Ravjul (Maltese Ravioli)

Ingredients:

For the Dough:
200g plain flour
pinch of salt
150g fine semolina
2 eggs, beaten

For the Filling:
400g ricotta cheese
2 eggs, beaten
4 tbsp freshly-grated Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp parsley, chopped
salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Method:

Sift the flour into a bowl, add the salt and semolina then stir with a fork to combine. Add the eggs and knead until the mixture comes together as an elastic dough (if it's too stiff to work then add a little cold water). Cover the dough in clingfilm (plastic wrap) and rest for 1 hour in the refrigerator as you prepare the filling.

Beat the ricotta cheese in a bowl until smooth then add the eggs, Parmesan cheese and parsley. Season to taste with salt and black pepper then mix thoroughly to combine.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and divide into four equal pieces. Roll these out on a lightly-floured work surface to form long, thin, strips. Trim the edges square with a knife then damped the sides with water. Place small balls of the filling about 4cm apart and 2m from one side of the pastry. Fold the pastry over the top and press the edges to seal then use a fluted ravioli cutter to trim the pastry some 10cm away from the filling (you can re-roll the scraps to make more ravioli).

When done, set the ravioli aside for a few minutes to rest. Whilst they are resting, bring a large pan of salted water to a boil. Add the ravioli and cook for about 5 minutes, or until soft.

Serve hot with tomato sauce and grated cheese.