Sunday, August 12, 2012

Weekend Cooking - Ravioli in the Slow-Cooker


I used this recipe found here.

INGREDIENTS
2 bags frozen ravioli
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
6 oz can tomato paste
1 small onion, diced (optional)
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil 1 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. sugar salt and pepper to taste
1 cup Mozzarella, shredded

I mixed things up a bit: I used fresh ravioli and only one package. We still have leftovers, so 1 package was plenty. It was the largest size, so might be about the same as two frozen packages. I included the onions, which after 3 hours were still crunchy, and I also threw in some mushrooms. I had considered peppers but I was trying to get rid of the mushrooms and used a lot. The guy isn't big on spices so I played around with the instructions there, too.

INSTRUCTIONS
Pour the frozen ravioli into the slow cooker.
Stir the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, onion, garlic and seasonings together in a bowl. Pour over the ravioli and stir to coat all the ravioli with sauce.
Cook on high for 3 hours or low for 5 hours.
About 20 minutes before you're ready to eat, sprinkle the ravioli with Mozzarella.

More changes: I put the sauce and veggies in for two hours. And the few spices. Then for the last hour I put the ravioli in because I didn't want it to be too mushy. And, really, the cheese doesn't have to be Mozzarella. I used some Tex-Mex stuff we had in the fridge.

Overall Thoughts: I really liked it! I thought it turned out really good. The guy had a complaint, though: No meat. The second day I barbecued pork chops, because we had some, and served the ravioli as the side-dish. But, if I make it again I will probably have to either include meat in it or serve it as a side-dish. There is a lot of Ravioli for just a side-dish, though.
This post also counts for Trish's Pin It and Do It Challenge.

12 comments:

  1. I wonder why the onion never softened up. I guess it needs more than 3 hours in the slow cooker. Hummm.

    Glad it all worked out otherwise and was good. Maybe you could grill the guy a burger to go with his ravioli and you could eat vegetarian for the night???

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  2. I've never made ravioli, and I (unfortunately) don't have a slow cooker. I shall have to remedy both of those things, don't you think? Thanks for sharing your recipe!

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  3. I actually even have all of these ingredients! Well, except maybe the ravioli. I've never tried to cook pasta in the slow cooker--did you find that the pasta softened or got mushy? SO thrilled that the liner worked out for you! Makes cleaning up so much easier, huh? Just rinse the smell out and move on!

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  4. I wonder about the onions too. I've never made ravioli but I think I'll give it a try.

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  5. Interesting! I would be worried about the ravioli getting too soft in the slow cooker. Did the recipe specify what kind of ravioli to get? Love the idea of the liner! I'm totally going to have to try them out.

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  6. I would make this but my husband hates pasta. Makes me question why I married him some days!! LOL! :D

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  7. Men think they have to have meat with every meal - my husband would say the same thing. It looks delicious to me.

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  8. Haven't had ravioli in ages -- must try this sometime. :) I'm wondering about the crunchy onions too (maybe they need to be parboiled/microwaved a little beforehand?).

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  9. I'd never think to cook ravioli in the slow cooker, looks delicious! I like that liner, pretty cool, nice easy cleanup.

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  10. This sounds perfect for us. I would probably add vegetables such as broccoli. Thanks for sharing.

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  11. I'll look for those bags for the crock pot and send, ok?

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  12. This is a great share of a crockpot meal. Do I ever love the crockpot, especially this time of the year. My wife and I make lasagna, in the crockpot and it taste just like it came out of the oven.

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