No Corn! No Potato! No Gluten! A toothsome spinach pasta dough makes a delicious leap to ravioli

I've missed you, ravioli.

Since I gave up gluten more than three years ago, I've learned to live without standbys such as bread and fresh pasta. Unlike sweets, it is a little more difficult to find substitutes that I actually like. I've never even tried my hand at gluten-free bread. Most I've sampled are too sweet or too white or too texturally challenged. I'd rather not eat a less-than-adequate gluten-free food at all than consume something that is just a shadow of the original.

I have one more obstacle in my diet that most who are gluten-free don't necessarily experience: chronic inflammation. Because of this, I don't eat corn and I try to avoid other foods rich in omega-6 fats  (specifically arachidonic acid) that are believed to cause inflammation. I also avoid potato because I don't like the way potato starch or potato flour taste in baked goods. I don't really like the flavor and texture of corn flour and corn starch in most home-made foods (the exception is corn tortillas and pupusas). I find that recipes with too much corn starch have a certain unpleasant burn that leaves a film in my mouth (think confectioner's sugar). I also avoid xanthan gum, which is derived from corn.

So there you go. Most recipes I've found for gluten-free pasta dough involved either potato or corn or both. I'm sure they're great, but I can't eat them. So I needed to figure out my own.

I set to work last night creating a flavored pasta that would meet my dietary needs and taste good to me. My first attempt involved a large quantity of brown rice flour and cooked and squeezed-dry kale, a small amount of egg, a large amount of water, a small quantity of tapioca starch, and a small amount of guar gum. The dough was too sticky, though with the addition of tapioca flour, I was able to roll it out into a thin, flat sheet that, when cooked, had a good bite. But when I rolled it out to the size of a sheet, it fell apart as it cooked.

My mistake? Ratios. Too little starch, not enough gum, probably not enough egg yolk. The results were less than satisfactory. Undeterred, I tried to use the sheets uncooked in a baked layered pasta dish. The results were no better - the streaks of green pasta were visible, but there was no body, no resistance, nothing but a faint hint of kale. It was vaguely gummy.

Lesson learned. I needed some advice and turned, predictably, to the internet. Scanning the recipes, I found nothing that was exactly right. Or quite right. Or even close to what I needed. But I found some helpful suggestions. Increase starch. Decrease rice. Increase eggs. Decrease water. Increase guar gum. Don't add salt except to the water. And...add garbanzo flour.

Usually I don't like the taste of garbanzo flour. It tastes like...chickpeas. Which are fine fresh, but when dry, there's an off-flavor I pick up  (and detest) even in minute concentrations. But I had to try it. After last night's miserable failure, I'd try anything. Anything.

So I combined the ingredients - all the dry ingredients and -this time - spinach. Soon I had a fine greenish flour that looked like coarse corn grits. When I added the water, eggs, and oil, it came together - sorta.

I then transferred the half-finished dough to the bowl of a stand mixer. I mixed it on low for several minutes, until it started coming together. I then finished kneading it by hand. After letting it sit for about 20 minutes (I should have left it longer - maybe one or two more hours). I started rolling it out. It rolled out nicely. And, as you can see from the last photo below, you can even see my hand through it when I held it up to the light.

The pasta dough cooked up beautifully. It didn't break - at least not much. The sheet held up well and looked quite pretty as it dried out a bit on a sheet of parchment.

When I went to make ravioli, I found that the slightly brittle dough had a tendency to break if I pressed the dough too hard. So I tenderly folded and pressed each piece. I had filled it with a chicken ragout, a very rich sauce that I thought would make a great filling. Then, heresy of heresies, I drowned it in a tomato sauce that I canned last summer using local tomatoes.

The results? Delicious. I foisted a piece on my mom, who is not gluten-free, and she said that while she was eating it, she forgot that it was gluten-free. And then she asked for more. So it couldn't have been too bad. My poor mother. When I'm making gluten-free adaptations of wheat-based foods, mom is forced to taste every version. If she doesn't like it, I start over. So that means if I need an answer while she is napping, I wake her up. She hates it. And will give her piece to the dog if she doesn't feel like eating. And the dog's feedback tends to be useless. He'll eat anything, after all.

