Pumpkin Ravioli

Pumpkin ravioli is a great meal for the fall. While making pumpkin ravioli from scratch sounds really difficult, it’s really not. I promise (really)!

While I encourage you to go the all-out homemade route, I get that you might not have homemade pumpkin puree and fresh ricotta at the ready. So it’s fine to use store-bought alternatives.

The basic egg ravioli dough is a little messy to do, but it’s fun; if you have kids, they can lend a hand, as well. If you want to simplify things a bit, though, you could make the dough in a food processor. If you don’t want to go the homemade dough route at all, you could use purchased wonton wrappers. I haven’t made them this way, but I’ve seen some great looking wonton wrapper raviolis, so try that if you like.

Egg Ravioli Dough

Adapted from Foods of the Southwest Indian Nations by Lois Ellen Frank

Ingredients for the dough:

*3 cups sifted organic all purpose flour
*4 eggs, preferably organic and free-range
*1 tsp. Himalayan or sea salt
*1 tsp. olive oil

Directions for the dough:

Pour the flour into a mound on a clean, flat work surface. I used my kitchen table. Use your hand to make an indentation in the center of the flour.

Crack the eggs into the well…

…and use a fork to whip in the oil and salt. Mix the flour in from around the edges.

Mix and knead the dough for 8-10 minutes. It should be smooth and elastic. If it seems dry, add a little water; add a little flour if it seems too wet.

When it is the proper consistency, roll it into a ball…

…and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Once your dough is ready, you have several options. You can divide the dough into small handfuls and roll each one out separately, or you can use a pasta maker to help you make flat sheets of dough. I do have a pasta maker somewhere, but didn’t feel like hauling it out, so I used a rolling pin to roll the dough into two flat shapes…

…and then trimmed the edges so that they were straight. In retrospect, I wish I had used the pasta maker, as it’s best for your ravioli dough to be really thin. Mine ended up a little thicker than is recommended, and the texture of my raviolis was a bit chewy as a result.

I cut the dough into small squares and set them aside to make the filling.

Pumpkin Ricotta Ravioli Filling

Ingredients for the filling

*3/4 cup fresh pumpkin puree or organic canned pumpkin
*1 cup store-bought or homemade ricotta cheese
*1 egg yolk, preferably organic and free-range
*1/4 cup parmesan cheese
*pinch of Himalayan or sea salt
*pinch of nutmeg-optional

Directions for the ravioli filling:

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl.

Place a small spoonful of filling in the center of a square of dough.

Brush edges lightly with water and place another similar-sized square of dough on the top. Push down on the edges to seal them.

You can use a fork to crimp the edges together if they are not sealing well. Set aside on a baking sheet and proceed with the rest of the ravioli.

Cook the ravioli in a large pot of salted boiling water. They will only take a few minutes to cook, so watch them and remove with a slotted spoon when ready. I enjoyed mine with my favorite tomato sauce and fresh parmesan…