Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli

I promise you - if you make this Ravioli once, you will make it again and again. It is so easy to make, and I'm not saying that because I have a fancy pasta maker - I don't! I was armed with a chopping board, a pizza cutter and a fork...and they came out just fine.

Once you have made the fresh pasta, you can fill with whatever you fancy. The first time I used a mushroom filling. But this butternut squash filling was out of this world. And the best thing? This makes a whole batch of ravioli, which you can freeze and then use for a quick and filling homemade meal at another time. What are you waiting for?!

​Recipe:

Filling:
Half a butternut squash, roasted and mashed.
1 tbsp fresh rosemary 
Handful of sunflower seeds
Handful of fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces
1/4 tsp Garlic granules
1/2 tsp dried oregano
Salt and pepper to taste

Pasta:
1 cup semolina flour 
1 cup plain flour (plus extra for rolling)
1/2 cup aquafaba
2 tbsp water (for sealing ravioli edges) 
Pinch of salt 
Pinch of garlic granules

Method:

1. Blitz the rosemary and sunflower seeds together in a high speed blender until fine and crumbly
2. Mix into the butternut squash along with the basil and garlic, and season to taste
3. Make a smooth pasta dough by combining all of the ingredients together
   ​Add more water if necessary, or more flour if the dough is sticky
4. Wrap in cling film and rest in fridge for 30 mins
5. Roll and fill - I did this in a very basic way as I have no "proper" equipment! I used 1/2 tsp filling per ravioli. (See "expert" video on Instagram @jemplusthree)
6. Cook in boiling water for 5 mins
7. Serve with sauce of choice - I used olive oil with fresh parsley and pine nuts, with a little marinara

Tips:

• Butternut squash can be tricky to work with. I usually pierce mine with a sharp knife and then bung it on a tray in the oven at 180c for about 45 mins, turning halfway. The skin softens and then it's easy peasy to scoop the flesh out
• Tear the basil leaves. They release more flavour if you tear instead of cutting!
• I made my butternut squash filling the previous night. The taste is so much better when the herbs have had time to infuse into the sweetness of the squash. The unused half of the squash was frozen ready for another meal
• I split my pasta dough in half before rolling. This just made it easier for me to work with and I could roll it thinner more quickly
• If you are freezing the ravioli, then freeze when it is uncooked. Place individual ravioli on a baking sheet and freeze flat. Then after an hour or so, you can gather them up and place them in a freezer bag for easy storage
• If cooking from frozen, cook for 5 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain and serve immediately. The top photo is a dish made from the frozen ravioli - I lightly sauteed some fresh greens (courgette, fennel, spring onions) in olive oil with some salt, pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice. It was divine

​Enjoy! If you have tried this recipe then please feel free to comment below and let me know how it went. If you have any questions then please ask and I'll do my best to answer!

For more recipe's, inspiration and general musings follow me on Instagram @jemplusthree