Toss handmade ravioli with flavorful Italian sausage, fresh broccoli rabe and sharp Romano cheese to create this new take on a tasty Italian classic.

Preparation

Pick the leaves from the broccoli rabe and chop coarse with the bottom 2 inches of the stems. Sauté in 1 tablespoon of olive oil with 2 cloves minced garlic until tender, about 3–4 minutes. Set aside to cool.

For the ravioli filling, combine ricotta with lemon zest and half the Romano in a work bowl. Add the cooled sautéed garlic and broccoli rabe leaves and stems and mix until well combined. Cover and set aside in refrigerator.

To make the pasta dough, combine all-purpose flour and 1 teaspoon salt in a work bowl and mix with a fork. Pour onto a clean surface to create a mound, then use your fingers to make a well in the middle. Crack 1 egg into the well and mix with a fork. When egg is broken, start incorporating flour into the center of the well. As dough begins to thicken, add remaining egg and mix until all flour is incorporated. Dough should be firm and slightly tacky.

Knead dough for 2–3 minutes with the palm of your hand to develop the gluten structure. Additional flour can be added if dough is too soft. Form into a ball and wrap with plastic. Let rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

When dough has rested, shape ball into a rectangle and roll with a rolling pin to approximately ¼ inch thick. When pasta is thin enough, run it through a pasta maker twice on the largest setting, then continue to reduce the setting until the pasta is 2–3 millimeters thick. (If you don't have a pasta machine, simply continue rolling dough out with a rolling pin until it reaches desired thickness.)

Lay out pasta sheet and place mounded teaspoon-sized dollops of the ravioli filling across half of the dough about 2 inches apart. Brush water around the dollops of filling, then fold remaining dough back onto itself to cover evenly. Cut into ravioli with a cutter and dust with extra flour, then set aside.

Bring 8 quarts of heavily salted water to boil. Blanch broccoli rabe in boiling water for 45–60 seconds, then remove (reserving blanching liquid) and shock in an ice water bath. When cool, chop broccoli rabe into ½-inch pieces.

Heat sauté pan with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add sausage to the hot pan and break into bite-sized pieces. Cook until well-browned, about 5–7 minutes.

Add remaining garlic and red chili flakes then shake the pan to brown the garlic. Add broccoli rabe and toss; the water clinging to it will help deglaze the pan. Add beef broth and use a spoon to scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

Boil ravioli for 2–3 minutes, or until they float, then strain and immediately transfer into the sausage and broccoli rabe broth mixture. Garnish with remaining Romano and serve.