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These toasted ravioli are 100% guaranteed to be a hit to watch any football game this fall.
These fried pasta pockets wouldn't be complete without an insane amount of topical Parmesan cheese.
The filling I use is a slightly spicy ragu that starts with my special Italian sausage recipe. Keep this Italian sausage recipe handy because it’s great to mix with game meat for meatballs, put on pizza, or to make a wonderful Bolognese sauce.
Our Midwest friends in St. Louis took it upon themselves to bread and deep fry ravioli and slather them with marinara and Parmesan. They call them “toasted ravioli.” Supposedly the name "toasted" came from the fact that "deep fried" sounded less appealing. I don't know what the Italians think of this, but I really don't care.
So many of us look forward to this time of year for the start of football. The closing days of summer, undoubtedly interrupted by an early snowfall, while still holding out hope for an actual fall. Whether it’s those Friday night high school games, the Saturday college matches, or the professional contests on Sunday, good football food is a must for munching.
These toasted ravioli are 100% guaranteed to be a hit to watch any game. The filling I use is a slightly spicy ragu that starts with my special Italian sausage recipe. Keep this Italian sausage recipe handy because it’s great to mix with game meat for meatballs, put on pizza, or to make a wonderful Bolognese sauce. We go through a lot of it at the Bennion household.
But these fried pasta pockets wouldn't be complete without an insane amount of topical Parmesan cheese. For some Americans, they have sadly grown up thinking Parmesan cheese comes from shakers in the fridge. It's unfortunate, because that stuff cannot come close to the real thing. Look for a dotted rind on a block of Parmesan cheese to know whether you are working with the legit form or an imposter.
Rather than freshly grating the Parmesan, I try to get a more crumbly texture that is reminiscent of the shaker version. To get that texture, I pulse small chucks of fresh Parmesan in my food processor and let it rain down on the freshly toasted ravioli to go with the homemade marinara. Salty, cheesy delicious.
This is the football food dreams are made of. Now who’s ready to toast some ravioli?
10 grams (about two teaspoons) kosher salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp Spicewalla Calabrian chili powder
1 tsp Spicewalla crushed red pepper
(Optional) ¼ cup dry white wine
Make your pasta first. Combine the eggs and flour together by hand or in a mixer and knead for 10 minutes. The dough should be smooth and not sticky. If it is too sticky, add another ¼ cup of flour and continue to knead. A good knead is one of the keys to making fresh pasta. Place in a plastic sandwich bag and let it rest for a minimum of a half hour.
While your dough rests, combine all Italian sausage ingredients together and mix well. Sauté in a large pan on medium heat. Use a potato masher to break up the large pieces to get a finer texture. Once the sausage is cooked, add the tomato sauce and let it reduce and blend with the meat for about 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and let ragu get to room temperature.
Roll out your pasta into strips using a pasta machine or a rolling pin. You don’t have to take it to the thinnest setting on the pasta machine as it may be too delicate to make your filled ravioli. The easiest ravioli shape to make is a 3” x 6” rectangle, fill (don’t overfill!) one end of the rectangle with ragu, dampen your finger with water and run it around the edges, bring the other end of the rectangle over the top of the filling, and seal the edges with a fork. Try to get as much of the air out before you seal them.
Set up your breading station with the three beaten eggs, salt and pepper on one plate, and the Panko breadcrumbs on another. Individually bread each ravioli with the egg and then breadcrumbs, followed by placing them on a parchment-line baking sheet. Once breaded, allow the ravioli to rest in the fridge for 15-20 minutes, which helps the breading adhere.
Bring your vegetable oil for “toasting” (i.e. frying) up to 350 degrees. Fry your ravioli in batches until they are a nice golden brown, around 2-3 minutes. They should be garnished with heavy amounts of real Parmesan cheese that you pulse in a food processor until you get the consistency of sesame seeds. Dip in your favorite marinara sauce.
Jon Bennion is a native Montanan, born and raised in Billings. Outside of his day job as an attorney, you can find Jon experimenting in the kitchen and developing recipes that often feature a Montana ingredient or story. Jon posts on Instagram as Intermediate Chef (@intermediatechef) and lives in Clancy, MT.
With our weekly newsletter packed with the latest in everything food.
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These toasted ravioli are 100% guaranteed to be a hit to watch any football game this fall.
These fried pasta pockets wouldn't be complete without an insane amount of topical Parmesan cheese.
The filling I use is a slightly spicy ragu that starts with my special Italian sausage recipe. Keep this Italian sausage recipe handy because it’s great to mix with game meat for meatballs, put on pizza, or to make a wonderful Bolognese sauce.
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