Not my grandmother’s ravioli

One of my favorite things about the holiday trip up to visit my grandparents was knowing that Christmas dinner would include my grandmother’s homemade raviolis. To call it dinner is a bit of misnomer, rather it was an all day food festival that started early and finished late. Sometimes you made it through, other times you wound up in a coma in the corner.

As I gained more confidence in the kitchen I wanted to make my own ravioli, but with most everything I try I had to do something different. To date I’ve made sweet potato and blue cheese ravioli (even though I used wonton wrappers and not pasta sheets) and braised short rib ravioli (which were amazing).

When I came up with the idea for the fall flavors recipe series I thought it might be a good idea to modify my lasagna filling and test it out in ravioli form. Making ravioli is a certainly a time intensive effort, but that effort will surely be rewarded. Plus, if you make a big batch at a time you can freeze them in individual or family sized portions and always have a good meal at the ready.

Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli

Hardware

• Food processor
• Large mixing bowl
• Spatula, measuring cups and spoon
• Basting brush
• Ravioli stamp – 2 inch (optional)
• Drying rack

Software

• 2 cups roasted butternut squash (see link for recipe)
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
• 1/2 cup parmesan reggiano
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• Fresh grated nutmeg to taste
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3-4 pounds fresh pasta sheets

Assemblage

• Combine the butternut squash, ricotta, mascarpone and parmensan cheeses, one egg, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and pepper in a food processor and pulse until thoroughly mixed
• Beat second egg in a bowl with a little water to thin it out
• Spread out a pasta sheet and place 2 teaspoons of the squash mixture spaced about an inch to an inch and a half apart
• Take the basting brush and lightly apply the egg wash to all edges and in between the little piles of the squash mixture
• Lay a second pasta sheet of equal length on top of the first one and gently press to combine around the piles of the squash mixture, be sure to press out as much air as possible to avoid bursting while cooking
• Take the ravioli stamp, fit around the pockets of the squash mixture and press down to seal and cut the pasta sheets (you can also do this with a sharp knife or pizza cutter, then use the tongs of a fork to press the edges closed)

Presentation

These delicate raviolis are served with a brown butter sage sauce that is prepared by melting about 4 tablespoons of sweet cream butter with 6 to 8 fresh sage leaves. Melt the butter over a medium low heat and watch it closely as it starts to foam and turn a light brown.

The brown butter sage sauce will have a toasted, nutty taste to it, but it can also turn on you very fast if you aren’t watching it closely.

If you’d like to see how I made them, click over to the peaches en risotto blog and watch today’s video.

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Tagged as: Butternut squash, Cook, Cream, Home, Nutmeg, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Ricotta, Salt