This Nettle and Feta Ravioli is a fun meal to make from scratch and tastes out of this world. Go pluck those weeds from your back garden and put them to good use!
Gardeners up and down the country are despairing at the first sight of the invasive stinging nettles return, but I just see lunch!
Home Made Pasta
My newest kitchen gadget is a pasta machine, and even before I’d ordered it I couldn’t wait to make a stuffed pasta like a ravioli. It’s very simple to make, although really time consuming, so I would recommend leaving this dish to a weekend or when you have nothing else to do apart from play with your food :)
Start with a clean kitchen, put your phone on silent and pour a glass of chilled white if that’s your thing. This is food that is made with lots of love so ignore the real world and indulge yourself in the act of making beautiful food.
The nettle and feta filling is extraordinarily good. In each bite you have a hit of the salty feta, the earthy green of the nettles and the wonderful texture from the toasted pine nuts, all wrapped up in a soft, fresh pasta drenched with a light and simple butter sauce. Divine.
If you do give this, or any of my recipes a go, please share a pic with me on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook and do let me know what you think. Your comments are always appreciated and help me plan more yummy recipes to share with you in the future :)
Janie x
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- Oil or fat like butter or dripping
- 1 onion small ,finely chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon dried chilli flakes
- 2 handfuls stinging nettle tops fresh
- salt & pepper
- 200 g feta cheese
- 2 eggs large
- 200 g flour
- 2 tablespoons butter
- Heat a large saucepan and without adding any oil, pop in the pine nuts and keep moving them round and round until they are lightly browned. Pop them to one side.
- Next add the oil to the pan and gently cook the onion until softened.
- Add the nettle tops and let them sweat down just like spinach does then season with the chilli, salt and pepper, and let the whole pan cool.
- On a clean work surface or in a large mixing bowl weight out the flour and make a large well in the middle. Crack in the eggs, and gently whisk them well with a fork. Slowly starting bringing in the flour, until you have a lumpy looking dough.
- Dust the work surface with more flour and start kneading the dough for about 10 minutes or until it feels silky and smooth. Bring together into a ball and wrap tightly in cling film and pop in the fridge for an hour.
- By now the nettle mixture should have cooled, so crumble the block of feta into it and mix loosely. You'll need to break up any lumps larger than a marble.
- It'll be very firm when you bring it out, so get kneading again as best you can until it feels more pliable.
- Cut off 1/4 of the dough, wrapping the remainder back in the cling film to stop it drying out.
- Flatten it out and dust with more flour before putting it through a pasta machine, starting on the widest setting.
- Take it through each setting 2 or 3 times before reducing the thickness again. On my machine I found the second to last setting was best for ravioli as the last setting was very thin and tore easily when forming.
- Lay the long sheet of pasta out on the floured counter. Mark the halfway point with a knife and on one half add little teaspoons of your nettle mixture. Ensure you leave enough room either side of your filling to close the pasta.
- Brush around each lump of filling with water, then fold the other half of pasta over the filling and press down gently around each nodule of filling, being careful not to rip the pasta and to expel any pockets of air.
- Use a knife, cookie cutter or fancy pasta cutter to cut into the shapes and size you want, leaving enough pasta around each filling to make a good seal.
- Pop each ravioli onto a floured baking tray and cover with a clean teatowel.
- Continue with the rest of the pasta until all is used up.
- Bring a large pan of water to the strong simmer. Add a good tablespoon of salt to the cooking water. This step is more important than it sounds - it turns an OK pasta into an amazing pasta!
- Add the pasta in batches and cook for 2 minutes, then use a slotted spoon to remove them onto a waiting plate.
- When all is cooked, drain all thw water away apart from around 2 tablespoons. Add in the butter and cook the salty water and butter together until it starts to reduce.
- Gently slide the pasta back in and spoon over the buttery sauce so each pieces gets a little coating.
- Serve and enjoy!
Glamorous Glutton says
This sounds really delicious, such a shame the whole of the nettles aren’t edible, there’d be so much more incentive to get tugging them out. Feb recipe and great pics Janie. GG
Jane Sarchet says
Thanks GG! :)
Janie x
Choclette says
Oh yes please, this is one for me, I love nettles. Can I come to dinner please? What’s this with the butter and feta?
Helen @ Fuss Free Flavours says
It is posts like this that make me want to pack up and move to the country and forage! I’ve just started making homemade pasta and love it. I always keep a bowl of dough in the freezer now.
Jane Sarchet says
Oh that’s a good idea Helen, does it freeze well? And how long does it take to defrost?
Janie x
Camilla @FabFood4All says
These ravioli look amazing and how frugal using nettles which I have never tried and really should as there is a wood full of them over the wall at the end of our close! Would be a great entry for #creditcrunchmunch:-)
Lily Lau says
Love this, ravioli are always so dreamy… oh my :)
Jane Sarchet says
Hey Lily, thanks so much for the sweet comment and lovely to meet you :)
Janie x
Joanne/WineLady Cooks says
Your nettle and feta ravioli sounds delicious. I often make homemade raviolis and I will definitely try a new combination, I’m not sure I’ve seen nettles in my markets. I’ll try it with another green that will pair well with feta. Thanks so much for sharing your delicious recipe.
Jane Sarchet says
Thank you for the lovely comment Joanne. Nettle tastes a lot like spinach when cooked so you could certainly interchange the two :)
Janie x
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says
Love the idea of using nettles!! Not sure I’d manage without stinging myself but I’ll happily eat this if you’re cooking it! ;)
Jane Sarchet says
Deal Becca! :)
Janie x
Kate - gluten free alchemist says
I have still never eaten nettles. I think I have a bit of a fear of picking them and I’m not sure which bits are edible and which not! But this ravioli sounds delicious and I adore Feta, so maybe it’s time to face the demons?!
Jane Sarchet says
There really is nothing to be scared of I promise Kate, arm yourself with a pair of Marigold gloves and get picking!
Janie x
PS I have been planning a little step by step on nettles, watch this space ;)
Julie's Family Kitchen says
Oh wow Janie! I really must make my own pasta now. Your nettle ravioli looks incredibly delicious, not sure I’m brave enough to collect my own nettles but would definitely like to try eating them.
Jane Sarchet says
Thank you Julie :)
Janie x
Munchies and Munchkins says
Woah this wounds so good. I’ve tried nettle soup and loved that. I really enjoy making my own pasta dough but I agree it’s so time consuming. I had a Masterclass from the pasta master Giovanni Rana a while back and I was so excited to come home and create but have I found any time since? No. X
Lucy @ BakingQueen74 says
this sounds delicious! I too am a bit scared of nettles but do have some that grow down the garden in the summer. Will look out to your guide to cooking with them!
Bintu @ Recipes From A Pantry says
I keep seeing lunch too but I have been too lazy to go and pick some nettles. You tempt me to though.
Jane Sarchet says
Do it!
Janie x