I have a rule that I try to follow.  It’s very Rachel Ray.  On weeknights, I try to spend no more than 30 minutes cooking a meal.  It’s one of many, often not very successful, ways that I try to manage time and keep balance in my life. I speak from experience when I say that it’s awfully hard to not want to create every meal from scratch, but when trying to keep up with work, friends, and the day to day responsibilities of life, shaving off time in the kitchen means more time for everything else.

Which is why I love this easy way of making ravioli.  Won ton wrappers found in Asian food stores save lots of time when you use them as ravioli noodles instead of making noodles from scratch.  Options for fillings are limitless and depending on how much time you have, you can either make a homemade sauce or pick up your favorite store brand.  Either way, it’s a special dinner that is quick and easy to make.

Two of my favorite things are goat cheese and mushrooms and with the addition of some leftover herbs  I had my ravioli filling.  While this recipe for ravioli is delicious, you can’t go wrong with picking your own unique filling using meat, vegetables, cheese or a combination of all three.  Ravioli dishes seem to be everywhere these days with fillings ranging from spinach to crab or even pumpkin.  With all the different variations, a ravioli filled with cheese suddenly seems quaint although not any less delicious.  Whatever filling you decide to make, just remember that if it requires cooking, you must cook it prior to making your ravioli.  The ravioli will only cook in boiling water for 3-4 minutes which is enough time to cook the noodle and heat the inside, but not enough time to cook your filling.

In terms of sauce, I made a simple tomato and basil sauce for my pasta dish.  When choosing a sauce, make sure it complements your filling.  Maybe your ravioli will meet its match with a hearty Bolognese, a rich cream sauce, a butter based sauce, or your favorite homemade marinara.  And again, if you are feeling stressed for time, there are good pre-made sauces for sale.  Buon appetito!

Goat Cheese and Mushroom Ravioli
Serves 2-3*

Won ton Skins (can be found at Asian grocery stores or if you are lucky, your local supermarket)

1 Egg, beaten with a little water for egg wash

8 oz Mushrooms (I used baby bellas, but any mushroom or a variety of mushrooms will work)
4 oz Goat Cheese
1 T Olive Oil
1 tsp Fresh Thyme, chopped
1 tsp Fresh Rosemary, chopped
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Bring a pot of salted water to boil on the stove.

Heat olive oil over medium high heat in 10″ saute pan until it shimmers.  Add sliced mushrooms to pan and cook until  they soften, stirring occasionally, about 10 to 15 minutes. You may notice that the mushrooms in the pan have absorbed all of your olive oil in the first couple minutes of cooking.  Don’t be tempted to add more oil.  As the mushrooms cook, they will release the oil and their own liquid as they soften.

Near the end of the cooking time, add in your fresh herbs.  Once mushrooms are fully cooked, remove pan from heat and toss mushrooms in a bowl with goat cheese.  Stir to combine and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Lay a piece of parchment paper on your counter or on a baking sheet.  On the parchment paper, lay out your won ton wrappers.  Make sure they don’t overlap.  Spoon approximately 1 tablespoon of filling on top of each won ton wrapper. 

Brush egg wash along the edges of each won ton wrapper.  You have two options here.  You can either make square ravioli by placing another won ton wrapper on top of the one with the filling as seen in the pictures.  Or, you can make ravioli with less noodle and more filling, by folding the wrapper over and making a triangle-shaped ravioli. Either way, be sure to gently press the egg washed edges together to make sure that the ravioli are sealed.

Once all the ravioli are made carefully drop them into the boiling salted water for 3-4 minutes.  Drain ravioli as you would any pasta and serve with desired sauce.

*Servings are based on the amount of filling in this recipe. You may have won ton wrappers left over.