Pumpkin Ravioli...with Sage Browned Butter Sauce

I know that this blog is ALL about “no pressure” cooking.  However, every now and then on the weekends, I will try and create a dish that has more steps, more ingredients, and is a little more tedious than usual.  After all, not all cooking or baking is easy.  This recipe does take about 2 hours with almost an hour of cooking the pumpkin and another hour for prepping the ravioli.  Therefore, if you’re feeling like you have some time to kill, this may be the recipe for you.

Now, I WILL say that I took a little pressure off of making this recipe by using wonton wrappers for the ravioli pasta.  You’ll find a lot of ravioli recipes that call for wonton wrappers as a substitution because it’s quick, you can’t find fresh ravioli pasta sheets in stores (at least, that I have seen), and sometimes you just don’t want pre-packaged ravioli for dinner.  I’m not going to act like the wonton wrappers are exactly like the ravioli you’re used to, but it’s a good option when you want homemade ravioli.  The other option, of course, would be to make the homemade pasta yourself.  That process is a little too involved for this “no pressure cooker” but I encourage any of you to take on the task if you’re up to it!

Pumpkin Ravioli with Sage Browned Butter Sauce

1 sugar pumpkin

1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

¼ c mascarpone cheese

¼ c grated Parmesan

½ tsp nutmeg

1 tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

1 tsp brown sugar

wonton wrappers

1 egg

¼ c water

3 tbsp butter

6-8 sage leaves, julienne cut

Preheat oven to 375F.

Cut off stem of sugar pumpkin.  Cut pumpkin in half and remove all seeds and guts.  Brush inside of pumpkin with olive oil.  Place pumpkin halves skin side up on a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil.  Roast at 375F for about 45 mins.  Skin will be soft and pulling away from the flesh of the pumpkin. 

Allow pumpkin to cool slightly before handling.  Scoop out flesh of pumpkin into a bowl.  Add mascarpone cheese, Parmesan, nutmeg, salt, pepper and brown sugar to pumpkin and stir to combine.  Add salt & pepper to taste.

Kitchen tool: I used an ice cream scoop for scooping out the pumpkin.  Be sure to use a spoon with sharper edges to make sure and get all of the stringy insides removed.

Lightly flour a large surface.  Create an egg wash with 1 beaten egg and ¼ c of water.  Working with a few wonton wrappers at a time, place each wrapper on the lightly floured surface.  Using your finger, rub edges of wonton wrapper with egg wash.  Place 1 heaping teaspoon of pumpkin mixture in the middle of the wrapper.  Fold wrapper in half and press down edges to seal.  Repeat until all pumpkin mixture is used up.

Option: I chose to fold my wrappers in half to create my ravioli.  However, you can create square ravioli by placing one wrapper on top of another and then sealing the sides.  You make the call on that one!

While making ravioli, heat a large pot of water until boiling.  When ravioli are assembled place 4 or 5 gently (I mean it!) into the boiling water at a time.  Boil 2-3 mins or just until soft.  Repeat with remaining ravioli.

In a separate sauté pan, heat butter over medium heat until bubbles dissipate and butter starts to brown.  Add sage and cook until crispy.  Remove from heat and gently toss ravioli in the sauce.  Serve hot.

Pumpkin Spice Cookies

Happy 12-12-12!  Today, I’m sharing my pumpkin spice cookies recipe with you.  These were inspired out of just rummaging through my pantry.  I noticed I had two cans of pumpkin puree and I really had no idea what to do with them.  So, I got creative!  I had all of the ingredients for cookies but I hadn’t made pumpkin cookies before.  I wasn’t sure of the amount to use or what texture they would turn out to be.  And what do you do when you have no idea what to expect???  You WING IT!

I was blown away by how good these cookies were.  I honestly didn’t think they would be “blog-worthy”.  (By the way, that’s my new saying when I make good food lol).  I thought this would honestly be a failed experiment because getting the right cookie is really a science.  You have to ask do I use butter or shortening?  What about the flour to sugar ratio?  It’s really a lot to think about it.  Plus, pumpkin makes food softer than normal.  I have no idea why.  I know I’m typically full of scientific facts but I can’t answer this one!  The cookies turned out with a cake-like texture.  They were super light and super soft.  Unexpected, but delightfully delicious.

Pumpkin Spice Cookies

Ingredients:

½ c granulated sugar

½ c brown sugar

¼ c butter, softened

½ c canned pumpkin puree

1 large egg

½ tsp vanilla

1 ¼ c all-purpose flour

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

1 tsp pumpkin pie seasoning

For dusting:

2 tbsp granulated sugar

½ tsp cinnamon

1 tsp pumpkin pie seasoning

Heat oven to 350F.

Beat butter and sugars in large bowl, with an electric mixer at medium speed until fluffy.  Add pumpkin puree and mix until combined.  Beat in egg and vanilla until well blended.

Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and pumpkin pie seasoning.  Gradually add flour mixture to sugar mixture at low speed until well blended. 

