Why buy frozen when you can spend the day making fresh? Um.... Right...

I've always wanted to make my own ravioli, I'm not sure why, but I even got a form for make them but was to intimidated. We decided it was a good family projects to do over Thanksgiving break. I made the dough and what a hot mess that was. I wasn't sure if it would ever roll out to be pasta but it did! Through the magic of... something. It worked. I went to make my filling and I had wanted to add some spinach to it, I know I bought a bag of it. Like, I specifically remember being at the store, laughing with another shopper because I kept dropping bags of it on the floor... but no spinach to be found in my fridge or forgotten in my car. Someday, I'll find that spinach and wish I'd looked harder for it. Eewwww. So no spinach, but that's Ok, it's not in the recipe anyway. The kids helped make the filling, roll out the dough, seal the ravioli, it was quite a process! It's not exactly a 30 minute meal. We served with marinara since cream sauces aren't a favorite of anyone but me. These disappeared at dinner, not a single one left, so clearly they appreciate their own hard work and enjoyed them. Will you make these? Guessing probably not, but here's the recipe anyway. Next I want to try spinach mushroom ravioli, maybe when I find that spinach! Or... not....

Homemade Four Cheese Ravioli

Ravioli Dough:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 pinch salt
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 eggs
1 ½ tablespoons water

Ravioli Filling:
1 (8 ounce) container ricotta cheese
1 (4 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
½ cup provolone cheese, shredded
1 egg
1 ½ teaspoons dried parsley

Egg Wash:
1 egg
1 tablespoon water

Mound the flour and salt together on a work surface and form a well. Beat the teaspoon of olive oil, 2 eggs, and water in a bowl. Pour half the egg mixture into the well. Begin mixing the egg with the flour with one hand; use your other hand to keep the flour mound steady. Add the remaining egg mixture and knead to form a dough.
Knead the dough until smooth, 8 to 10 minutes; add more flour if the dough is too sticky. Form the dough into a ball and wrap tightly with plastic. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
While the dough is resting, prepare the ravioli filling. Combine the ricotta cheese, cream cheese, mozzarella cheese, provolone cheese, egg, and parsley and mix well. Set the filling aside.
Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Beat the egg with the tablespoon of water to make the egg wash.
Roll out the pasta dough into thin sheets no thicker than a nickel. To assemble the ravioli, brush the egg wash over a sheet of pasta. Drop the filling mixture on the dough by teaspoonfuls about one inch apart. Cover the filling with the top sheet of pasta, pressing out the air from around each portion of filling. Press firmly around the filling to seal. Cut into individual ravioli with a knife or pizza cutter. Seal the edges.
Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Stir in the ravioli, and return to a boil. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the ravioli float to the top and the filling is hot, 4 to 8 minutes. Drain well.
Grease a baking sheet. Place the cooked ravioli on the sheet pan and bake in the preheated oven until brown, about 4 minutes.
To serve the ravioli, divide them among four warmed serving bowls. Drizzle marinara sauce over the ravioli.