richard The butternut squash is the king of all the squashes, and right now it is squash season. So if you are feeling adventurous, have an afternoon to spare, and want to try something tasty then give this recipe a go.
Preparation time: 45 minutes plus 30 minutes chilling
Cooking time: 50 minutes
Skill level: Medium/Fiddly
Ingredients
For the pasta:
- plain flour – 100g
- 1 egg
- 2 egg yolks
- olive oil – ¼tsp
- salt – large pinch
For the filling:
- butternut squash – 200g (this is roughly a quarter of a squash cut lengthways)
- parmesan – 20g
- nutmeg – pinch
- salt
For the sage butter:
- butter – 1½ tbsp
- 2 sage leaves – finely chopped
- salt
First make the dough by putting all the pasta ingredients into a bowl and mixing into a ball. Turn out on to a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes. Wrap in cling film and put in the the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.
To make the filling place the squash in a baking tray with 1 inch of water and bake in a pre-heated oven (200ºC/ gas mark 6) for 45 minutes.
Let it cool for 5 minutes, scoop out the flesh and mix with the other ingredients.
Now for the fun bit. Place the dough on a floured surface and roll out as thinly as you dare – forming a disc approximately 38 cm (15 inches) in diameter. Then using a 6 cm (2½ inch) pastry cutter, carefully cut out discs from the dough and place on a floured surface. Roll out off-cuts of dough and repeat the process. You should now have about 24 discs.
Next spoon a small amount of the butternut squash into the centre of 12 of the disks, wet the edges and place the remaining discs on top. Pinch around the edges to seal. Breathe.
Place onto a well floured plate, cover with cling film, put in the fridge and nip to the pub for a celebratory pair of Bitburgers.
When ready to cook, plunge into a large pan of boiling salted water. Cook on a rolling boil for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, melt the butter, add the sage, season if necessary and remove from the heat.
Extract the ravioli with a slotted spoon, put on serving plate and pour over the sage butter.
Congratulate yourself, and enjoy with a hearty salad
Verdict: Yum. There was a sweetness to the ravioli which was complimented perfectly by the sage butter.
Drink: Beer, wine, etc.
Entertainment: DVD: ‘World of Pub’. series 1, episodes 2 and 3. ‘A Bit of Fry and Laurie’, series 4, episode 2.
There is a saying in our house: ‘life is too short to make your own ravioli.’ It was said after a fretful afternoon spent in the kitchen one Saturday and is as true today as it was then. However, this recipe may just consign the phrase to history. I’ll have to let you know.