Note: Don’t eat cookie dough!  Raw eggs may contain salmonella.  If you totally can’t resist, use pasteurized eggs.

Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Drop dough, one tablespoon at a time, onto the cookie sheet.  Flatten slightly.  Dust with sugar and spice mixture.

Bake 13-15 mins or until lightly pressing on cookies does not yield a dent.  Transfer parchment paper to wire rack and allow to cool. 

It was really interesting when I discovered that the second batch of cookies had a bit of a crispy bottom.  I realized that this was because I only used butter in the cookies.  I put the second batch on the hot pan that I had just pulled out of the oven and we loved that batch even more!  You may want to try preheating the pan with the oven for the first batch to see if you get the same result.  Let me know if it works!

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting... and a little something extra

I am a summer person... I may have said this before, but I am totally all about hot weather and shorts. But, I am totally inspired by fall food! Pumpkin and spice cupcakes really hit the spot. Smothered in cream cheese frosting, and dusted with cinnamon, these didn't last long. And, like a fool, I gave away the few left overs. Shame on me!

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes - slightly adapted from Martha Stewart
Makes 14 regular size cupcakes and a dozen mini-cupcakes, or about 20 regular cupcakes 

Preheat oven to 350

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
4 eggs
1 can of pumpkin puree (15 oz size)

Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices together in a large bowl.

In another bowl, cream butter and sugars, add eggs and mix till smooth. Add dry ingredients and mix until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree until well blended. Don't worry about getting rid of all the lumps. The batter is pretty thick.

Fill cupcake liners until about 3/4 of the way full. I like to use an ice cream scoop to help keep cupcakes an even size. (It also keeps things cleaner. And I use this for making cookies so they are all the same size.) Bake about 20 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Let these cool completely before you frost!

Cream Cheese Frosting
Makes about 3 cups of frosting - I dolloped a ton of frosting on 14 cupcakes and had tons of left overs. This amount of frosting would easily frost a two layer cake. 

1 brick of cream cheese (8 oz size)
1 cup (2 sticks of butter)
4 cups of powdered sugar
2 teaspoons maple syrup (or vanilla)

Whip softened butter and cream cheese together until smooth and fluffy. Start with 2 cups of powdered sugar, and whisk in remaining sugar until the frosting is the consistency you want. You may need a little more, or a little less. Whisk in maple syrup. Chill for a few minutes and dollop onto cupcakes. Dust lightly with cinnamon.

So... like I sort of mentioned earlier, I make 14 regular cupcakes and 12 minis... here's what I did with the minis...

Pumpkin Spice "Doughnut Holes"
Makes 12 glorious treats

12 mini muffins
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon
3 tablespoons melted butter

Melt butter in a wide bow. Mix sugar and cinnamon on a small plate. While mini-muffins are still hot, roll them in butter and then roll them in cinnamon sugar. Cool a bit and re-roll in cinnamon sugar. 

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Browned Butter and Crispy Sage

My boss thinks I'm just working from home for a few days, but really I'm packing our favorite things and we are moving to France to move into this woman's life. She doesn't know it yet, but she seems so nice and they are already used to 14 dogs and 4 kids, so one more of each shouldn't even be noticed! Really though, this is a beautiful blog and I'm in love. Her blog inspired me and I made pumpkin gnocchi with browned butter and crispy sage. To say this was an easy dinner is a huge understatement. I was ready to commit to a really involved dinner. I thought we would eat about 6:45pm. We were finishing seconds at 6:15. EASY DINNER. REALLY. Delicious too - warm, fall-flavored, delicious!

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Browned Butter and Crispy Sage - adapted from Manger

Gnocchi
1 15oz can pumpkin puree - no spices added, 100% pumpkin
1 3/4 cup flour - plus more for dusting
1 egg yolk
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
pinch of salt

Browned Butter and Crispy Sage
2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon butter

In a large bowl, mix pumpkin, egg, spices and flour until just combined. I used my hands. Dough will be very sticky and it will feel like it will not roll out, but fear not, it will!

Divide the dough into 8 pieces. Roll the first piece into a log and cut off 1/2 inch sections. Roll the cut gnocchi in flour and press with a fork to make ridges and set aside. 

In a medium sized sauce pan, simmer water at a near boil and start the butter in a large saute pan. Add sage and brown the butter over medium heat stirring occasionally. 

Put about 6 gnocchi in the simmering water - they float when they are done. Skim off with a slotted spoon and put immediately in the browning butter. Saute for a few minutes until crisped on one side. Cook gnocchi and saute in batches. Place in warmed serving bowls and top with a Parmesan cheese. 

A few things about this recipe... 

This went SO fast. Start to finish 15 minutes. That's it. 
The amount of dough makes enough for 4 good sized portions. 
We ate this with a mixed salad and it was nicely satisfying. 
The rest of the dough kept in the fridge for 2 whole days and cooked up just fine after resting for that long. 
This would be good made with sweet potato puree if you're not keen on pumpkin.

Happy Eating! 
(Future posts maybe slow as I'll be writing from an internet cafe in France. And having a latte. And a croissant.)