Recipe: Red Beet Ravioli with Tarragon “Goat Cheese”
This recipe, I confess to not having tried yet. I plan to make it this week. It’s a popular one and Carol Alt – who includes it in her book, The Raw 50 — says it’s a favorite of hers.
- 3 cups raw pine nuts
- 3⁄4 cup cold-pressed, extra virgin olive oil
- 2 whole lemons, zested, then peeled and quartered
- 1 medium shallot
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns
- 1 garlic clove
- 3⁄4 cup purified water
- Salt to taste
- 1 medium or 2 small red beets
- 3⁄4 cup fresh tarragon leaves
- Cracked pepper to taste
Directions
- Soak the pine nuts in enough purified water to cover them for 1 hour. Drain, put the pine nuts in a food processor, and add the olive oil, lemon quarters, shallot, and zest. Process for about 8 minutes until the mixture is well combined and clumps together.
- Pour half of this mixture into a blender and set the rest aside. Add the yeast and 1 teaspoon of the peppercorns to the mixture in the blender and blend on medium speed for 2 minutes, until thick and smooth. Transfer the “goat cheese” to a bowl and refrigerate, uncovered, for 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, place the reserved pine nut mixture in the blender. Add the remaining teaspoon of peppercorns, the garlic, and the water, and blend on high speed for 1 minute, until smooth but quite liquid. Add the salt, and set the sauce aside.
- Roughly chop the tarragon and fold 1/2 cup of the leaves into the cheese once the cheese has completely chilled. Add salt to taste.
- Peel the beets and slice paper-thin. Lay out half of the slices on a clean surface. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of the cheese onto each slice, then top each with a second beet slice. Arrange on a baking sheet in a single layer, sprinkle with salt, then store in the refrigerator.
To serve, pour the sauce onto a deep serving platter and arrange the ravioli on top. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup of tarragon leaves, and salt and cracked pepper.
