Butternut Squash Ravioli

According to an Italian chef I met in Modena, Italy, homemade pasta should not be covered up with heavy sauces. This pasta is so flavourful, it needs only a fresh, mild extra virgin, some parmesan cheese and fig balsamic drizzle to dress it up. I used my bread maker pasta/dough setting so that I can use only semolina flour. Since this flour has a granular texture, it’s difficult to make a smooth-textured 100% semolina dough without the help of a machine. If you are making a dough without a bread machine then this is an excellent link: https://www.davidlebovitz.com/2012/01/how-to-make-fresh-pasta-homemade-recipe/

Needed for this recipe:

Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Mild Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Aged Black Mission Fig Dark Balsamic*
Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Garlic infused Olive Oil
Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Himalayan Pink Sea Salt

* also fantastic with our Traditional 18 year aged balsamic

Ingredients:

Dough
¼ cup water
1 egg, beaten
1 Tablespoon Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Mild Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 teaspoon Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Himalayan Pink Sea Salt
1 ½ cups semolina flour
Filling
1 butternut squash
1 teaspoon Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Garlic infused Olive Oil
1/8 teaspoon Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Himalayan Pink Sea Salt
½- ¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese*
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg*

*depending on the size of your squash. Taste as you go!

‘Sauce’
A drizzle of Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Mild Extra Virgin Olive Oil
A drizzle Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Aged Dark Fig Balsamic ( a reduction is better)
A sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
A dash of Sunshine Coast Olive Oil Co. Himalayan Pink Sea Salt

 

Recipe:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut your butternut squash in half (lengthwise), and scoop out the seeds. Brush with Garlic Olive Oil and sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon salt. Place upright on a roasting pan lined with parchment paper. Roast approximately 1 hour, until flesh is soft when tested with a fork. Let cool.

To make the filling, mix roasted squash, cheese, nutmeg and salt together. You want to be able to taste all three of the first flavours without drowning out the other two, so taste as you go to find the right amounts. FYI, you will end up with extra filling, which you can use for a second batch of ravioli, as a side dish for tomorrow’s dinner, or as a base for a squash soup.

For the dough: Add water, beaten egg, olive oil and salt to your bread machine. Add semolina and turn machine on, following manufacturer’s directions for making pasta dough. Once your dough is mixed, divide into six relatively equal pieces. You can use a rolling pin (though it is tricky to get your pasta thin), or run it through a pasta maker until you’ve reached the desired thinness. You can lay out ½ of your dough on a flat surface and dot it with filling OR you can use a ravioli maker.

If you are using a flat surface, layer a second layer of pasta on top, then cut into squares (ideally using a zig-zag ravioli cutting wheel).

Let raviolis rest while you bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Add a glug of olive oil to the water. Once the water is at a rolling boil, scoop the raviolis in one at a time. Be quick about this so they all cook equally. Boil approximately 2 minutes, until the pasta is cooked but not soggy (al dente).

Using a slotted spoon, scoop the raviolis out a few at a time into a sieve. If you just dump them straight from the pot into a sieve you will probably break many of the ravioli pockets and lose their filling.

Dress with ‘sauce’ by drizzling the oil, sprinkling with a bit of sea salt and cheese and drizzling with fig balsamic.