SERVES 4 AS A MAIN (MAKES 60) | PREPARATION TIME: 1-1½ HOURS, PLUS 30 MINUTES RESTING | COOKING TIME: 8 MINUTES
Cypriot ravioles are filled with halloumi and mint. This is my mum’s recipe. You can buy these frozen in Cyprus, and in Greek groceries in the larger UK cities, but as I’m in Cambridgeshire I have learnt to make my own. It’s not as hard as you think!
INGREDIENTS
For the pasta
500g plain flour
Pinch of salt
200ml lukewarm water
For the filling
375g Cyprus Village halloumi, plus extra to garnish
2 medium eggs
Generous handful of dried mint, crushed
Stock cube or 1 tsp stock powder (optional)
METHOD
For the pasta
Put the flour, olive oil and salt into a bowl. Slowly add the water and stir to form a dough. Cover and leave to rest for a minimum of 30 minutes, and up to 1 hour.
For the filling
Grate all the halloumi and put the 375g in a bowl with the eggs and mint. The mixture should be firm; if it’s too wet add more halloumi, or more olive oil if it’s too dry.
Roll the chilled dough into thin sheets. A pasta machine provides approximately 15cm wide strips so if you are using a rolling pin, cut your sheets into 15cm strips.
Mould the halloumi mix with a teaspoon and place the blobs every 2cm along the rolled-out dough towards the top, leaving a 1cm border above. Fold the dough over so that the filling is on the bottom, closed edge. Using the top half of a cookie cutter, cut out the ravioles into semi-circles, ensuring the halloumi mix is sealed inside.
Bring a large pan of water almost to the boil. If you’re adding stock to the water, go easy because halloumi is quite salty. Add the ravioles to the pan and slightly lower the heat. Cook for approximately 8 minutes, using a slotted spoon to push them down from time to time, but avoid stirring. Lift out with the slotted spoon and serve straight away with some grated halloumi on top.
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