Pumpkin Ravioli with Sage Butter

Since we received Sage, but no pumpkin in the last Bryson's organic delivery, we had to go out of our house and actually BUY pumpkin. We took a shortcut and bought pureed pumpkin, keeping sure not to purchase any spiced pumpkin meant for pie filling at halloween which also happens to be around the corner.

The ravioli were made with Gow Gee (wonton) wrappers that we had leftover from a night of dumplings a couple of weeks earlier. They keep forever in their sealed packet. They are essentially the same as the pasta that you would create for ravioli. Flour and water. The building blocks of all dumplings and pastas.

Since we didn't keep track of our own recipe for this, I found a similar recipe on the internets that takes it up a notch by adding flavour through carmelization. This is really simple and elegant.

Make as many as you want. These freeze and thaw VERY well for a quick meal.

for the ravioli

1 cup pumpkin or squash puree
1 cup ricotta cheese (use fresh if you've got it, otherwise drain the storebought cheese in cheesecloth for an hour)
1 Tbsp butter
2 tsp basalmic vinegar
1 Tbsp dark molasses
1 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
.25 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
sea salt
freshly ground pepper
wonton wrappers

for the sage sauce

4 Tbsp butter
6 diced sage leaves
4 large whole sage leaves, for garnish

method

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spread squash puree on a baking sheet and place in oven to dry, 10-15 minutes. You want your puree to be at a mashed-potato consistency. Scrape into a large mixing bowl.

Heat 1 Tbsp butter in a small sautee pan over medium heat until it begins to brown. Remove from heat, swirl in basalmic vinegar and molasses. Add to the pumpkin along with the ricotta, Parmesan, and nutmeg. Season to taste with the salt and pepper, chill for a couple of hours. At this point the filling can be refrigerated for 1-2 days.

Lay out your wonton wrappers--I use wonton wrappers because I don't make pasta. If you make pasta, knock yourself out. Put a small mound (abut half a Tbsp.) of the chilled pumpkin filling in the center of a wonton. Using a small pastry brush, moisten all of the edges with a little cold water. Fold the wonton in half, firmly pressing the seam, forming either a triangle or a rectangle. Repeat until you run out of wrappers or filling. You can freeze these uncooked raviolis, in a single layer, for 1 month. Cook the raviolis in gently boiling water for 2 minutes.

While the raviolis are cooking, melt the remaining butter with the sage and a pinch of salt until it foams and begins to brown. Remove whole sage leaves and drain on a paper towel (they will be a crispy, pretty garnish). Continue to swirl the butter sauce until it turns a rich chestnut brown.

Now, you can either spoon the sacue over your raviolis in their serving bowls, or you can toss the ravioli in the butter before serving. Either way, serve with grated Parmesan cheese, a couple of fried sage leaves and a nice green salad. Enjoy!