5 Apr 2016 No Cook Savoury
Ricotta & almond courgette ravioli…with crushed tomato sauce
I am very excited to announce that my next book will hit the shelves on June 2nd. It is called ‘The No-Cook Cookbook’…’No-Bake Baking’s’ big brother! The recipes are packed full of fresh and ‘supermarket cheat’ ingredients as well as quick tips and tricks to make meals without any cooking. Here’s a little taster of what’s to come…Ravioli but not as you know it..Why not watch me make it on the RTE ‘Today’ show?
Because this easy no-cook version of ravioli is made from courgettes, it is gluten-free as well as very low-carb. Yellow courgettes are ideal if you want your ravioli to resemble the real thing, but regular green courgettes work perfectly well. It is important to make the courgette strips as thin as possible so that they stay in shape when folded. You can use ground almonds in the filling if you prefer, but it really is worth going to the effort of blitzing toasted flaked almonds for the extra flavour they bring to the dish.
Slice the courgettes into long thin ribbons using a mandolin or vegetable peeler. You need 40 strips in total, at least 12.5cm long. Any trimmings can be used in a stir-fry, soup or salad. Toss the ribbons in a bowl with the oil until evenly coated, and set aside to soften while you prepare everything else.
For the salsa, place the oil and vinegar in a medium bowl. Finely chop the shallot and garlic, add to the bowl and whisk everything together. Season to taste, then toss the cherry tomatoes through.
Using a potato masher, roughly mash them up a little so the juices squish out, making a sauce but leaving lots of texture. Finally, stir in the basil. Set aside while you prepare the filling.
Blitz 75g of the flaked almonds in a mini-blender to give fine crumbs. Tip into a medium bowl and add the ricotta, hard cheese and basil. Stir together well and season to taste. This can be made up to two days ahead.
Lay two pieces of courgette criss-crossed over each other on a clean board. Spoon a tablespoon (about 15g) of the ricotta mixture in the centre. Wrap the two ends of the bottom piece of courgette over the filling, followed by the other two ends to enclose. Turn the parcel over so it is seam-side down. Repeat to make 20 in total, arranging 5 on each serving plate as you go. If making in advance, place them on a large tray lined with nonstick baking paper. These can be made up to two days ahead.
When ready to serve, spoon the tomato salsa over the ‘ravioli’. Pile some rocket leaves on top, scatter with the remaining toasted flaked almonds and finish with a twist of pepper.
Photo (c) Cristian Barnett
You will need...
SERVES 4
2 large courgettes, preferably yellow
25ml extra virgin olive oil
100g toasted flaked almonds
250g ricotta
50g vegetarian hard cheese, finely grated
Small handful of fresh basil leaves, finely sliced
75g wild rocket
Sea salt and finely ground black pepper
TOMATO SALSA:
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp red wine vinegar
1 shallot, peeled
1 garlic clove, peeled
300g vine-ripened cherry tomatoes, quartered
Large handful of fresh basil leaves, finely sliced
ESSENTIAL KIT:
Mandolin (or vegetable peeler)
Potato masher
Mini-blender
