When I want a showy pasta meal without the effort of creating the pasta from scratch, I buy wonton wrappers and stuff them as ravioli. I learned this shortcut before I had a hand-cranked pasta roller. Fresh pasta dough is easy to make, and that tool rolls consistently smooth and thin sheets of pasta, but precut wonton wrappers still speed up the process.
Unlike gnocchi, where the homemade dough stands out, wonton ravioli emphasize the filling. It takes less time to fold squash puree into the individual wrappers than it does to mix, roll and shape Homemade Pumpkin Gnocchi, but you still get the delicate texture of homemade pasta. Other fillings work equally well.
Squash and Goat Cheese Ravioli with Nutty Butter Sauce
Makes about 50 ravioli
1/2 cup salted butter, divided
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh or 1 teaspoon dried sage
1 cup Roasted Winter Squash Puree
3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 12-ounce package wonton wrappers
1/3 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
16 ounces torn kale or arugula (optional)
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for serving
In a medium skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium-low heat. Add the onion, garlic and sage and sauté, stirring often, for eight to 10 minutes, until golden. Let cool slightly, and then mix in the squash puree and goat cheese. Stir in the nutmeg, plus salt and pepper to taste.
Lay a grid of wonton wrappers, without overlapping, on a large plastic cutting board, and fold a damp tea towel around the rest. Lightly brush each wrapper’s edges with water, and then spoon about 1 teaspoon of the squash mixture into the center. Fold the wrapper in half over the filling, making a triangle, and crimp and seal the edges. Lay the ravioli, without overlapping, on a dry tea towel. Cover them with another towel to keep them from drying out while you shape the remaining pasta.
Fill a wide, 6- to 8-quart pot to three-quarters with water and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan, warm the remaining 7 tablespoons of butter and the nuts over medium-low heat for about three minutes, until the butter begins to brown. Immediately remove the pan from the heat. Season with pepper to taste and cover to keep warm.
Add about 12 ravioli to the boiling water, adjusting the temperature to maintain a gentle boil. Cook for one to two minutes, until the pasta rises to the surface and is tender.
Spread the cooked ravioli on a cutting board, without overlapping. Set the board on a rimmed tray and prop up one edge with a large serving spoon to tilt the board and drain the water onto the tray. Once drained, gently add the pasta to the nutty butter, flipping it until coated. Repeat with the remaining ravioli.
Serve immediately, on a layer of greens if desired, with Parmesan cheese.
Julie Laing is a Bigfork-based cookbook author and food blogger at TwiceAsTasty.com.