Ravioli Dolci Recipes

Steps:

• Making the Filling-- In a saucepan combine-- grapes, pear, apples, zests, and squash.
• Bring to a boil and cover slightly.
• Cook until fruit is breaking down and very soft, adding more water if necessary.
• Press the fruit thru a foley with a coarse blade.
• Place back into pot and cook another 20 minutes.
• Stir, and keep checking as not to scorch.
• Its ready when it coats a wooden spoon.
• Cool.
• This takes a fair amount of time to do on low heat.
• Add the chestnuts, raisins, and pine nuts, and brandy.
• Stir well Otherwards what you made was sort of a mincemeat.
• Pastry-- Combine all dry ingredients and zest.
• Add butter chilled and in cubes.
• Sprinkle with beaten egg, and water combined.
• Combine until you have a pastry dough just forming into a ball.
• This could all be done in a processor if desired.
• Turn onto to board, gather into a loose ball.
• Wrap in saran and chill.
• Roll out the dough on a floured board about 1/8 inch thick.
• or less Use a round 3 inch cutter cut out rounds.
• Fill each with a teaspoon of filling.
• Brush a little beaten egg around inner edges and fold over.
• Crimp, and seal with a fork.
• Re roll dough and continue until all scrapes are used.
• Preheat oven 350 degrees.
• Place on greased cookie sheets.
• Bake 18 minutes until golden.
• Cool on rack.
• Dust with confectioners sugar.

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg, then stir in the vanilla and almond extracts and lemon zest. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until a smooth dough forms. Divide dough into halves. Roll each portion out between two sheets of waxed paper into a 12 inch square. Refrigerate for at least one hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
• Remove one piece of the dough from the refrigerator, remove the top layer of waxed paper, and cut into 1 1/2 inch squares. Place about 1/4 teaspoon of the cherry preserves into the center of the first sheet of squares. Set aside. Remove the remaining piece of dough from the refrigerator, remove top layer of waxed paper, and cut into 1 1/2 inch squares also. Poke holes for venting in these squares using a fork. Place each vented square over one of the filled squares, and gently seal the edges by pressing with the tines of a fork. Place cookies 2 inches apart onto prepared cookie sheets.
• Bake for 9 to 11 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly browned. Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets before removing to wire racks to cool completely. Dust cookies with confectioners' sugar while they are still warm.