Ravioli Lasagna

I love Italian food and have a couple of delicious recipes for lasagna and baked ziti, but they are both fairly involved, so I rarely take the time to make them. After reading Candace's post with her modifications for Food & Wine's Vegetable and Ravioli Lasagna, I knew I had to give it a try. This one's a winner and couldn't be any easier! I've fixed it so many times, I can do it in my sleep. Seriously, I'm pretty sure I've made it at least a half dozen times since I first read about it on Beth Fish Reads Weekend Cooking. My family, friends and neighbors all thank you, Candace!

Ravioli Lasagna

(Photo Credit: Food & Wine)

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

4 mild Italian pork sausages (6 ounces), casing removed

1 (24-ounce) jar marinara sauce, or vegetable pasta sauce

1/2 cup water

2 (14-ounce) packages fresh cheese ravioli

1 (14-ounce) package fresh spinach-and-cheese ravioli

12 ounces (3 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese

3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 375F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Lightly oil a 9-by-13-inch baking pan (3-quart baking dish).

In a large flying pan, cook sausage over moderately high heat, stirring and breaking up the lumps with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain the accumulated fat and add the marinara sauce and the water, simmering for 5 minutes.

Add all the ravioli to the boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain the ravioli and return them to the pot. Add the sausage marinara mixture and toss gently to coat the ravioli.

Spoon one-third of the ravioli and sauce into the baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 cup of the mozzarella and 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan. Repeat two more times (to make three layers in total).

Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, until bubbling. Remove the foil and bake 25 minutes until browned and bubbling. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

My Notes:

Any type of ravioli works well for this recipe. I even found some with Italian sausage, which saved me a step and ingredients. I have used cheese tortellini instead of one of the packages of ravioli, as well. If the leftovers are a little dry, just heat some marinara and spoon over each serving.

Adapted from Food & Wine (found on Beth Fish Reads)

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Like Family

Like Family by Paolo Giordano
Fiction
2015 Pamela Dorman Books (Viking)
Translated by Anne Milano Appel
Finished on January 2, 2016
Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

Publisher’s Blurb:

From the author of the international bestseller The Solitude of Prime Numbers, an exquisite portrait of marriage, adulthood, and the meaning of family.

Paolo Giordano’s prizewinning debut novel, The Solitude of Prime Numbers, catapulted the young Italian author into the literary spotlight. His new novel features his trademark character-driven narrative and intimate domestic setting that first made him an international sensation.

When a young married couple hires a middle-aged widow during the wife’s, Nora’s, difficult pregnancy, they don’t realize the dominant force she will become in their household. First as their maid and nanny, then their confidante, Signora A. quickly becomes the glue that holds their small family together. For both husband and wife, her benign influence allows them to negotiate the complexities of married life; for their young son, she becomes the shield who protects him from his parents’ expectations and disappointments.

But the family’s delicate fabric comes undone when Signora A. is diagnosed with cancer. Moving seamlessly between the past and present, highlighting the joys of youth and the fleeting nature of time, Giordano has created an exquisite portrait of adulthood and marriage. Elegiac, heartrending, and deeply personal, this is a jewel of a novel—short, intense, and unforgettable.

I received this lovely book for my birthday from my dear friend, Bellezza. It’s a small book, maybe 5x7, with just 146 pages in all. I fell in love with the stunning cover art as soon as I unwrapped my gift. It’s the sort of book one would leave out on a table, just for that beautiful image. And, there’s something about the compact size of small hardcovers, such as this one and a few others that are on my “keeper” shelves. They’re little works of art, each and every one of them.

They are so aesthetically appealing and so much easier to hold than traditional hardcovers. (Note: I find it interesting that all of these, with the exception of Like Family, are nonfiction/memoirs.) But I digress.

I read this slim novel in just a few short hours. I liked Giordano’s spare prose, but I didn't really feel the intended emotional impact of the characters' loss. Our Souls at Night (Kent Haruf), which is also a short novel about aging and loss, had a much more profound impact on me, as did Emily, Alone (Stewart O’Nan).

There really was a Mrs. A. in my life. She stayed in my house, shared life with my family for a few years, then she had to leave us. This book was inspired by her story. It was meant as a homage to her, a way to keep her with me a little longer. I’ve changed most of the names and I’ve changed several details, but not what I felt was the nature of Mrs. A. And, certainly, not what was my feeling toward her. ~ Paolo Giordano

Final Thoughts:

Like Family is a quiet narrative, easily read in a single day. Many readers have loved this novel, which in many ways reads like a memoir. Have you read it or Giordano’s previous work, The Solitude of Prime Numbers?