Ravioli or “Derelye” with soft cheese and smoked bacon

 

This again is a traditional pasta dish, made with a special soft cheese, similar to cottage cheese or quark.  In Australia this type of cheese is called farm cheese.  The name of the dish in Hungarian is ‘Turos derelye’.  Usually follows a rich meaty soup as the second course.  Yesterday we had Gulyas Soup and we followed it with this ravioli.

Easy to make, especially when using machines like I do.

Ravioli with soft cheese and smoked bacon

Ingredients:

320 g soft cheese

1 egg

salt to taste

pasta dough from 500g flour (recipe here)

5-6 slices of smoked fat bacon

fresh sour cream

This amount makes about 45 raviolis.

Directions:

Make the filling by combining 1 egg, salt and the cheese.

  

After resting the pasta dough in the fridge, roll it out using a Marcato-type machine.

I went to size 6 thickness with mine, and the width at the end was about 10cm (4inches).

  

 

 

Lay out a sheet of pasta.  Take the cheese and using a teaspoon, place little mounds, the size of a small walnut evenly (about 10cm distance) on the pasta sheet.
Now take another sheet - try to match one with similar length and width.  Starting at one end slowly lower the cover sheet while pressing it down after each mound of cheese.

 

Then press around the fillings to seal the pasta around them.  Don't worry much about the outside edge.  Cut that nicely with a pasta cutter leaving about 2-3 cm (half inch) edge around the filling

 

Then cut between the fillings to make separate squares.

 

Place the ravioli pieces on a cloth while you prepare the next step.

At this point you can decide if you want to freeze some of your ravioli.  In that case I suggest you dry them on the cloth for about an hour on each side (turn them over) then pack them with paper in between and without touching each other.) They are almost as good as the fresh ones.  When cooking, no need to thaw them, just drop them straight into boiling water.  Cooking time is about 5-6 minutes. 

 

For the pasta, in a large pot, put water with a bit of salt onto the stove.

 

Chop up the bacon into small cubes.

 

Fry in a pan on moderate heat until crisp and browned.

 

 

Scoop out the crispy bacon and put aside.  Reserve 2 tbsp of the bacon fat and put in the bowl which you want to drain your pasta into.

Now it's time to cook your pasta, if the water is boiling.
For this many pasta you you need to cook them in batches.  I did 17 pieces in one batch and luckily only broke one ravioli.  So considering the size of your pot; let's say don't put more than 15 pieces in a 5 litre pot of water.

 

 Cook the pasta for about 4-5 minutes.  You can check by taking out one pasta square with a wooden spoon, cutting off a piece around the edge and see what colour it is.  If it's whitish in the middle, it needs more cooking.  If even colour all through the cut surface, then it's done.

Drain and put the ravioli onto the bacon fat, carefully turning them in.  Then pour over some sour cream and top with the crisp bacon.

At the table serve with extra sour cream and bacon crisp (if you have any more).