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Homemade butternut squash ravioli with goat cheese and tossed in a browned butter sage sauce with prosciutto and figs. I mean what can be better than this butternut squash ravioli?
I'm all about pasta - from meat lasagna to butternut squash gnocchi.
I've been wanting to make ravioli for a while but just have never gotten around to it. But with it being butternut squash season I figured my go-to blog had something to inspire me and I wasn't disappointed.
While Half Baked Harvest called for oregano, I went with sage, as I love the combo of butter and crispy sage. Sage just smells like fall to me so it was an important substitution.
And yes before you freak out about homemade pasta dough, it's much easier than you think. It does take much longer, but is so worth it.
This butternut squash and goat cheese ravioli is one of those recipes where everything just comes together perfectly. After just a couple of bites, Lauren said it was the best thing I've ever made and that she wants it for her birthday!
Now she does say that every so often, but I do agree this butternut squash ravioli with sage brown butter was pretty dang good!
Jump to:
Recipe Ingredients
- All-purpose flour - base for pasta dough.
- Eggs - helps bind everything together.
- Butternut squash - the star of the show.
- Olive oil - helps cook the butternut squash.
- Goat cheese - can also use ricotta.
- Parmesan cheese - use freshly grated.
- Nutmeg, salt, black pepper - enhances the flavor.
- Dried figs - adds some sweetness.
- Panko breadcrumbs - gives some needed crunch.
- Fresh sage - can replace with oregano.
- Unsalted butter - base for the sauce.
- Prosciutto - adds saltiness.
How to Make Homemade Pasta
I mentioned above, but this isn’t necessary for this meat lasagna recipe. However if you want it to truly be homemade. You should take a stab at it. I used Anne Burrell’s pasta dough.
- Put the flour on a clean dry work surface. Make a hole in the center of the flour pile that is about 8 inches wide. The wall needs to be about 2 inches high. Crack all of the eggs and the yolk into the hole and add the olive oil, salt and water.
- Using a fork, beat the eggs together with the olive oil, water and salt. Using the fork, begin to incorporate the flour into the egg mixture; be careful not to break the sides of the well or the egg mixture will run all over the board.
- When enough flour has been incorporated into the egg mixture where it won’t go everywhere, start to use your hands to really get everything well combined. If the mixture is tight and dry, wet your hands and begin kneading with wet hands.
- When the mixture has really come together, then you really start kneading. You will half to knead for 10-15 minutes, really putting your weight into it.
- When the dough is done, it will be smooth and velvety. Once a good consistency, wrap in saran wrap and let sit for 1 hour.
- Once the filling is ready, set up the pasta machine attachment on the stand mixer. Take a quarter of the dough and flatten it. Dust the dough with flour. Set the pasta machine to 1 and run the dough through.
- Fold the dough into thirds, making sure you thin in out again. Run through the machine, short end first. Fold into thirds again and run through the machine one more time. Now run through the 1 setting without folding the dough ahead of time. Switch to the 2nd setting and roll the dough through the machine again. Switch to the 3rd setting, run the dough through, then the 4th setting and then the 5th setting. The big thing is to make sure you flour the dough if it gets too sticky.
- Make cuts long enough to fit ravioli mold.
Do I Have to Make My Own Pasta Dough?
No! But it's so worth the time it takes to make for this butternut squash ravioli. Believe me I was scared the first time I made it, but it's surprisingly easy!
If however you don't want to make dough, then just use the wonton wrapper method. You can use wonton wrappers and place the filling in before sealing it and boiling.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Place the diced squash on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Toss olive oil, salt and pepper until coated. Roast for 45 minutes or until tender. Remove and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.
- Transfer the squash to a food processor and add the goat cheese, Parmesan cheese, egg and nutmeg. Puree until smooth. Add in breadcrumbs to make filling thicker. You'll also want to taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed.
- Now heavily flour your pasta mold, otherwise it will stick when done! Lay one sheet of pasta on the mold and either use an egg to make a well or the plastic piece that comes with the mold to make the wells. Take 1 tbsp of the filling and place it in each well.
- Use your fingers or a brush to dab some water along all of the edges of the ravioli. Lay a second sheet on top and run over with a rolling pin to seal.
- Turn mold over to release the ravioli. More than likely they won’t be fully separated so use a pizza cutter to cut the rest. Line the ravioli on a parchment lined baking sheet and cover with a damp towel. Repeat until all the ravioli is prepared. (You can freeze ravioli at this point. I usually freeze about half as there are only 2 of us)
- Heat large skillet over medium heat and add olive oil. Add breadcrumbs, sage, salt and pepper and cook for about 4-5 minutes or until golden. Remove and set aside in a bowl.
