ravioli themselves are 9 P+.

Roasted Garlic Marinara

A tasty marinara sauce is a great staple to have on hand. I created this recipe because I wanted a relatively simple version that had tons of flavor without a lot of ingredients.

Ingredients:
-28 oz can crushed tomatoes
-14.5 oz can tomato sauce
-1 head of garlic
-large stalk or two of fresh basil
-1/8 tsp olive oil
-salt and pepper to taste

The most important aspect of this recipe is the roasted garlic. It adds a sweet, buttery flavor that matches well with the tomato and basil.

Start by preheating the oven to about 385. Some advise 400 or higher, but I find the garlic works best if it goes a little longer at a lower temperature. Peel off the outermost layers of the garlic and then chop off the top of the whole head. Be sure that each clove has its top cut off (you can do the last few individually if needed). Place the head in a square of foil, top with olive oil and a pinch of salt and then wrap the foil completely around the garlic. Roast for 45 minutes to an hour until the garlic is soft and golden in color.

When the garlic is cool enough to handle, pop the cloves out of the remaining skin and into a large saucepan. They should come out easily. Bruise the fresh basil a bit so the flavor will dispense easily, then drop the whole thing into the pan as well (stems and all).









Over medium heat, add the crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce. Let the whole thing simmer for 30-45 minutes, adding salt and pepper to taste.





After the sauce has cooked and the flavors have melded together, remove the basil and discard. If some of the leaves stay in the pot that's fine!

Give the sauce some time to cool (to avoid burning yourself if there's any splashing), then use a potato masher to smash the garlic to oblivion.

This marinara keeps well in a sealed container in the fridge and is perfect for pizza, pasta or by the occasional spoonful!

Makes about 5 cups total. Serving size is a quarter of a cup, 1 PointsPlus per serving.

Cheers!!