A Dirty Little Pasta Dish: Ravioli Nudi

So maybe I have a dirty mind; but the name itself made this Mark Bittman recipe from How to Cook Everything sound too fun to pass up.  Ravioli Nudi…..or Naked Ravioli earned it’s name because what could be the filling for a traditional ravioli is actually outside of the pasta…hence the term “Nudi.”   Those of you who have a thorough knowledge of Italian cuisine may be familiar; but this was a new one on me and it was heavenly!   Imagine for a moment tiny, tender meatballs coated with a rich brown -butter sage sauce nestled into a pile of curly al dente campanelle. This recipe is most certainly going in the keeper file!

I must be essentially a lazy cook because I’m always searching for ways to make a labor intensive dish easier.  The only down side to Ravioli Nudi is the time it takes to make tons of tiny little meatballs.  The recipe indicates they should be no more than 1/2 inch in diameter.  As usual with me and cooking, the first dozen or so were perfect.  Slowly, though, the little buggers seemed to grow of their own accord.  It was a definite Zen-moment challenge for me to stick to the plan and keep them close to the recommended size.  I knew the work would pay off in the end…and it did.  

The original recipe calls for a combination of eight ounces of veal and eight ounces of any other ground meat you prefer.  Again (you’re probably getting tired of hearing this) I chose 93% fat-free turkey as opposed to veal, beef or pork. This way I was able to avoid any form of red meat and I was better able to control the fat content to offset the half stick of butter poured over the pasta.   To compensate for what I knew would be a less flavorful meat, I simmered the meatballs in chicken stock rather than in plain water when cooking.  Now, granted, we weren’t comparing turkey meatballs to real “meat”balls; but no one missed a thing in the flavor or texture department and we saved tons of cholesterol and fat calories. 

There are leftovers in the fridge as I type….hopefully they’ll make it to dinner time.

NOTE: This would be great with orecchiette.  The little scoop shapes would cup the meatballs nicely :)

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 pound of your favorite ground meat a combination of meats totalling one pound.  Original recipe calls for veal and beef.
1 egg
1/4 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
2  cloves garlic, minced
salt to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste
1-32 ounce box of chicken or beef stock
1 pound of your favorite pasta shape
4 tablespoons butter
20 fresh sage leaves

Instructions

Combine the meat in a bowl with the egg, cheese, parsley, onion, salt and pepper.
Mix well but do not knead.
Form into tiny balls, about 1/2 inch in diameter.
Put balls on cookie sheets and refrigerate until you’re ready to cook, or up to several hours.
Heat chicken stock to a simmer in a large pasta pot.
Cook the meatballs in simmering stock for about 5 minutes.
Remove with a slotted spoon and keep warm.  Reserve 1/2 cup of the stock with the meatballs for tossing with the pasta later.
Add enough water to the remaining stock to boil your pasta.
Meanwhile, cook the butter and sage together in a small pan over medium-low heat until the butter is light brown – about 5 minutes.
Drain the pasta, toss it with the butter-sage mixture, meatballs and enough of the reserved stock to make the mixture saucy.
Serve with additional Parmesan at the table.

This post is linked to Ekat’s Kitchen’s Friday Potluck, Family Friendly Fridays at Mommy Cooks,  Recipe Swap Thursday at Prarie Story and Fat Camp Friday at Mangoes and Chutney.

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