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Homemade Fettuccine with a Pesto-Butter Sauce

August 21, 2013 by epicureanvegan

Homemade Fettuccine with a Pesto-Butter Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan It’s hard to believe we’re nearing the end of August. Right now, I can see a few leaves on the Sumac trees outside my window, already turning red. I feel as though I missed a great deal of our Colorado summer, spending it rather, in different parts of the U.S. (and in one case, another country). We experienced the gorgeous summer days of Victoria, BC, Seattle, San Francisco, a couple balmy days in San Diego, Sacramento, Napa, and finally wrapped up the season’s fun in New York City. I feel truly blessed that I was able to go on these trips with the people I love and adore. This morning, I was reminded of how lucky I am to have such times and that my family and I have our health. A young teacher at my son’s school, passed away last night from cancer. He had just celebrated his one-year anniversary with his wife. I didn’t know him, but he was to be my son’s English teacher this year. My heart goes out to his wife, who is also a teacher at the school. It makes me appreciate even more, the times spent together as a family. One of my favorite times is cooking with the Ninth Grader and the fun we have together making messes in the kitchen. This meal would not have come together without his help; him holding up the sheet of pasta dough while I crank it through the pasta maker. It may have looked like a circus stunt, but the results were nothing less than spectacular.

INGREDIENTS:
Pasta dough:
2 C semolina flour
1 C whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp salt
1 C warm almond milk
2 Tbs olive oil
Pesto Sauce:
2 to 2-1/2 C fresh basil leaves
1/2 C parsley
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/8 C lemon juice
1/4 C olive oil
1 C pine nuts (sunflower seeds, walnuts or almonds would work great, too)
3 Tbs Earth Balance margarine
The rest:
2-3 C mushrooms, sliced
1 C green onions, sliced
1 Tbs olive oil
1 large tomato, diced
1 C walnuts, chopped and toasted

DIRECTIONS:
To make the dough, whisk together the flours and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in the warm almond milk and olive oil. I recommend using your hands to then blend everything together thoroughly. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. I divided the dough into fourths and proceeded to feed each section through the pasta maker to make long sheets, then through the fettuccine portion. I found that four hands make this job much easier, if not necessary. You’ll want to let the pasta dry up a little. I don’t have any pasta drying racks, so I improvised . . .

Homemade Fettuccine with a Pesto-Butter Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan These methods worked beautifully. Time-consuming, perhaps, but a necessary step—otherwise, you’ll have a bunch of fettuccine noodles stuck together in one big mess. While the pasta drying, make up the pesto. You can also make this earlier in the day to save time. Toss the basil, parsley, oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper in a food processor and blend for about a minute. Add the nuts and blend until smooth. Transfer to a covered dish and refrigerate until ready to use. To make the sauce, I added about half of the pesto and 3 Tbs of Earth Balance to a small saucepan over medium to low heat. Let the butter melt, stirring often.

Homemade Fettuccine with a Pesto-Butter Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan Now would be a good time to get a large pot of salted water boiling. While you’re waiting, heat the one tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet and add the mushrooms and green onion.

Homemade Fettuccine with a Pesto-Butter Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan Saute 3-5 minutes, depending on how cooked you want the mushrooms to be. Meanwhile, the Ninth Grader toasted the walnuts in a small, dry skillet.

Homemade Fettuccine with a Pesto-Butter Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan Have your dinner plates ready because once the water is boiling, the small batches of pasta will cook quickly. I think I cooked all of the pasta in 4 batches. This recipe will easily feed 6 people. The pasta will stick together if you cook it all at once, so I recommend having everyone dish up as you go. You can also drizzle a little olive oil over the cooked noodles to keep them from getting sticky. Top each serving with a tablespoon or two of pesto sauce, mushroom mixture, tomatoes, and walnuts. Enjoy!

Homemade Fettuccine with a Pesto-Butter Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan

