I partnered with Egg Farmers of Ontario to create this recipe. I received monetary compensation for this post, but all opinions expressed are my own.
Here are some things Italians and Italian food are famous for: love, romance, and pasta. This Valentine’s Day get your heart “beeting” and impress your loved ones with these adorable Italian-inspired beetroot pink heart-shaped ravioli. The ravioli are stuffed with goat cheese and served in a brown butter sauce with pine nuts and thyme.
On Valentine’s Day most of us think of red roses and heart-shaped chocolate boxes. I prefer to touch the hearts of my loved ones with homemade heart-shaped ravioli that are coloured pink with beetroot powder. The pasta dough is made primarily with eggs and flour and the goat cheese filling contains an egg for binding. When I Get Cracking and include eggs in recipes, I know I’m keeping my family healthy and spreading even more love by supporting local egg farmers.
Did you know
- eggs are healthy containing 14 essential vitamins and nutrients for only 70 calories?
- hens are well cared for by Ontario egg farmers?
- eggs are graded for quality, freshness and cleanliness?
- eggs sold in grocery stores in Canada must meet Grade A standards for quality and freshness?
- egg cartons stamped “Canada Grade A” are eggs from Ontario or a neighbouring province?
These are just a few good reasons to use eggs and make this homemade pasta or other eggs-cellent recipes! Always be sure and purchase Canadian eggs that are produced by local egg farmers. By doing this you will be showing the farmers love, gratitude and appreciation for their hard work. Learn more about Egg Farmers of Ontario.
Animal Care Program
Canadian egg farmers work hard to provide the best care possible for their hens. In fact Canada has the highest quality standards to ensure the well-being of hens. Ontario egg farmers are also bound to follow strict standards and protocols for animal care. This ensures the hens are healthy, the eggs produced are safe and of the highest quality at a fair price. Learn more about the Animal Care Program.
Making homemade pasta dough in my Italian family is a regular occurrence. Since it is Valentine’s Day, I thought I’d go all out and have fun by making pink pasta in the shape of hearts! The pasta gets its deep pink colour from the addition of natural beetroot powder which colours it naturally and leaves no taste. The heart-shaped ravioli are stuffed with an easy-to-make savoury goat cheese filling that’s so tasty!
Ingredients needed to make heart-shaped ravioli and brown butter sauce
- Goat cheese, cream cheese & Parmesan cheese
- Garlic
- Thyme
- Beetroot powder
- Eggs
- 00 flour (doppio zero) or all-purpose flour
- Salt & Pepper
- Butter
- Pine nuts
What special equipment or ingredients are needed?
- A hand-cranked pasta rolling machine or an attachment roller to a mixer, if you don’t have either of these, use your muscle and roll out the pasta with a rolling pin
- Beetroot Powder, find it in health food stores, online, Costco, Whole Foods or Loblaws. It’s a bright pink-red product made from dried, ground beets and is used to naturally colour the pasta
- A heart shaped cookie cutter in 2 ½” size, and if desired, a smaller heart shaped cookie cutter in 1” size
- 00 Flour (doppio zero) is a finely ground imported Italian flour that’s ideal to use for pasta making, if you can’t find it, use all purpose flour and you’ll still get good results
How to make the goat cheese filling
Combine the cheeses, garlic, thyme, salt and egg until smooth. This can be done early in the day or a day ahead, covered and refrigerated until needed. Once this is done, follow the steps below for making, rolling, shaping and fillling the heart-shaped ravioli.
