Mastering homemade ravioli is one of the most rewarding kitchen experiences! These Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Ravioli are the perfect recipe to start with. They have an intense fuchsia hue, AND taste absolutely incredible!  This post was originally published on Oct. 3, 2013 and updated on Feb. 20, 2019.

Homemade ravioli – a labor of love

It’s not very often that I get a hankering to make homemade pasta dough. Don’t get me wrong, I could eat pasta every day of the week and twice on Sunday (I don’t, of course…but I could).

It is easily my favorite type of food, and nothing compares to pasta that is painstakingly made from scratch.

Not even the most expensive, high-quality, imported dried pasta comes remotely close. The texture and flavor of fresh homemade pasta is simply out of this world, but it’s such a commitment. Especially when we’re talking about homemade ravioli, which entails making the dough, rolling it out, making a filling, stuffing and cutting, then cooking, plus a sauce…oy!

It truly is a labor of love.

So the shortcut variety almost always wins out, but when I woke up one cloudy morning with a rare clear agenda I thought to myself, today is a perfect day to make homemade ravioli.

But not just any homemade ravioli: beet and goat cheese ravioli.

Why this recipe for Homemade Ravioli with Beet & Goat Cheese filling works: 

The filling of these homemade ravioli is light, fluffy and tangy; a wonderful contrast to the dense, chewy pasta that envelops it.

And I’m crazy about the intense fuchsia hue! Who cuts into a ravioli and expects to see that?!

To keep it simple I made a quick sauce from a bit of starchy pasta water, fresh herbs and butter. Less is definitely more when it comes to these homemade Beet and Goat Cheese Ravioli. Some toasted pine nuts, parmesan cheese and a few baby beet greens finish the dish beautifully.

I marvel at the fact that a color so bright can be found in nature so the last thing I wanted to do was to disguise it with a heavy, opaque sauce.

Chef’s Tips for cooking homemade ravioli: 

• When pinching your ravioli close, watch out for air bubbles. Make sure to press out as much air as you can.
• Make sure not to puncture or harm the thin layer of pasta when handling your homemade ravioli.
• Cook them gently. A rolling boil can be enough to damage some of your precious ravioli, so turn down that temperature once your water has come to a first boil.
• Don’t worry if some of your ravioli are stuck together right in the beginning. They will separate as they continue to cook.
• The most gentle way to remove cooked ravioli from the water is with a hand-held strainer or slotted spoon. Avoid pouring the ravioli into a strainer, as this can cause them to rip or strain.

More Pasta Recipes:

Wild Mushroom Tagliatelle with Sage Butter

Linguine with Pumpkin Seed Kale Pesto

Butternut Squash Miso Carbonara

Chipotle Pumpkin Linguine

5 from 1 vote

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Beet & Goat Cheese Ravioli

Mastering homemade ravioli is one of the most rewarding kitchen experiences! These Beet & Goat Cheese Ravioli are the perfect recipe to start with. They have an intense fuchsia hue, AND taste absolutely incredible!

Course Main Course, starter

Cuisine Italian

Keyword goat cheese pasta, homemade pasta, homemade ravioli

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Servings 2

Calories 560 kcal

Author Denisse

Ingredients

• 1 large beet
• 1/4 cup goat cheese
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan plus more for garnish
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
• 2 sheets fresh pasta dough store bought or homemade
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter cut into cubes
• 2 tablespoons fresh chives chopped, plus more for garnish
• 1 tablespoon dill chopped, plus more for garnish
• 2 tablespoons toasted pinenuts
• 1 clove garlic minced

Instructions

1. Cook beet in a steamer for about 15 minutes or until flesh is easily pierced with a fork. Transfer to a bowl filled with ice water to cool. When cool, remove skin and chop coarsely

2. Add beet, goat cheese, 2 tablespoons parmesan, garlic, egg and a pinch of salt and pepper to a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Transfer mixture to refrigerator to chill while rolling out the pasta dough.

3. Roll out two sections of dough into thin sheets using a pasta machine. Test the thickness of the sheets by placing your hand behind it (if you can make out the shadow of your hand behind the pasta it is ready to be filled).

4. Place rounded teaspoons of the chilled filling onto one pasta sheet about 3 inches apart. Cover with the second sheet of pasta, pressing lightly on the filling to remove any air bubbles. 

5. Cut ravioli using a ravioli cutter and press around the edges to seal.

6. Add ravioli to salted boiling water and boil gently for 2-3 minutes until pasta is cooked. The ravioli will begin to float to the surface when the pasta is done cooking. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to serving plates.

7. Add 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking liquid to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add herbs and cook for about 2 minutes. Gradually add butter 1 cube at a time, allowing each cube to melt before adding the next.

8. Spoon butter sauce over ravioli and season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with grated parmesan, pine nuts and additional fresh herbs.

Recipe Notes

• When pinching your ravioli close, watch out for air bubbles. Make sure to press out as much air as you can.
• Make sure not to puncture or harm the thin layer of pasta when handling your homemade ravioli.
• Cook them gently. A rolling boil can be enough to damage some of your precious ravioli, so turn down that temperature once your water has come to a first boil.
• Don’t worry if some of your ravioli are stuck together right in the beginning. They will separate as they continue to cook.
• The most gentle way to remove cooked ravioli from the water is with a hand-held strainer or slotted spoon. Avoid pouring the ravioli into a strainer, as this can cause them to rip or strain.