Butternut Squash Ravioli

 

Ingredients for ravioli:

• 1 pound butternut squash (about half of a medium-sized one)
• olive oil
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• wonton wrappers
• 1 egg, beaten

Ingredients for bechamel for top:

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups milk
• black pepper
• 1 teaspoon sage

Directions for ravioli:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Cut butternut squash in half and remove seeds.
3. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt & pepper on butternut squash half. Place cut side down on a baking sheet. Roast for 30 minutes. (Long enough the flesh can be pierced easily with a fork).
4. After butternut squash is done, scrape out the flesh of the squash and place in a medium sized bowl. Mix in butter, brown sugar, salt & pepper, nutmeg, and thyme.
5. You can use small wonton wrappers or large wonton wrappers cut into 4 pieces (like I did).
6. Take about 1 teaspoon of the butternut squash mixture and place it in the center of one of the wonton wrappers. Brush the beaten egg around the squash on the wrapper. Place another wrapper on top and seal around filling. (Making sure to remove all air bubbles)
7. Continue making as many ravioli as you wish to serve.
8.  Fill a pot with water and bring to a boil. Gently place the ravioli in the water to cook in batches.  (Note: I used a large saute pan with high walls instead of a pot, as it's quicker to boil and return to temperature in between batches.)

*Be vigilant that the ravioli doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan because it will cause it to tear open and the filling will be released in the cooking water.

Directions for bechamel:

1. Melt butter in small saucepan on medium heat.
2. Add flour and stir for 2 minutes.
3. Whisk while you slowly pour in milk.
4. Add pepper and sage.
5. Constantly stir until sauce has thickened and remove from heat.

*If bechamel is too thick add more milk. If it's too thin leave it on the heat a little longer.

~Recipe from Mikaila

Butternut Squash Lasagna

Serves 6-8

Time: about 2.5 hours

Ingredients: 

• 1 large butternut squash (about 4lbs) cut into ½” pieces
• 2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
• Kosher Salt & fresh ground pepper
• 5 ¾ cups milk, divided
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• 7 TBSP unsalted butter
• 7 TBSP flour
• 12 no-boil lasagna noodles
• ¾ lb fresh mozzarella, sliced ¼” thick

Directions:

1   Preheat oven to 425, toss butternut squash with olive oil & season generously with salt & pepper

** we usually just cut the squash in ½ and wipe it with olive oil, sprinkle with salt & pepper & then once its cooked & soft, cut it into cubes**

Divide between 2 parchment-lined baking sheets. Roast, rotating trays halfway through, until tender & golden, about 40 minutes

2  Transfer to a food processor (or blender) along with ¾ cup milk, thyme, and ¼ cup water.  Puree

3 Make white sauce:

melt butter over medium heat in a medium saucepan, then whisk in flour & cook, whisking constantly til tan, about 5 minutes. Slowly whisk in remaining 5 cups milk & cook, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Season with 2 tsp salt & ¼ tsp pepper.

4 Spread about ½ cup white sauce evenly across bottom of a 9x13” baking dish. Top with 3 noodles. Dollop 1 cup squash over noodles, using back of spoon to spread evenly. Repeat the noodle, squash, sauce layers 3 more times.

5   Arrange mozzarella slices on top and season with pepper.  Cover with foil; bake for 50 minutes. Then increase heat to 475, remove foil, and bake until mozzarella is golden in spots, about 5-10 more minutes. Let stand at least 15 minutes before serving.

~Recipe from Carolyn A.

Butternut Squash Risotto

Serves about 4
Time to cook: 20-30 minutes

Ingredients:
1 butternut squash
4 tbs olive oil
5 cups vegetable stock (I used chicken stock)
3 tbs butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 celery stick, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
1 tsp thyme
1 1/3 cup risotto rice (I used Arborio)
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Peel the squash and seperate the bulbous seed-bearing section from the slender end. Chop the slender end into 2cm cubes, toss in half the oil, season lightly with salt and pepper and roast in the oven, stirring occasionally, until golden brown on the outside and soft in the centre, about 30 mins. Cut the bulb in half and scrape out the seeds with a spoon. Chop the flesh into 2cm pieces. Warm the stock in a medium pan,set over a low heat. Drop in squash and leave to gently poach.
2. While the squash is roasting, warm a large-size pan (or dutch-oven) over a gentle heat. Add the remaining olive oil and half the butter, followed by the onion. Cover and cook for 3 mins until the onion turns translucent. Stir in the celery, garlic, herbs and a few turns of pepper (no salt at this stage). Cover again and cook for a further 2 min. Increase the heat slightly and stir in the rice. Stir, uncovered, for about 5 mins - this will help to develop the toasty aroma of the rice without burning the veg.
3. Turn up the heat, stir in the wine and let it bubble away to almost nothing. Reduce the heat and start adding the stock. Add one ladle at a time, stirring gently every minute and at each addition of stock. The idea is to encourage the rice to absorb the liquid and soften, but also give its starch to thicken the remaining broth. Don't stir too aggressively or you will end up with a pan of mush. When the stock has been absorbed, it's time to add the next ladleful and so on. It will take about 15 mins to reach the final ladle of stock. By this time the squash in the stock should have softened.Mash it up with the remaining stock and stir into the risotto.
4. Turn off the heat, dot the top of the risotto with remaining butter and most of the Parmesan, cover, leave to rest for 2 mins, then stir through and check the seasoning. Spoon the risotto into shallow bowls and sprinkle the roasted squash and leftover Parmesan on top. 

*original recipe served 2, I increased rice and stock (as shown in ingredient list above) to serve 4. 

~Recipe via Good Food magazine, October 2009