How to make the ravioli dough
- Whisk beetroot powder with water to make a paste, mound flour and salt on a work surface, create a deep well in the centre, add beetroot paste and eggs into the well
- Gently whisk eggs and beetroot paste together until combined
- Gradually whisk some flour into egg mixture, then add more flour with your hands, work the ingredients until they become crumbly
- Work crumbly ingredients until incorporated, knead 5 – 7 minutes until smooth and elastic, cover in plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes to 1 hour
How to roll the ravioli dough
- Prepare a pasta rolling machine, lightly flour a large work surface, cut the dough into 6 pieces, cover them in plastic wrap to prevent drying, flatten one piece at a time and feed it through widest holes of roller three times
- Set pasta roller to next lower setting and feed strip through one time
- Set pasta roller to next lower setting and feed strip through one time, then set the roller to the next lower setting each time and continue this process with remaining pieces of dough
- Dough will become thin, long sheets, trim sheets as necessary, keep sheets covered with a tea towel until needed
How to shape and fill heart-shaped ravioli dough
- Lay two sheets of dough at a time on a floured work surface, lightly score one sheet with a heart cutter across the whole strip about 1” apart, place a mounded teaspoon of filling on each
- Whisk egg white with water and lightly brush it around the inside of each heart
- Place second pasta sheet over top, place the cutter around the filling, press and cut through two layers of pasta, gently pull the heart away
- Press and pinch each heart lightly around the edges to ensure they are sealed well and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet, cover with a tea towel to prevent drying, re-roll scraps
You should get about 48 ravioli with a 2 ½” cutter. If you prefer, make only 36 ravioli with the 2 ½” cutter and use a small 1” cutter to make small ravioli with the remaining dough. The mini ravioli make a nice accent to the plated dish. When making mini ravioli just use a dollop of goat cheese filling.
How to cook and serve heart-shaped ravioli
Cook ravioli in a large pot of salted boiling water for 3 – 4 minutes. Meanwhile, make the brown butter sauce by cooking the butter in a large skillet for a few minutes until it becomes toasty. With a slotted spoon transfer cooked ravioli to the skillet and toss lightly in the brown butter sauce to combine. Arrange ravioli evenly onto 4 plates and drizzle the remaining brown butter sauce overtop. Garnish with thyme sprigs and toasted pine nuts.
Can heart-shaped ravioli be made in advance?
Yes they can be made ahead. Form the ravioli and leave them on the baking sheet covered with a tea towel at room temperature for up to 3 – 4 hours. If not using the ravioli within that time, freeze them on the baking sheets then transfer frozen ravioli to a zipper bag. They freeze well for up to 3 months. You can cook the ravioli right from frozen – just add about 1 minute to the cooking time. For best results cook the ravioli and the brown butter sauce just before needed.
Bring some Italian romance into your life and try this eggs-cellent pink heart-shaped ravioli recipe! Your loved ones will adore you for it and you’ll be supporting local egg farmers.
Heart-Shaped Ravioli
Get Cracking and support local egg farmers by making homemade ravioli pasta with eggs. The dough is dyed with beetroot powder, cut in the shape of a heart and stuffed with a goat cheese filling. Served in a brown butter sauce with pine nuts and thyme, these heart-shaped ravioli make a perfect Valentine’s Day dinner!
Ingredients
Goat cheese filling
- 300 g goat cheese crumbled (1 ½ cups)
- 100 g cream cheese (½ cup)
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese freshly grated
- 1 garlic clove crushed
- 1 tablespoon thyme finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 large egg
Ravioli dough
- 2 teaspoons beetroot powder whisked with 3 tablespoons water
- 2 ½ cups 00 flour (doppio zero flour) or all purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1 large egg yolk reserve egg white for shaping ravioli
- 1 tablespoon water if needed
Brown butter sauce and garnishes
- ½ cup butter
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 1 tablespoon thyme springs finely chopped, plus more sprigs for garnish
- 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts for garnish
Instructions
Make the goat cheese filling
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In a medium bowl combine goat cheese, cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, garlic, thyme, salt and egg. Blend with a spatula until incorporated and smooth. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
Make the ravioli dough
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In a small bowl whisk the beetroot powder and water to create a smooth paste.
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On a work surface, place flour and salt in a mound and create a deep well in the centre. Add beetroot paste, eggs and egg yolk into the centre of the well. Reserve egg white for shaping ravioli.
