Yeah, Handmade Ravioli

The weather's not crisp and cool down here, but its still fall, right? So, craving the comfort of an autumn feast, and being in possession of a small pumpkin, I decided to turn that pretty little thing into some tasty treats. Here's what I did...

(Warning: This is going to be a really informal recipe because the quantities are not extremely important. I just used what I had on hand and could have done with more or less of any ingredient...so, use your senses and just have fun.)

1. I started with a small pumpkin (maybe 3 lbs?) that I quartered and cleaned out. I put the quarters skin side down in a roasting pan and drizzled with olive oil, salt, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. I also had a little butternut squash, so I did the same to that and put it in the same pan. If you have only the squash, or only the pumpkin- roll with it.

2. I roasted those babies at 450F until I could stick a fork in them. It took about 35-45 minutes. If it needs more, give it more.

3. While my pumpkin was roasting, I threw together a double batch of fresh pasta (see full instructions in Fresh Pasta 101, one batch is just 2 cups flour, 2 eggs, tsp olive oil and some water) and popped that in the fridge in plastic wrap to rest.

4. Waiting on pumpkin and pasta, might as well add some extra love...diced celery, onions and carrots (fennel if I had it) into some butter in a frying pan. Salt and pepper. Let them get soft.

5. Pumpkin is now out of the oven. I let it cool a bit and peeled the skin. Dropped it into the food processor with about 1/2 as much ricotta cheese as there was pumpkin (see how easy this can be without measurements...just wing it!). Into that mixture went my goodies from the frying pan along with salt, pepper, thyme, and just a touch of sugar. (Taste it...if it needs something else add it- more cinnamon? more nutmeg? salty enough? more pepper?)

6. Now for the big project...pull the pasta out of the fridge and separate it into 2-3 manageable pieces. Roll it out until it's thin thin thin (if you have a pasta roller- all the better for you!). You're going to need flour for the surface you're rolling on, plus flour for your hands and the rolling pin. Flip it over as much as you need and keep it dry. You don't want it sticking to the counter. Once it's super thin, use something as a cookie cutter (I used a water glass) and cut it all up.

7. Take your little pasta cutout and put a blob of pumpkin filling right in the middle, then fold it over and do your best to close it up without getting a pocket of air in there and without squishing the filling between the pieces of pasta. Ideally, it should be a snug little bundle with dry edges. If the edges won't seal up, use your finger to wipe a little bit of water between them. Or, lay the little bundle on the counter and use the prongs of a fork around the outside edge to seal it up (that's what I did). VOILA! Handmade ravioli!! And don't worry too much. Practice makes perfect and the worst thing that could happen is that they open up when you boil them, and so what? You can still eat the delicious fresh pasta. No worries.

8. Now, when you're ready to eat them, put them in a pot of boiling salted water for no more than 5 minutes (it's fresh and soft already, so no need to boil it like dried pasta) drain and cover with some delicious sauce. Experiment with sauce options. I served mine with roasted pork tenderloin and just used some pan jus as the sauce. My friend brought it home and made a gorgonzola cream sauce. The options are endless. Use the web as a resource or get frisky and make up your own!

NOTE: Create something different if you want. There really is no wrong answer and when you give yourself the freedom to experiment, you're bound to eat well. Enjoy!!