Homemade Fettuccine with a Pesto-Butter Sauce
 
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Author: Epicurean Vegan
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • Pasta dough:
  • 2 C semolina flour
  • 1 C whole wheat pastry flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 C warm almond milk
  • 2 Tbs olive oil
  • Pesto Sauce:
  • 2 to 2-1/2 C fresh basil leaves
  • ½ C parsley
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ⅛ tsp black pepper
  • ⅛ C lemon juice
  • ¼ C olive oil
  • 1 C pine nuts (sunflower seeds, walnuts or almonds would work great, too)
  • 3 Tbs Earth Balance margarine
  • The rest:
  • 2-3 C mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 C green onions, sliced
  • 1 Tbs olive oil
  • 1 large tomato, diced
  • 1 C walnuts, chopped and toasted
Directions
  1. To make the dough, whisk together the flours and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in the warm almond milk and olive oil. I recommend using your hands to then blend everything together thoroughly.
  2. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. I divided the dough into fourths and proceeded to feed each section through the pasta maker to make long sheets, then through the fettuccine portion. I found that four hands make this job much easier, if not necessary. You'll want to let the pasta dry up a little.
  3. These methods worked beautifully. Time-consuming, perhaps, but a necessary step---otherwise, you'll have a bunch of fettuccine noodles stuck together in one big mess.
  4. While the pasta drying, make up the pesto. You can also make this earlier in the day to save time. Toss the basil, parsley, oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper in a food processor and blend for about a minute. Add the nuts and blend until smooth. Transfer to a covered dish and refrigerate until ready to use.
  5. To make the sauce, I added about half of the pesto and 3 Tbs of Earth Balance to a small saucepan over medium to low heat. Let the butter melt, stirring often.
  6. Now would be a good time to get a large pot of salted water boiling. While you're waiting, heat the one tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet and add the mushrooms and green onion.
  7. Saute 3-5 minutes, depending on how cooked you want the mushrooms to be.
  8. Meanwhile, toast the walnuts in a small, dry skillet.
  9. Have your dinner plates ready because once the water is boiling, the small batches of pasta will cook quickly. I think I cooked all of the pasta in 4 batches. This recipe will easily feed 6 people. The pasta will stick together if you cook it all at once, so I recommend having everyone dish up as you go. You can also drizzle a little olive oil over the cooked noodles to keep them from getting sticky.
  10. Top each serving with a tablespoon or two of pesto sauce, mushroom mixture, tomatoes, and walnuts. Enjoy!
3.3.3077

Filed Under: Dinners Tagged With: fettuccine, fresh pesto, green onions, home made pasta, Italian, make ahead, mushrooms, pasta maker, pesto, tomatoes

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce

November 20, 2012 by epicureanvegan

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan

I’m very proud of this meal. And it was certainly a labor of love. Three hours of labor, to be exact. (Although that includes the Caesar salad I had to make.) Luckily, many of the steps involved can be made way ahead of time and kept in the fridge, making assembly and cooking time a breeze. It may have taken a while to make, but it was nothing compared to my first attempt at raviolis. I got wise and bought a ravioli mold that made the process so much easier!! (Check out this great YouTube video on how to use it). I threw together a butter-garlic cream sauce which looks pretty weird, as you can see, but I promise you, it tastes better than it looks. After using the ravioli mold, I’m excited to try other types of ravioli—it’s less daunting now that I’ve got the right tools. The sweet potato and tofu ricotta are an excellent combo! You can also try my soy-free version. I made enough dough and filling to feed an army; I easily could have made a 100 raviolis. The leftovers are perfect for freezing and saving for another meal. Feel free to half the recipes for the dough, fillings, and sauce to make about 50 raviolis. (One serving is 10-12 raviolis). Even though there are several steps to this meal, they’re very simple and there’s nothing like fresh pasta!

INGREDIENTS:
Dough
2 C flour
2 C semolina flour
1 tsp salt
2 Tbs olive oil
1-1/2 to 2 C water

Vegan Pasta Dough -- Epicurean Vegan

Sweet Potato Filling
2 sweet potatoes
3 large green onion, minced
2 Tbs almond milk
salt and pepper

Ricotta Filling
14-oz extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
1/3 C nutritional yeast
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 Tbs lemon juice

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan

Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 C vegan margarine
3 Tbs flour
3/4 to 1 C almond milk
salt and pepper

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan

DIRECTIONS:
Begin by cooking the sweet potatoes. I cooked them in the microwave to save some time—only took 10 minutes. Scoop out the potato and mash it with a fork or pastry blender. Stir in the almond milk and combine well. Add the green onion, salt, and pepper; set aside. To make the ricotta, combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth; set aside. To make the dough, combine the flours and salt in a large bowl of a stand mixer (you can use a food processor too). While the mixer is running, slowly add the oil, then water until you reach a somewhat damp (but not too sticky) dough.

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan

Knead on a lightly floured surface for 3-5 minutes. I used my pasta maker to roll out flat sheets. You can easily use a rolling pin instead. Lay a sheet of dough over the metal portion of the mold. Place the plastic mold on top and press gently, creating pockets for the filling. Place about a teaspoon of each filling into each pocket.

