Pear and Pecorino Ravioli

Note: MAKES 1 POUND PASTA, FOR 24 TO 28 RAVIOLI

For the dough, put the flour in a food processor, and pulse several times. Beat together three of the eggs, the egg yolk, olive oil, and 2 tablespoons water in a spouted measuring cup. With the food processor running, add the liquid, and let it run until the dough forms a ball on the blade, about 30 seconds. If it’s too loose, add a tablespoon or two of flour; if still crumbly, add a teaspoon or two of cold water.

Let the machine knead the dough for about 20 seconds. Turn the dough out on a very lightly floured surface, and knead by hand for another 30 seconds or so, until it’s smooth, soft, and stretchy. Wrap, and rest the dough for 30 minutes. For the filling, peel and core the pear, and shred it against the large holes of a box grater into a medium bowl. Stir in the pecorino, Grana Padano, and mascarpone, and mash to make a paste.

Cut the dough into four pieces. Keeping the pieces you are not immediately working with covered as you roll, roll each piece through a pasta machine set to the next-to-last setting (or the last setting, if you are comfortable with your machine— you want the dough to be quite thin, since you will be folding it over), to get strips that are about as wide as the machine and about 16 to 18 inches in length.

Lay one strip out on a very lightly floured surface, and dollop scant tablespoons of filling at about 3-inch intervals down the center of the strip (you will get about six ravioli per strip). Press the tops of the mounds lightly to flatten. Beat the remaining egg and brush a thin strip of egg along the top, bottom, and side edges of the dough strip and in between each mound of filling. Fold the dough over and seal.

With a pastry-cutting wheel, cut the ravioli into rectangles. Arrange the finished ravioli on a lightly floured towel-lined baking sheet. Make more ravioli from the remaining pieces of dough.

To cook the ravioli, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, heat the butter in a large skillet until simmering. Add a cup of boiling pasta water, and simmer until reduced by half, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the ravioli to the boiling water, and cook about 2 minutes once they return to a boil. Lay the cooked ravioli in the skillet, and toss to coat with the butter. Remove the pan from the heat, and sprinkle over it the grated aged pecorino, mixing gently so the cheese begins to melt into a sauce. Season with salt and lots of black pepper. If plating individually, gently scoop up the ravioli with a large spoon and place in large shallow bowls, or use a flat plate. Sprinkle with more grated aged pecorino and freshly ground black pepper.

Order Lidia Bastianich’s “Felidia, Recipes from My Flagship Restaurant”