Ingredients

• 500g/1lb 2oz butternut squash
• peeled
• de-seeded
• chopped into 4cm/1.5in cm pieces
• 3 tsp olive oil
• sea salt flakes
• freshly ground black pepper
• ½ small red onion
• peeled
• cut in half
• thinly sliced
• 25g/1oz pecorino or other vegetarian hard Italian cheese
• finely grated
• plus extra to serve
• freshly grated nutmeg
• to taste
• 300g/10½oz ‘00’ grade flour
• plus extra for dusting
• 3 large free-range eggs
• 1 tsp salt
• 6 tbsp olive oil
• handful fresh sage leaves
• 4 sun-dried tomatoes (preserved in oil
• from a jar or can)
• drained
• cut into thin strips

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
• For the filling
• place the butternut squash pieces into a large bowl
• drizzle over two teaspoons of olive oil and stir to coat. Season
• to taste
• with a couple of pinches of salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper; stir again. Place the pieces of butternut squash into a roasting tray and roast in the oven for 18-20 minutes
• or until tender.
• Meanwhile
• add the onion slices to the bowl used to season the butternut squash. Drizzle over the remaining teaspoon of olive oil and stir to coat. Season
• to taste
• with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Once the butternut squash has roasted for 20 minutes
• sprinkle over the onion slices and continue to roast for a further 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside for five minutes
• to cool.
• In a high-sided bowl
• blend the warm vegetables to a thick
• smooth purée using a hand-held blender. Set aside to cool for one hour. Once cooled
• stir in the grated cheese and a little grated nutmeg. Season
• to taste
• with salt and freshly ground black pepper
• then set aside until completely cool.
• Meanwhile
• for the pasta
• blend the flour and eggs in a food processor until the ingredients come together to form a dough. Continue to pulse for a further minute
• removing the lid and turning the dough over every 15-20 seconds (CAUTION: keep hands well away from the sharp blade of the food processor).
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead well for 10 minutes
• pummelling and stretching the dough until it is smooth
• stretchy and has a slight sheen.
• Divide the dough into four portions and wrap each in cling film. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes
• When the pasta dough has chilled
• take the first portion and roll it out onto a lightly floured work surface to a 1mm thickness (about the thickness of a penny)
• dusting the dough with a light coating of flour if it starts to stick. You need the surface area of the rolled-out dough to yield 12 discs
• each 8.5cm/3½in in diameter.
• Using an 8.5cm/3½in cookie cutter
• mark 12 circles in the sheet of pasta dough without cutting through the dough.
• Repeat the rolling-out process with the second portion of pasta dough. Set aside carefully.
• Divide the cooled filling mixture in half and place one heaped teaspoon into the centre of each marked pasta disc. Brush the dough surrounding the filling with a little cold water.
• Once all of the discs have been filled
• lift the second sheet of pasta dough and drape it over the first
• carefully smoothing the pasta around the filling using your fingertips to remove any air bubbles and stick the moistened sheets of pasta together.
• Dust a baking tray with a little flour. Use the same cookie cutter to cut out the 12 ravioli; place each on the prepared baking tray. Set aside until needed.
• Repeat the process with the remaining pasta and filling mixture to make 12 more ravioli..
• For the garnish
• heat the olive oil in a small frying pan over a medium to high heat. Add the sage leaves and fry for 10-15 seconds
• or until they look translucent. Remove from the pan using a slotted spoon and set aside to drain on kitchen paper.
• Return the pan to the heat and add the sun-dried tomatoes. Fry for 20-30 seconds
• stirring well
• until heated through. Remove from the heat and set aside on a separate plate.
• To cook the ravioli
• half-fill a very large saucepan with cold water. Add one teaspoon of salt and bring to the boil. When the water is boiling
• carefully lower the ravioli into it
• in batches if necessary
• using a slotted spoon. Boil for a few minutes
• until the pasta is cooked to your liking. (You could make some extra ravioli to test the cooking time.)
• Carefully drain the ravioli in a colander and return to the saucepan. Stir in the sun-dried tomatoes and season
• to taste
• with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• To serve
• divide the ravioli among four warmed plates
• spooning over any sun-dried tomatoes left in the saucepan. Garnish with the fried sage leaves and sprinkle over a little cheese.