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan

Place another sheet of dough on top and press down, sealing the edges and flattening the top. Using a rolling pin, roll over the top to create the raviolis. (Again, check out the You Tube video at the beginning of the post to see this magic happen).

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan

So much better than trying to make by hand! The mold was worth the $20 I paid for it. Let the raviolis sit for about 20 minutes. To make the sauce, combine the garlic and vegan margarine in a small saucepan and melt the butter. Whisk in the flour, one tablespoon at a time. Slowly whisk in the almond milk, using enough to reach a semi-thick consistency; keep warm.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Using a spatula, I placed 12 raviolis at a time, into the pot. Boil for 5-7 minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon to a colander.

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan

Repeat the process until they’re all cooked. (For the last dozen, instead of removing with the slotted spoon, I placed the colander in the sink and poured the remaining raviolis and boiling water into the colander. That way, the other raviolis that cooled off could be somewhat reheated).

Drizzle a ladle of sauce over a serving of the raviolis and enjoy!

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce -- Epicurean Vegan

Vegan Sweet Potato and Ricotta Ravioli with a Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce
 
Print
I'm very proud of this meal. And it was certainly a labor of love. Three hours of labor, to be exact. (Although that includes the Caesar salad I had to make.) Luckily, many of the steps involved can be made way ahead of time and kept in the fridge, making assembly and cooking time a breeze. It may have taken a while to make, but it was nothing compared to my first attempt at raviolis. I got wise and bought a ravioli mold that made the process so much easier!! (Check out this great YouTube video on how to use it). I threw together a butter-garlic cream sauce which looks pretty weird, as you can see, but I promise you, it tastes better than it looks. After using the ravioli mold, I'm excited to try other types of ravioli---it's less daunting now that I've got the right tools. The sweet potato and tofu ricotta are an excellent combo! You can also try my soy-free version. I made enough dough and filling to feed an army; I easily could have made a 100 raviolis. The leftovers are perfect for freezing and saving for another meal. Feel free to half the recipes for the dough, fillings, and sauce to make about 50 raviolis. (One serving is 10-12 raviolis). Even though there are several steps to this meal, they're very simple and there's nothing like fresh pasta!
Author: Epicurean Vegan
Ingredients
  • Dough
  • 2 C flour
  • 2 C semolina flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 Tbs olive oil
  • 1-1/2 to 2 C water
  • Sweet Potato Filling
  • 2 sweet potatoes
  • 3 large green onion, minced
  • 2 Tbs almond milk
  • salt and pepper
  • Ricotta Filling
  • 14-oz extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
  • ⅓ C nutritional yeast
  • 1 tsp dried basil
  • 1 tsp dried rosemary
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp black pepper
  • 2 Tbs lemon juice
  • Butter-Garlic Cream Sauce
  • 3 large cloves of garlic, minced
  • ½ C vegan margarine
  • 3 Tbs flour
  • ¾ to 1 C almond milk
  • salt and pepper
Directions
  1. Begin by cooking the sweet potatoes. I cooked them in the microwave to save some time---only took 10 minutes.
  2. Scoop out the potato and mash it with a fork or pastry blender.
  3. Stir in the almond milk and combine well.
  4. Add the green onion, salt, and pepper; set aside.
  5. To make the ricotta, combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth; set aside.
  6. To make the dough, combine the flours and salt in a large bowl of a stand mixer (you can use a food processor too). While the mixer is running, slowly add the oil, then water until you reach a somewhat damp (but not too sticky) dough.
  7. Knead on a lightly floured surface for 3-5 minutes. I used my pasta maker to roll out flat sheets. You can easily use a rolling pin instead.
  8. Lay a sheet of dough over the metal portion of the mold. Place the plastic mold on top and press gently, creating pockets for the filling. Place about a teaspoon of each filling into each pocket.
  9. Place another sheet of dough on top and press down, sealing the edges and flattening the top. Using a rolling pin, roll over the top to create the raviolis. (Again, check out the You Tube video at the beginning of the post to see this magic happen).
  10. So much better than trying to make by hand! The mold was worth the $20 I paid for it. Let the raviolis sit for about 20 minutes.
  11. To make the sauce, combine the garlic and vegan margarine in a small saucepan and melt the butter.
  12. Whisk in the flour, one tablespoon at a time. Slowly whisk in the almond milk, using enough to reach a semi-thick consistency; keep warm.
  13. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Using a spatula, I placed 12 raviolis at a time, into the pot. Boil for 5-7 minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon to a colander.
  14. Repeat the process until they're all cooked. (For the last dozen, instead of removing with the slotted spoon, I placed the colander in the sink and poured the remaining raviolis and boiling water into the colander. That way, the other raviolis that cooled off could be somewhat reheated).
  15. Drizzle a ladle of sauce over a serving of the raviolis and enjoy!
3.4.3177

