Butternut Squash Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage Sauce
“In northern Italy, a traditionally wealthier area than Tuscany, they fill their pasta with meat, truffles, or expensive cheese. We had no money, so our pasta was filled with potato (as in the previous recipe) and squash. The squash are roasted, and the flavor that comes out is intense and sweet. Then you add the ricotta and the amaretto cookies. What? Amaretto cookies? This dish is sexiness at the purest level, with crispy sage on top. It is the dish for the person you’re about to love, the person that you loved already and would like to love again, or for somebody who hates you, as it will make them love you.” – Celebrity Chef Fabio Viviani
Butternut Squash Ravioli
INGREDIENTS
- 2 ea. Medium butternut squash
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 1 cup Ricotta cheese
- 6 tbsp. Ground amaretto cookies
- Salt and pepper
- 1 Recipe Fresh Egg Pasta Dough, rolled out in thin 4 x 8-inch sheets
- 1 ea. Egg
- 1 Recipe Brown Butter Sage Sauce (See below)
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
- Cut the squash in half lengthwise, remove the seeds, and roast face up on a baking sheet until soft when poked with a fork, about 45 minutes. Set aside to cool.
- To make the filling, scoop out the cooled squash flesh and mix it in a bowl with the Parmesan, the ricotta, the amaretti, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Lay the sheets of pasta in front of you and place 1 tablespoon of filling every 2 inches just above the center of the sheet.
- Beat the egg with about a tablespoon of water in a small bowl. Then, using the tip of your finger, brush lightly around each lump of filling with the egg-and-water mixture. Fold the bottom half of the pasta sheet over the filled half.
- Press down around the edges of the filling to remove any air bubbles and seal the filling in. Cut the pasta into individual ravioli with a zigzag cutter or knife. Repeat this procedure until you run out of filling.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt. Add the ravioli and cook until they rise to the top, about 3 minutes. Combine with the brown butter sage sauce and serve.
Brown Butter Sage Sauce
Burro Bruno e Salvia. Makes 1 Cup
INGREDIENTS
- ½ lb. (2 sticks) butter
- 1 cup fresh sage leaves (about 12–14)
- Salt and pepper
DIRECTIONS
- Put the butter and the sage in a large sauté pan over low heat and cook until the foaming subsides. The sauce should be golden brown in color and the sage leaves will be nice and crispy.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper. If the sauce looks separated or too oily, add a bit of warm water; if it looks too watery, keep it on the heat and reduce for a few minutes until it thickens.
From FABIO’S ITALIAN KITCHEN by Fabio Viviani. Copyright © 2013, VF Legacy, LLC. Published by Hyperion in April 2013. Available wherever books are sold. All Rights Reserved.
