Roasted Ratatouille Ravioli

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If I had a nickel for every time this year that I’ve told my husband, “I really wanna make some homemade pasta,” well, I’d have at least $1.35. Handmade pasta is a time-consuming project, but it’s so satisfying and gives me such joy that I just had to find the time. Ravioli is my favorite kind of handmade pasta because it gives me creative license not only for the pasta dough but also the filling that gets tucked inside. And— bonus points— I married it with ratatouille, my favorite summer dish. Yeah, this one was extra fun!

This was an all-day project, and I loved it!

Ratatouille— a stew of eggplant, zucchini, peppers, onions and tomatoes— was indeed the inspiration for my ravioli adventure. I adore the melded flavors of the vegetables, along with the subtly floral Herbs de Provence that is traditional for ratatouille, and I look for new ways to enjoy it every summer. Once the idea hit me to pair all of that with handmade ravioli, there was no going back. 

I wish I had made a triple batch of this!

First, the pasta dough

I used a mix of flour, including all-purpose, white whole wheat and semolina. A generous sprinkle of onion powder gave the dough an underlying flavor to support the ratatouille theme, and I gave it a good long kneading to build strength in the dough. I wrapped it up and tucked it into the fridge for a few hours to rest. If you need to save time, you could make the dough a day ahead.

You have to play pasta dough by ear to get the hydration just right. It shouldn’t be too dry or too wet.

The ravioli filling

Next up, I pondered the filling for ravioli, which had to be more than just ricotta. After my less-than-great lab report this year, I’ve been more conscious of the saturated fat I consume, and so it occurred to me that maybe I’d incorporate a different protein into the mix. Lean ground chicken worked great, and I pulsed it in the food processor to make it as fine as possible. Also in the mix were golden caramelized onions and a pinch or two of Herbs de Provence, plus some lemon zest, and I blended all of those with strained ricotta and an egg to hold it together. This part of the recipe could also be done a day ahead.

This filling alone was delicious. 

Bend me, shape me, anyway you want me

By the time the filling was prepared, I was ready to roll out the pasta dough into thin sheets, and I used my handy ravioli mold to make uniform little pillows. This is the fun part! It’s important when you make handmade pasta that you give it a little bit of time to dry before dropping it into boiling water, so when the ravioli were done, I placed them on a semolina-dusted cookie sheet. For more detailed instruction on how to make ravioli— with or without special gadgets— check out my post for handmade spinach ricotta ravioli, which includes tons of photos and tips, along with lessons I learned myself along my pasta-making journey. 

If you’ve wanted to try making your own pasta, maybe this is the year!

Ratatouille = EZ-POT

Finally, I made the ratatouille itself, which is delicious as a stew but perfection when roasted. I always remember this French country dish by the acronym “EZ-POT” because of Next Food Network Star season 5 winner, Melissa D’Arabian, who simplified the ingredients of into a five letter description of a dish that really is “e-z,” and usually is made in a “pot.” This little memory trick has saved me on more than one occasion when I craved ratatouille but forgot to make a farmers’ market shopping list. 😉

I salted my eggplant chunks for a few minutes first, to help draw out excess moisture, and this worked really well for achieving crispy edges when they roasted. The other vegetables were roasted on a separate sheet, and then I tossed everything gently in a fire-roasted tomato sauce which, if you can believe it, was from a can! Sure, I could have made my own sauce, but I was trying to be thrifty and use up some leftover pizza sauce, and it was a winner! If you make your own sauce, keep the flavors simple and try to make it on the thicker side.

Roasting the vegetables brings out so much flavor. Do it at a high temperature and watch so they don’t burn.

While all of this was happening, I had the water on to boil for the pasta. I love this part of seeing a meal come together, especially one that I’ve pondered for a while, and though it satisfied my desire to make handmade pasta, it somehow also inspired me to want to make more handmade pasta. Stay tuned! 

This one was just as I’d imagined.
What pasta should I make next?

Roasted Ratatouille Ravioli

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: Intermediate
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This recipe is split into three parts for the pasta dough, the ravioli filling and the ratatouille vegetables with sauce. If you love the hands-on experience, this is worth the trouble. If the steps are too much for you, it's easy to make the pasta dough and filling ahead and finish the dish one or two days later. Not ready to make your own pasta? No problem! The chicken-ricotta filling and roasted vegetables would be awesome in a lasagna, using store-bought noodles. Adapt it however makes you happy.


Ingredients

  • 165g all-purpose flour
  • 60g white whole wheat flour
  • 45g semolina flour
  • 1/2 tsp. onion powder
  • 3 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 50g to 70g room temperature water

Notes: Depending on your overall environment, you may need to adjust the water somewhat to achieve a dough that is smooth and supple, without being too dry or too wet. If the dough is too dry with the maximum amount of water recommended, wet your hands and knead until smooth. Repeat as needed. You may end up with more pasta dough than is needed for ravioli. Simply roll it out with flour and cut into strips. Let it dry and freeze in zip-top bags. Cook from frozen.

