The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken by Laura Schenone
I met the author at the Ocean County Library’s cookbook event last fall. She is a James Beard Award winner for her book A Thousand Years Over a Hot Stove; A History of American Women Told Through Food, Recipes and Remembrances. Laura lives in Montclair with her family and was gracious enough to allow me to reprint one of her recipes. This is a family recipe that has been “Americanized.” The true Italian recipe, a version of which is also included in the book, calls for Italian bietole and a yogurt like cheese called prescinseua.
There are many more recipes provided at the end of the book which of course thrills the obsessive cook side of me to no end. It’s such a treat to actually get the recipes for the dishes that Laura lovingly describes throughout this beautifully written book. (Oh, and she provides supplier names and contact information for the hard to find ingredients like Chestnut flour and cookware. Love her.) She also provides pictures to accompany all the step by step instructions for pasta making, rolling, filling, cutting, etc. (What I’d really love is to get Ms. Schenone to come do a pasta making class in my kitchen. I’m sure some of the Jersey Biters would be all over that. I don’t know, sounds like a press opportunity to me and a fun party. 
Yield: serves 10 to 12 as an appetizer or side dish
4 packages frozen chopped spinach
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
8 eggs, beaten
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
salt and pepper, to taste
parsley, to taste
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Brush about 2 tablespoons of olive oil on the bottom and halfway up the sides of a 9 x 11 inch pan or Pyrex-type dish.
3. Begin with three mixing bowls; large, medium, and small. In the largest bowl, defrost the spinach very well. Expedite this with heat or the microwave if you wish. Place the cream cheese (or other fresh cheese) in the medium bowl. Beat the eggs in the small bowl.
4. Cream the cream cheese, using a handheld electric mixer. Add the beaten eggs to it, then the Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt and pepper, and parsley. Mix well, then pour half this mixture in to the spinach. Evenly spread the spinach mixture into the oiled pan. Cover the spinach with the remaining half of the lizuid egg mixture.
5. Bake about 45 to 50 minutes, or until the top is golden.
That sounds like an awesome book. A lot of Lisa’s family is from Hoboken. – John
On a related note, Laura Schenone will be at Woodbury Public Library (Gloucester County) on November 13 to demonstrate her ravioli recipe and talk about how our own family recipes help us discover our roots.
This program is in support of the Key Ingredients: America By Food traveling Smithsonian exhibit touring New Jersey through March 2009. For more information, please visit the NJ Key Ingredients website!
Sounds like creamed spinach, with an Italian twist.
Yum, delicious!
I grew up in NY and lived in NJ for 3 years, now in CA I miss the food of those two states in a big way!
Alas, where I live now, there aren’t very many real Italian restaurants. Your post reminded me of the pleasures of making your own ravioli from scratch, so I may have to do that soon!
BTW, if you’re ever in Bayonne, NJ, there’s a wonderful little Italian restaurant named Angelina’s you won’t want to miss. I doubt it seats more than 10 people. It’s at 928 Broadway.
I haven’t been there for years, but still remember it fondly.