For Valentine’s Day dinner, we almost always eat pasta. Usually, we make our Italian favorite, spaghetti and clams. This year we’re experimenting with beet ravioli. It’s a Valentine’s color, delicious and the ultimate interactive fun to have with your kids. Food tastes better when you’ve made it together.

Pasta is a food that makes everybody happy. It’s perfect for kids because kids love to make a mess and they can get really creative in the kitchen.

For Valentine’s Day Beet Ravioli:

basic pasta dough:
3 eggs
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup semolina flour
1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1-2 tablespoons water, if needed
2-3 small beets

for the filling:
11 oz of goat cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 T chopped chives
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste

Directions: Roast beets at 400 for about an hour. Let them cool then quarter the beets and place in a food processor.  Add the eggs and flours.  Pulse until a ball of dough forms.  Add a little more flour, a tablespoon at a time, until a dough forms that is not dry, but still a little bit sticky. Take the dough out, knead a little on the counter and place on a sheet of floured plastic wrap and wrap. Let rest on the counter for at least 20 minutes.  Cut the dough in quarters and roll out for ravioli. Follow pasta machine instructions for rolling out the dough. We started on a number one and gradually went to a number five which was perfect for our ravioli.

Flour the ravioli mold. Lay a sheet of pasta over the mold and scoop a small spoonful in each little groove. Cover the ravioli with the remaining overlapping sheet. Run a little rolling pin over the top and gently press down. This allows for the ravioli to come out clean. Repeat with the other three quarters.

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook half the raviolis (we froze the other half) and cook for about four minutes. Scoop raviolis out of the boiling water and place into a pan of butter and olive oil. Toss gently and serve with a Parmesan (you can also top with hazelnuts, pinenuts, chives, raisins…)

We also made some fettuccine (same recipe without the beets).

This Valentine’s Day, stay home and make pasta.

Also see this pasta inspired post:
Our Daily Pasta