Directions

  1. Combine flours and onion powder in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the dough hook
  2. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add eggs. Knead with the dough hook on speed 3 until dough starts to come together (it will be dry). Drizzle in water, a little at a time, until all flour is incorporated and dough is gathered up on the hook. This may take extra water.
  3. Transfer dough to the counter and knead by hand for about eight minutes, until smooth, firm and supple. Wrap dough tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to a day before rolling and shaping.
  4. Divide dough into sections and roll out with a pasta machine or rolling pin to approximately 1/16″ thickness. Use a piping bag to apply filling, then lightly brush another sheet with cold water and seal up each pillow, pushing out any air as you go. Transfer raviolis to a parchment-lined cookie sheet sprinkled with semolina.

Ingredients

  • 1 medium sweet onion, chopped
  • 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
  • Kosher salt and pepper
  • 1 lb. ground chicken breast
  • 1/2 tsp. Herbs de Provence seasoning
  • 1 tsp. lemon zest
  • 1 cup whole milk ricotta, strained for 30 minutes to remove excess moisture
  • 1 large egg

Note: If you wish, you could skip the ground chicken and double the strained ricotta for a vegetarian version of this dish.

Directions

  1. Sauté onions in olive oil over low heat with a sprinkle of salt. Toss frequently, until all the moisture has evaporated and onions soften and take on a deep golden color. Transfer to a bowl and increase heat to medium.
  2. Add ground chicken to the same pan, cooking gently until meat is no longer pink, but do not let it brown. Season the meat the salt and pepper and allow it to cool.
  3. Add meat mixture and caramelized onions to the bowl of a food processor. Add Herbs de Provence and lemon zest. Pulse a few times until the meat is ground to a fine texture and onions are no longer visible in whole.
  4. Transfer processed mixture to a bowl with ricotta and egg and stir together until evenly blended. Refrigerate this mixture until you’re ready to fill the ravioli.

Ingredients

  • 1 small eggplant (keep the peel on), cut into large cubes
  • 1 medium zucchini, but into large chunks
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • 1/2 medium sweet onion, cut into chunks
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Kosher salt and pepper
  • A couple pinches of Herbs de Provence seasoning
  • 2 cups fire-roasted tomato sauce (ours was a thick pizza sauce)

Note: Keeping the peel on the eggplant and cutting it into large chunks is key to getting a crispy outer texture. Aim for pieces large enough that every piece has a bit of peel on it, as this will help the eggplant hold its shape during roasting so that it doesn’t turn mushy.

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 450° F, with rack in center position. Prepare two baking sheets by lining with parchment paper. Place eggplant cubes in a colander and toss gently with 1/2 tsp. salt. Let it rest half an hour, then gently rinse and pat dry before proceeding. Toss with a tablespoon of olive oil on one of the baking sheets and season with pepper only (they will have plenty of salty flavor from the prep stage).
  2. Toss zucchini, bell pepper and onion chunks in a tablespoon of olive oil on the second baking sheet. Season with salt, pepper and Herbs de Provence. Roast both sheets of vegetables for about 30 minutes, turning pieces over halfway through.
  3. Meanwhile, bring a pot of salted water to a gentle boil and add the ravioli by hand to prevent sticking. Cook for six to seven minutes; the pillows should all be floating and the sealed edges of pasta should be tender.
  4. Retrieve the pasta with a vented spoon and transfer directly to the tomato sauce. Toss gently and arrange the ravioli on serving plates. Toss the roasted vegetables in the remaining sauce and spoon over the ravioli portions. Serve at once.

Ratatouille Lasagna Roll-ups

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The summer season brings all the garden-fresh vegetables I love, including zucchini and eggplant, which I would definitely be growing in our little garden plot if it weren’t for the deer. Year after year, I have tried in vain to grow my own veggies, and the increase of deer activity on our property and that of our neighbors has been almost humorous. Almost.

Gardening, for me, started as a fun, nature-loving adventure but has rapidly declined into a frustrating drama, and now we have this elevated box in our yard, where we cannot grow anything but marigolds and basil, which have proven to be the only things our local deer detest. Last year’s garden was demolished, right down to the flowers and budding fruit of the eggplants and even the jalapeno pepper plants (which I had been told deer would never eat). We have tried all the folk remedies on the internet—human hair, shavings of bar soap, peppermint oil, so-called deer repellent, and even a weird concoction I made from rotten eggs, cayenne and dish soap. That last remedy had near-catastrophic results, but I won’t embarrass my husband again with that story (you can read it here, if you’d like). This year, we didn’t even bother planting a garden, and I’m contemplating turning the raised bed into some kind of wildflower bed. I get exasperated just thinking about it.

To make up for a lack of homegrown veggies, we are regularly visiting our weekly Cobblestone farmers’ market, which features a variety of vendors offering fresh produce as well as pastured meat, eggs, organic mushrooms, jams and preserves, and even handmade alpaca wool products. It’s a fun way to spend an hour on a Saturday morning, and this past weekend, we came home with everything I needed for a new batch of ratatouille. Ah, my favorite veggie-centered summer meal!

Classic ratatouille ingredients = zucchini, eggplant, pepper, onions (leeks this time), tomato and herbs de Provence!

