Pumpkin and Sausage Ravioli

Sage infused brown butter and squash or pumpkin is one of those perfect flavor combos...right up there with sea salt and caramel and chocolate.  Since it is pumpkin frenzy time, let's get started. 

Did you know that sometimes sausage comes fully cooked?  My sausage naivety shows here.  Fully cooked sausage does not crumble while it cooks so I just chopped it up fine before returning to the pan.

My pasta rolling skills aren't the hottest apparently but I just saved up all these excess scraps, cut them into mini noodles and let dry a bit.  It's almost chicken noodle soup time and I think think/hope they'll be perfect in that.

Yep, A LOT of work.  For an easier version(minus the sage brown butter), you could also slice the sausage, brown it up and then add the garlic, pumpkin, ricotta, herbs and spices. Add broth or milk to thin it out a bit and toss with penne or any other boxed pasta cooked al dente. Same pumpkin and sausage flavors and only 1/10th of the effort. 

Missing my mom's chest high, 4 foot wide sage bush.  My sad sage options now.

All the leftover scraps ready for chicken noodle soup sometime soon. Once they were dry enough to not stick together, they went into a baggie in the freezer. 

I took pictures of the brown butter as well, but then deleted them all and reformatted my CF card so every single one is gone.  To make brown butter, you just melt a stick of butter over med-high heat and then let it sizzle away as the fat cooks out all of the water in the butter.  Watch carefully because it tends to go from regular butter to brown butter relatively quickly.  When the butter is a dark amber shade, throw in 10-15 leaves of clean dry sage and let them sizzle.  Serve ravioli with a brown butter drizzle and don't forget the crispy sage...it's the best part in my opinion. 

FRESH PASTA

3 cups all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons water

1. Mound flour on a work surface, preferably wooden, and make a well in center. 
2. Add eggs, salt, and water to well. With a fork, gently beat eggs and water until combined. 
3. Gradually stir in enough flour to form a paste, pulling in flour closest to egg mixture and being careful not to make an opening in outer wall of well. 
4. Knead remaining flour into mixture with your hands to form a dough, adding more water, drop by drop, if dough is too dry (dough should be firm and not sticky). 
5. Knead dough until smooth and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes(I throw in the KitchenAid at this point with the dough hook because I don't enjoy kneading.  
6. Leave in mixer bowl and cover with a plate. Let rest for an hour. 

PUMPKIN AND SAUSAGE FILLING

1/2 lb chicken sausage(removed from casing)
1 cup canned pumpkin
2/3 cup ricotta
1 garlic clove, minced

1 tbsp chopped sage

a couple of grates of fresh nutmeg
salt and pepper 

1. In medium skillet over medium high heat, brown sausage taking care to cook through
2. Add garlic and cook additional minute
3. Add pumpkin and ricotta and heat through.  Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper
4. Remove from heat and set aside while you roll out pasta