Try This Beet Ravioli Hack For Valentine's Day

Raise your hand if this scenario has run through your head in the weeks approaching Valentine's Day: you want to cook dinner for your significant other. It doesn't sound like too wild of an idea, right? You imagine yourself at the grocery store lovingly selecting ingredients, even picking up a bouquet of cheery pink flowers on your way out. Dinner will be in the oven long before you need to get dressed, so you decide to whip up a quick chocolate cake, just because. By the time your Valentine arrives with the wine, the table is set, candles lit, fire roaring. You toss your hair and say, "That was easy!"

How far into that did you get before laughing out loud? Realistically, cooking a meal is hard work — and from my experience, culinary creations tend to go awry on high-stakes holidays. That's why I'd like to propose an alternative to the overly ambitious meal: somewhere in between homemade fresh pasta and takeout noodles. Halfway homemade wonton-wrapper ravioli.

With this recipe, you still get the satisfaction of making something from scratch, but the really laborious aspect of the dish is store-bought. Save the time-consuming project of making fresh pasta for another day, and embrace your inner Ina Garten by using wonton wrappers (available in most grocery stores.)

The beet and cheese filling turns the ravioli centers such a bright pink, one can't help but get into the Valentine's spirit! And because the stand-alone pasta is so vibrant, another element to the fast-and-easy aspect of this dish is revealed: no sauce needed! A simple chop of sage or mint, sprinkle of chili flakes, and drizzle of olive oil are all the finishing these ravioli need!