Filed Under: Dinners Tagged With: Butter-Garlic sauce, pasta maker, sweet potato ravioli, tofu, tofu ricotta, vegan ravioli

Homemade Ravioli

October 17, 2011 by epicureanvegan

Homemade Ravioli -- Epicurean VeganI bought a pasta maker many years ago and used it a few times. Then, two years ago, when we moved, I couldn’t find the damn thing. Even though it was something I hardly used, I was determined to find it. But I couldn’t. I figured it had run off with my white Chantel soup pot because it too, was missing. So last December, I was digging around in the laundry room for something else entirely, when I opened a bin that was supposed to contain miscellaneous crap. Well, there it was. Along with soup pot. I let out a celebratory yelp and the Husband rushed in, wondering what my deal was. When I showed him that I finally captured the elusive kitchen appliance, I assumed he’d be as excited as I was and happy that I’d quit lamenting over losing the thing. But he didn’t seem too thrilled.  He left the room and returned with a wrapped box, about the same size of the box I held in my hands. “I’ll take this one back tomorrow,” he mumbled. He had gotten me a new pasta maker to replace the one I “lost.” He was really happy that I found it, but then he had to come up with something else to give me for Christmas.

So jump to October 2011, nearly a year later. It was the first time I used that stupid pasta maker since finding it. I know, it’s terrible . . . the Husband wasn’t even home to enjoy these raviolis! But now that I have some practice, I’ll make more of an effort to use it because there’s nothing like fresh pasta. Making fresh pasta, however, isn’t always easy, especially raviolis—it will take some trial and error to get these right. Regardless of their less-than-pretty appearance, they were delicious!

INGREDIENTS:
Dough:
1 C flour
1 C semolina flour
Dash of salt
1 Tbs olive oil
1/2 to 3/4 C water
Filling: (I used my go-to ricotta cheese recipe)
1-14oz pkg extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
1/3 C nutritional yeast
1 C fresh basil
2 Tbs fresh rosemary
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 Tbs lemon juice
1/2 C Daiya mozzarella shreds
The rest:
1 jar of marinara or spaghetti sauce

DIRECTIONS:
Using a food processor with the sharp blade, pulse the flours and salt together. While the machine is running, add the oil and water. The dough shouldn’t be sticky.

Homemade Ravioli -- Epicurean Vegan

Knead the dough using some all purpose flour. Using small pieces of dough, feed it into the pasta maker—the widest setting, then one notch thinner, then a third time on the next thinner notch. The Seventh Grader and I didn’t quite figure this method out until halfway through, but oh well, we had fun experimenting. His job was to cut the rolled out dough into squares.

Homemade Ravioli -- Epicurean Vegan

Place the squares on a cookie sheet or cutting board to dry a little—about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, combine all the filling ingredients, except the mozzarella, in a food processor. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the cheese. Place a small scoop, about a teaspoon of filling in the middle of each ravioli square.

Homemade Ravioli -- Epicurean Vegan

There are other ways of doing this. I think it’s better to NOT cut squares first, but to have a long piece of rolled out dough, place the filling dollops in a line and fold over the dough, then cut using a pastry wheel to seal the edges.

Homemade Ravioli -- Epicurean Vegan

I finally got smart and used the pastry wheel to seal the edges instead of a using a fork, but accumulated an unusable pile of dough shrapnel.

Anyway, we ended up with pretty ghetto ravioli.

Homemade Ravioli -- Epicurean Vegan

In batches of 5-6, add them to boiling water and cook for about 2-3 minutes; remove with a slotted spoon. Top with warm spaghetti sauce and enjoy!

Filed Under: Dinners Tagged With: Italian, pasta maker, ravioli, semolina flour, tofu, tofu ricotta

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The Epicurean Vegan is devoted to those wanting to eat healthy, save animals, and reduce their carbon footprint. My decision to go vegan started out as a quest to get healthier, but the more I learned about veganism, the more I realized how damaging the meat and dairy industries are to the environment and, of course, the animals. And it is for these reasons, that I would never go back to eating or wearing animal products. Ever.
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