I had these plum tomatoes that had to be used so I made a tomato soup. I made it chunky but if you like smooth you can blend, strain and add a little cream if you like. After I made it I thought what can I do to make it more interesting? I thought I’d make grilled cheese ravioli so I did. The soup is far more interesting now. My idea of serving size will differ from your idea of serving size. To me this makes 4 bigger servings or 6 smaller servings.

Ingredients for around 6 servings

2 Tabllespoons olive oil

1 onion – chopped – like pea sized

1 carrot – remove skin, trim end, chop into small cubes like pea sized

3 garlic cloves – ground to paste or microplane

1 1/2 plum tomatoes (they must be super ripe like one day from throw away) – remove the stem button and dice small

14 oz Italian crushed tomatoes

2 cups water

1 Tablespoon vegetable soup base (this adds flavor and also reduces the salt added)

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper (or to taste)

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)

1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

1 egg

2 egg yolks + one of the egg whites to seal ravioli

1 1/2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

pinch sea salt

10 slices American cheese

2 oz butter to fry with

2 Tablespoons corn meal or semolina to rest ravioli on

few squirts of olive oil so ravioli don’t stick

optional a few fresh basil leaves

1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons flour + extra flour for rolling *****amount of flour may differ slightly because different brands are ground different****It’s possible that you might need 2 Tablespoons less*****Start with 1/2 cup flour and slowly add till dough isn’t too sticky

Directions

In a big mixing bowl add the egg and yolks and mix well. Then add the oil and salt and mix well. Add 1/2 a cup of flour and mix well. You might need up to two tablespoons more flour. Slowly add flour until the dough is smooth and not too sticky. Knead it into a ball pat some flour all over it and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate about an hour.

Make soup.

In a sauce pot on medium high heat add the olive oil. When the olive oil is hot add the onions and carrot. Stir Occasionally and cover. This takes around five minutes. Add the garlic, plum tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, water, soup base, black pepper, thyme, salt, basil and white pepper. Bring to boil and reduce to simmer. Let it simmer about 20 minutes.

Roll out ravioli dough.

Cut out a circle and brush it with egg white.

Put about 1/2 a slice of cheese in the lower middle of ravioli. Fold and seal and place on semolina (or corn meal) lined tray.

If you have a dog it might appear by your feet now hoping that you will drop cheese.

Repeat till done. ( made 19 ravioli but I had to roll up scraps and re-rolll the dough..The second dough I couldn’t get as thin or as tender but it still was good)

Boil for one minute.

Fry in butter on both sides for about a minute or until lightly brown and serve with soup.

I guess you might have enough ravioli to give more than two ravioli a person but I thought two was the right size serving. You will have more ravioli than soup if you give two but don’t worry. They are so delicious that the ravioli will go fast. They taste like a grilled cheese sandwich but they are ravioli.

Add some fresh basil if you have any.

My husband said that he could eat all the grilled cheese raviolis. I hate to brag but they really are FORKING GREAT!