Cake & Commerce's Gluten-Free Pasta Dough

Yield: enough for a large casserole of lasagne or tons of ravioli.

• 3 oz TOTAL spinach or kale, cooked and squeezed dry
• 2 C Brown Rice Flour
• 1/2 C Tapioca Starch
• 1/4 C Garbanzo bean flour
• 3 T Guar Gum
• 2 T Melted butter  OR olive oil(for added flavor, melt the butter or gently heat the oil with fresh thyme & black pepper & strain out)
• 3 Whole eggs + 1 egg yolk
• 3 T water, cold

Procedure:

Combine all the dry ingredients  in a food processor. Process until flours look green and sandy about 2 minutes. Add in wet ingredients and process until dough starts coming together.

Place dough in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle. On low speed, mix the dough until it starts to come together. Turn off mixer and finish kneading with hands. Allow dough to sit for an hour, wrapped in plastic to avoid drying out, in the refrigerator. At this point the dough can sit overnight or be used right away.

When you are ready to roll it out, pull off a small piece (keep the rest of the dough covered) and work it with a rolling pin on a well- (tapioca-) floured surface. It should roll out quite thin - if you put your hand under it, you can see the outline of your hand if you hold it up to a light source. You can also roll it out in a pasta maker if you prefer. If you decide to roll out a lot of dough, you can do so all at once. Just place rolled out pasta sheet on parchment paper and cover with another sheet of parchment to prevent drying out. You do not need to dry out this pasta before using it.

At this point the pasta can be used in any application you like. Ravioli, pasta, tortellini -  it is a little more fragile than wheat flour pasta, but it will hold up nicely to filling and cooking. If you are making lasagna, cook for about 2 minutes in boiling salted water and remove from the water with a slotted spoon, a fine mesh strainer, or any handy device you may have. If you are going to let it sit after you cook it, oil it with a little olive oil and place on plastic wrap or parchment, covered, until you are ready to use it.

The dough can be kept overnight. Rolled out, uncooked sheets can hold overnight, but it is better to use them right away. Keep the dough in a plastic bag to keep from drying out.

Enjoy!

Comments

[Lisa]

The ravioli dough recipe looks great, can't wait to try it. Have you ever made wheat-free or gluten-free phyllo dough?

[Cake and Commerce]

You know, I haven't done it yet. I don't know if I will - mainly the concern is the sheeting. The gluten is really important to its integrity. I guess I could try it with buckwheat and a lot of gum...hmmm...worth exploring!

[Hillary]

That looks great. How did you make such perfect ravioli shapes? :)

[danielle]

WOW! This looks and sounds amazing! I applaud your efforts. And agree- when you take out the gluten- EVERYTHING else is substituted with corn. For those (like me) who have corn allergies also- it makes food NO fUN!

I cannot wait to try this! It sounds like it takes some time- but I am going to have to find it!

[Cake and Commerce]

I have a magical ravioli maker...

Nah, I just had a LOT of excess dough so I could, with impunity, fold them into perfect squares.

[Cake and Commerce]

You'll have to let me know how it works out for you when you make it, Danielle.

[the wicked noodle]

Well, I'M not gluten-free, but I'd eat this in a heartbeat! Looks delicious!

[Becks]

Wow! I've been LOOKING for a GF corn-free potato-free pasta recipe. I've been despairing, actually. Thanks so much for the recipe!

[Cake and Commerce]

You'll have to tell me how it comes out! I'm glad you found the recipe here.

[sea]

Very cool! I made a gluten-free pasta as well, using bean flour, cornstarch and tapioca- but I bet arrowroot could be subbed for the corn. Anyway, it turned out well. I may just have to use it for ravioli as well- what a good idea.