Me being me, though, I cannot simply chop up these ingredients and make a “traditional” ratatouille, which would be a rustic casserole-meets-stew kind of thing. I have to twist it up! My culinary muse inspired me this time to combine the French classic dish with another favorite comfort food—lasagna. I figured that I could infuse my herbs de Provence seasoning into a ricotta mixture with lemon zest and some grated cheese and that it would be the “glue” to hold the other ingredients together inside a rolled-up lasagna noodle. The eggplant and zucchini would be sliced and roasted, and the red pepper would be worked into the sauce. This is how my mind sees a pile of ingredients, and the end result was exactly as I had imagined, both visually and in perfect summer flavor. Delicious!

Inside, you can see and taste all the flavors of a summer ratatouille!

This reimagined one-dish meal took mostly time to put together; it was not at all difficult. I cannot say definitively how much time is needed because I was cooking all day, in between work emails and other home tasks. I will say that it was mostly passive time; I was either waiting for things to lose moisture or to finish roasting or to boil or bake. The rest was just slicing, chopping and stirring, and there’s no particular order that must be followed. You could even make everything a day ahead and just assemble and bake it the next day.

  • I had so many things going on at once here! But mostly, I was just waiting…
  • And the broiler was busy blistering up the skin on my bell pepper.

The entire ratatouille-meets-lasagna project weaved itself nicely into my busy day, and because each ingredient received its own treatment, the simplest way I can describe it is to share the process of each component. I’ll share a PDF version of the recipe at the end if you want to try it, but I’ll let the pictures tell the story in today’s post. Here we go! 🙂

The Ricotta Filling

  • Drain excess moisture from the ricotta by placing it in a mesh strainer over a bowl. Let it rest about 45 minutes.
  • It’s surprising how much moisture will drain from the ricotta, which means it will not make these lasagna roll-ups soggy!
  • Ricotta add-ins, clockwise from top: freshly ground black pepper, lemon zest, egg yolk, herbs de Provence, parm-romano blend.

The Eggplant

  • Slice the eggplant into uniform 1/2-inch slices.
  • Salt and sweat the eggplant by placing it between layers of paper towel. This draws out moisture for better roasting.
  • For easy roasting, use olive oil spray to lightly coat both sides of the eggplant slices. Season them with fresh pepper, too.

The Zucchini

  • Do the same with the zucchini slices, but cut them into uniform 1/4-inch slices.
  • Turn slices frequently until most of the moisture is cooked out.

The Red Bell Pepper

  • I prefer to cut up peppers before broiling, so I don’t have to deal with the seeds when it’s all slippery. Press down firmly to flatten for even blistering under the broiler.
  • When the peppers are blistered all over, transfer them to a dish and cover it with a lid or foil.
  • After about 20 minutes, the skins will be loosened for easy removal.

The Onions

  • Slice the white and pale green parts of the leeks and swish them around in cold water. Allow time for sandy grit to settle to the bottom of the bowl.
  • After draining and pressing the leeks dry, saute them in a little olive oil until softened and lightly browned.

The Tomatoes

The only classic ratatouille ingredient remaining is tomato, and though my ingredients photo displays a big, lovely heirloom tomato from the farmers’ market, I thought better of it when I began cooking my ratatouille. The heirloom tomato would have been full of seeds and too juicy for this dish, so I cast it aside and used half a can of San Marzano tomatoes instead to produce a fusion sauce, together with the roasted red pepper and a healthy dose of garlic. This sauce was similar to the roasted red pepper sauce that my husband, Les, discovered last year, but it leans more toward tomato than pepper. It was exactly what this recipe needed.

  • Saute minced garlic and tomatoes in extra virgin olive oil until saucy.
  • For depth, add in about 1/4 cup dry white wine (or vermouth, as I’ve used here). Simmer several minutes to cook off the alcohol flavor.
  • Add the roasted red pepper pieces to simmer for the last few minutes, then whiz it up in the blender or food processor until smooth.

Putting it all together

Assembling and finishing my ratatouille lasagna roll-ups was a cinch! I par-cooked the lasagna noodles until they were soft and flexible, spread the ricotta mixture onto them, layered the eggplant, zucchini and leeks and rolled them up!

  • Spread about 3 tablespoons of the ricotta mixture onto the par-cooked lasagna noodles.
  • Layer on the sauteed leeks, eggplant and zucchini slices, and roll them up!
  • Carefully place the rolls (end side down) into a thin layer of sauce. Place them close together in a single layer.
  • Evenly pour the roasted red pepper-tomato sauce over the ratatouille roll-ups.
  • Cover the baking dish with foil and bake at 350° F for about 50 minutes.
  • Be gentle when removing the baked roll-ups. I used a rubber spatula and slotted spoon to lift them from the baking dish.

First ratatouille of the summer! 🙂

Ratatouille Lasagna Roll-upsPrint it!

Oh, and that plump, juicy heirloom tomato I mentioned found its way instead to a BLT, which we enjoyed as a separate meal on freshly baked sourdough bread with local greens and some pastured pork bacon (also from the farmers’ market).

Who needs a garden, anyway? 😉