Whenever we go to Olive Garden my husband can’t help but order their Stuffed Chicken Marsala. He tries. He says he’s not going to do it – because he always wipes the plate clean – and every time Stuffed Chicken Marsala ends up being brought to our table and placed in front of him.

Not being a mushroom lover, I’ve actually never even tried it!

But when I got the idea for Marsala ravioli – honestly, I can’t even remember where the inspiration hit – I decided to give it a go.

Making the ravioli was another one of those, never-thought-I’d-do-that moments. I’m talking about putting meat in my food processor. Pureed meat has always given me the heebie jeebies (but I do like Liverwurst and pate… I’m odd). It’s one of the main reasons I decided to introduce my babies to food using the baby led weaning method. The filling for the ravioli isn’t pureed to a smooth consistency though, it just needs to be insanely finely minced so it can fit inside the pasta.

Like all of my ravioli recipes, I used wonton wrappers.

I’d assembled enough ravioli to freeze for two more meals! Good thing too because meal number one involved a sauce that wasn’t too great and was horribly photographed. Meal number two had a fantastically delcious sauce that this mushroom lover sopped up but photographs were still pretty bland. Meal number three was perfect and photographed decently – I didn’t forget the fresh parsley for garnishing my bowl of pasta this time!

The ravioli recipe comes from Tyler Florence and the sauce recipe comes from Giada De Laurentiis.

Chicken Marsala Ravioli

Ingredients:

• 4 tbsp olive oil, divided use
• 3/4 lb chicken breast, cubed
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/4 C Marsala wine
• 4 slices prosciutto, chopped
• 4 bay leaves
• fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tbsp bread crumbs
• 2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese, divided use
• 1 egg
• 1/4 C heavy cream
• 2 packages wonton wrappers

Steps:

1. Heat olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Saute chicken until golden on both sides and fully cooked. Add the shallot and garlic and cook a minute.
2. Deglaze the pan with the wine, bring to a quick bubble and add the prosciutto, bay leaves, and parsley. Allow Marsala to reduce a little and thicken. Stir in the bread crumbs, 1 tbsp Parmesan, and 1 tbsp olive oil.
3. Remove the bay leaves and transfer filling mixture to a food processor. Add the egg, cream, and the remaining Parmesan and olive oil. Pulse until the filling comes together. Season to taste with S+P. Chill.
4. Assemble ravioli: place a small spoonful of the filling in the center of a wonton wrapper. Wet the edges and fold into a triangle.
5. Cook ravioli in boiling salted water 2 minutes, until they float and the wonton is translucent.

*This recipe is adapted from Tyler Florence at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/chicken-marsala-ravioli-filling-recipe.html*

Marsala Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp olive oil, divided use
• 8 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 1/2 tsp flour
• 1/3 C Marsala wine
• 1 1/4 C chicken broth

Steps:

1. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the mushrooms for 5 minutes, stirring often. Add the shallot, season with salt, and cook 2 more minutes.
2. Reduce the heat to medium and whisk in the flour and remaining oil to form a paste. Stir in the wine until smooth. Add the broth and simmer 5-10 minutes.

*This recipe is adapted from Happy Cooking by Giada De Laurentiis*