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With a fork whisk together the eggs and beetroot paste. Once combined, gradually start whisking some flour into the egg mixture. Use a bench scraper to pull back any eggs or flour that spill out. With hands fold the remaining flour into the eggs until the mixture becomes crumbly.
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Work the dough until it is incorporated. Knead the dough with the palms of hands for 5 – 7 minutes until it becomes smooth and elastic. If the dough is too dry add 1 tablespoon of water, if too sticky add a little more flour. Overall the dough should be tough, stiff, slightly dry, but not sticky.
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Form the dough into a smooth ball and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. Let the dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes to one hour.
Roll out the ravioli dough
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Prepare a pasta rolling machine on a work surface. Lightly flour a large work surface. Cut the dough into 6 equal pieces.
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Working with one piece at a time (keep the remaining pieces covered in plastic wrap so they won’t dry out), flatten the piece into an oblong shape so it will fit into the widest roller setting. Very lightly dust the dough with flour and feed it through the widest roller three times.
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Set the pasta roller to the next lower setting and feed the length of the dough through one time.
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Repeat process setting the roller to the next lower setting each time, rolling once each time, until you reach the lowest setting. The dough will roll into a thin, long sheet. Trim dough as necessary and place strips on the floured work surface. Keep strips completely covered with a tea towel until needed to prevent drying. Repeat this process with remaining pieces of dough.
Fill and shape the ravioli
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Whisk the reserved egg white with 2 teaspoons of water until frothy. Prepare two large baking sheets by lining with parchment paper and dust lightly with flour.
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Lay out 2 pasta strips, very lightly score one of the strips with a 2 ½” heart cutter across the whole strip, each one 1” apart, for as many as will fit. Place a mounded teaspoon of goat cheese filling in the centre of each scored heart. Lightly brush egg white around the inside edges of each scored heart.
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Top with another pasta sheet. Place the heart cutter around the filling, making sure the filling is in the centre of the heart, press and cut through the two layers of pasta. Gently pull the heart away and press and pinch each heart lightly around the edges to ensure they are sealed well. Cover scraps of pasta with plastic wrap to prevent drying.
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Re-roll any scraps and make more ravioli until all the dough is used. If desired, make some mini ravioli with a 1” heart cutter. For mini ravioli use just a dollop of goat cheese filling.
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Transfer the formed ravioli to the prepared baking sheets and cover lightly with a kitchen towel. Leave covered on the counter for 2 – 4 hours until needed, otherwise freeze the ravioli.
Make the brown butter sauce and cook the ravioli
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Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Keep the water at a simmering boil while you start making the brown butter sauce.
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Add butter to a 12” skillet and melt it over medium heat. Keep over medium heat for 2 - 3 minutes while stirring often until the butter starts to bubble and foam.
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Continue cooking the butter while stirring constantly until the butter turns golden, brown flecks form and there is a nutty aroma, 2 - 3 minutes. Do not over-brown, remove from heat immediately. Season the sauce with salt, pepper and fresh thyme.
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At the same time the sauce is browning, add the ravioli to the pot of boiling water. Bring the water back up to a gentle boil and cook ravioli for 3 - 4 minutes until the ravioli start floating. With a slotted spoon transfer the ravioli to the skillet with the brown butter sauce and toss gently to coat.
Serve and garnish the ravioli
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Arrange the ravioli evenly onto 4 plates and drizzle the remaining brown butter sauce overtop. Garnish with thyme sprigs and toasted pine nuts.
Excellent recipe for Valentine’s ?
Thank you Edith for saying that! These heart-shaped ravioli are fun to make and delicious to eat too. Rita
These look absolutely beautiful –
such a brilliant concept !!
Susan, thank you so much! They’re a lot of fun to make and to eat too. The beetroot powder is a natural way to colour the pasta and leaves not taste. Rita
These look beautiful and what a great concept to use beet root powder, too!
Wow – how creative is this!! Those little beauties look fantastic cooked and sprinkled with the pine nuts! And thanks for giving me a new appreciation for eggs!!