- In same skillet, place the butter and prosciutto in skillet and cook over medium heat until butter is browning and prosciutto is crisp. With 30 seconds left add sage leaves to get them crispy but not overdone.
- Bring large pot of salted water to boil for ravioli. Boil the ravioli for about 1-2 minutes or until the float. Remove ravioli and stir in the butter sauce. Serve in plates and top with breadcrumb mixture and figs.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- Buy pre-cubed butternut squash to save some time.
- Use freshly grated Parmesan to finish the sauce. Never buy pre-shredded Parmesan cheese as it contains wood pulp. Blocks of Parmesan cheese are also cheaper.
- If the butternut squash mixture isn't thick enough, add more breadcrumbs 1 tbsp at a time.
- Use a ravioli press to get consistently sized butternut squash ravioli.
Other Pasta Recipes
- Lemon Asparagus Ravioli
- Garlic Butter Pasta
- Weeknight Bolognese
- Baked Rigatoni with Prosciutto
- Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Sage Pesto
If you’ve tried this butternut squash ravioli or any other recipe on Chisel & Fork, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube to see more tasty meals and anything else I'm up to.
Butternut Squash Ravioli
Ingredients
Fresh Pasta Dough
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 4 eggs
- 6-8 tsp water
Butternut Squash and Goat Cheese Filling
- 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced into ½" cubes (4 cups)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 7 ounces goat cheese
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan
- 1 egg
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 lb fresh pasta dough
- 5-6 dried figs, sliced
Browned Butter Sage Breadcrumbs
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp fresh sage, chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
- ½ cup fresh sage, chopped
- 2 ounces prosciutto, diced
Instructions
Fresh Pasta Dough
- Using a stand mixer with the dough hook, add the flour and eggs to the bowl. Knead the dough on medium speed until it comes together and forms a ball. If your dough is too dry (which is usually the case), add water one tsp at a time. I usually add about 6-8 tsp water. If you add too much water, then add 1 tsp of flour to balance it out. The dough should be moist, but not too sticky. Form into a ball and cut into 4 equal size balls and wrap in plastic wrap while preparing butternut squash and goat cheese filling.
- Once the filling is ready, set up the pasta machine attachment on the stand mixer. Grab 1 ball of the dough and flatten it. Dust the dough with flour. Set the pasta machine to 1 and run the dough through. Fold the dough into thirds, making sure you thin in out again. Run through the machine, short end first. Fold into thirds again and run through the machine one more time. Now run through the 1 setting without folding the dough ahead of time. Switch to the 2nd setting and roll the dough through the machine again. Switch to the 3rd setting, run the dough through, then the 4th setting and then the 5th setting. The big thing is to make sure you flour the dough if it gets too sticky.
Butternut Squash Ravioli
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Place the diced squash on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Toss olive oil, salt and pepper until coated. Roast for 45 minutes or until tender. Remove and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.
- Transfer the squash to a food processor and add the goat cheese, parmesan cheese, egg and nutmeg. Puree until smooth. Add in breadcrumbs to make filling thicker. You'll also want to taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed.
- Now heavily flour your pasta mold, otherwise it will stick when done! Lay one sheet of pasta on the mold and either use an egg to make a well or the plastic piece that comes with the mold to make the wells. Take 1 tbsp of the filling and place it in each well.
- Use your fingers or a brush to dab some water along all of the edges of the ravioli. Lay a second sheet on top and run over with a rolling pin to seal. Turn mold over to release the ravioli. More than likely they won't be fully separated so use a pizza cutter to cut the rest. Line the ravioli on a parchment lined baking sheet and cover with a damp towel. Repeat until all the ravioli is prepared. (You can freeze ravioli at this point. I usually freeze about half as there are only 2 of us)
- Heat large skillet over medium heat and add olive oil. Add breadcrumbs, sage, salt and pepper and cook for about 4-5 minutes or until golden. Remove and set aside in a bowl.
- In same skillet, place the butter and prosciutto in skillet and cook over medium heat until butter is browning and prosciutto is crisp. With 30 seconds left add sage leaves to get them crispy but not overdone.
- Bring large pot of salted water to boil for ravioli. Boil the ravioli for about 1-2 minutes or until the float. Remove ravioli and stir in the butter sauce. Serve in plates and top with breadcrumb mixture and figs.
Notes
- Buy pre-cubed butternut squash to save some time.
- Use freshly grated Parmesan to finish the sauce. Never buy pre-shredded Parmesan cheese as it contains wood pulp. Blocks of Parmesan cheese are also cheaper.
- If the butternut squash mixture isn't thick enough, add more breadcrumbs 1 tbsp at a time.
- Use a ravioli press to get consistently sized butternut squash ravioli.
Damn that looks delicious! Never made homemade pasta. Maybe one day.