Mock Ravioli

This is the no-rolling-pin ravioli your Italian-American grandmother made when she had a full house coming for Sunday supper. The filling layer (spinach, egg, breadcrumbs, sage, parmesan, garlic) is the same you would stuff inside ravioli dough. Instead of folding it into pillows, you layer it between cooked pasta and meat sauce.

Frozen chopped spinach is the right call. Fresh releases too much water and thins the filling. Thaw the frozen block, squeeze it hard in a clean towel, and you end up with a concentrated, dense spinach layer that holds its shape when you slice portions.

Eggs bind everything. Six whole eggs sounds like a lot, but they turn the spinach-breadcrumb mix into something closer to a savory custard that sets around the pasta during baking. Cut clean squares once it rests.

Ground beef simmered with rosemary, oregano, tomato paste, and tomato sauce gives you a thick, meaty blanket for top and bottom layers. The rosemary is the unusual move. It is not classic marinara, but it does wonderful things with the sage in the spinach layer.

Use a short, curly pasta like farfalle (butterfly) or cavatappi. The twists grab the sauce and hold up under the long bake.

Kitchen Tips

• Squeeze the spinach until it is almost dry. Wet spinach is the difference between tidy squares and a soupy casserole.
• Undercook the pasta by a minute or two. It finishes in the oven and you do not want it mushy.
• Let the baked casserole rest 10 minutes before cutting. The egg binder needs the time to set.

Variations

• Swap half the ground beef for Italian sausage for a little fennel kick.
• Use ricotta and mozzarella in place of some of the breadcrumbs for a richer, cheesier filling.
• Go meatless by doubling the spinach layer and skipping the meat, keeping the tomato sauce as is.