…Louis, meet me at the fair, don’t tell me the lights are shining any place but there. Right now I’m thankful that this is a blog and you can’t hear me singing. You should be thankful too. Let’s just say I’m no Judy Garland. So as you guessed, tonight’s state cuisine is from Missouri – St. Louis, Missouri to be exact. The “Gateway to the West” and the home of St. Louis Toasted Ravioli. Now I don’t know about you, but the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of St. Louis is ribs, not ravioli. But according to Midwest Living magazine and my good friend and St. Louis resident, toasted ravioli is indeed the specialty of the city. The recipe we chose for tonight is adapted from Midwest Living, which got the recipe from Charlie Gitto’s restaurant in St. Louis. Incidentally, this is the same restaurant that Mr. N and I met my friend for dinner last week. We didn’t order the toasted ravioli, but the pasta dishes we did order were delicious! 

So tonight it was just mom, dad and Miss A for our cooking adventure. Mr. N spent the evening with his Nana, Great Aunt and Great Grandma (happily eating ice cream!). This meant that Miss A was the “boss of the kitchen” and she didn’t need any help. At least that was her perspective on the matter. Miss A began by cracking the eggs and mixing them with the milk. She then dipped each ravioli in the batter and then into the bread crumbs. As Miss A was coating the ravioli with the bread crumbs, she proudly proclaimed that she was making sand castles. She then realized how messy she was, paused momentarily unsure of the feeling, and then dug right back in! She certainly owned the kitchen tonight.

Each coated ravioli was placed on a greased, foil-lined baking sheet and then placed in the oven for 25 minutes. Authentic St. Louis toasted ravioli is fried, not baked, but we thought we’d try a healthier version for our week night meal. (That and “the boss” wanted to bake tonight.)

The original recipe also includes a homemade tomato sauce, but again for the sake of time and convenience we used a store-bought marinara and heated it over the stove. The last piece of prep tonight was grating the fresh parmesan. Miss A again jumped to the chance – this meal really was all her. Way to go Miss A!

Miss A’s toasted ravioli was then served and enjoyed by all. Dad gave the dish 3 spoons. He said it was really good – junk food – but really good. As for me, I gave it 2 spoons. I enjoyed it and would eat it again, but still prefer non-toasted ravioli. And as for our chef, she gave it 4 spoons saying it’s really, really good. (Note: She still only ate one ravioli.) As for Mr. N we’re saving him some. Hopefully he’ll like it more than he does the Cardinals. Upon leaving Missouri, he exclaimed with exasperation, “Finally, I won’t have to see any more of that stupid Cardinals stuff!” His Cub-fan father and grandfather were just a little proud. (Okay, they were overcome with pride.) 😉

As an added bonus for the evening, and in the spirit of Missouri, mom and dad enjoyed a bottle of Norton red wine from Augusta Winery in Augusta, Missouri. The Norton grape is locally grown in Missouri, which prior to prohibition was the largest wine making region in the United States. This particular bottle, a 2008 vintage, was delightful.

Print this recipe: Toasted Ravioli