Four Cheese Ravioli with Shrimp & Spinach in Garlic Tomato Sauce

Although I didn’t know what it was called at the time, when I got into cooking in the late 1990s and early 2000s, I mostly followed the Sandra Lee cooking method known as “Semi-Homemade.”  Sandra defined her technique as using 70 percent packed and 30 percent fresh products when preparing a recipe.  It was, and still is, a great cooking method for people who don’t mind taking shortcuts and/or don’t have the time to use more standard, made from scratch techniques (i.e. like Julia Child).  Many purist, food pros (i.e. like Anthony Bourdain) have and continue to criticize the semi-homemade (or 70/30) method but millions of everyday home cooks embrace it!

Personally, I no longer use the 70/30 technique as much as I used to.  However, given the choice of making four cheese ravioli fresh from scratch as opposed to picking up a package of fresh, refrigerated ravioli from the grocery store, I’ll pick the store product almost any day.

I love this recipe … it tastes delicious, it is easy & quick to make, and even the cleanup is minimal.  Unfortunately, like so many great, delicious meals, it has some drawbacks to consider!  In a single 1 1/2 cup serving, there’s lots of fats, lots of cholesterol and the sodium content is extremely high.  On the positive side, there’s moderate kcals, lots of potassium, lots of fiber, a high protein count, and the Vitamin A level is really high.  My suggestion would be to enjoy this recipe but limit that enjoyment to only once every month or so!