5 from 2 votes

Delicious homemade butternut squash ravioli in an easy brown butter sauce with crispy sage. The dish is finished with toasted hazelnuts and goats cheese for an impressive Fall inspired dish. This is such an achievable dish to cook at home and my step-by-step guide is super easy to follow. I have used a ravioli mold but there are instructions if you don't have one.

White plate with ravioli in a brown butter. Golden hazelnuts, pieces of goats cheese and crisp sage on top. A fork piercing into pasta.

Hello! I was shooting a guide on how to use a ravioli mold so I needed to turn the ravioli I made into a finished dish! I had made a roasted sweet butternut squash filling so went with a classic brown butter sauce. No worries if you don't have a mold, you could use a ravioli stamp or use my guide to easy homemade ravioli, or any other filled shape you like!

This is such an impressive dish and similar to my Roast Pumpkin Agnolotti, the perfect time of year for both. I promise you that when you break it down into steps it's very easy to achieve! You can always make the ravioli ahead of time and freeze to keep the workload lower. It takes a bit of time but it's so worth it.

Main Ingredients

For the ravioli

Pasta dough - You'll use my easy homemade pasta dough, it's perfect! A combination of room temperature eggs and flour. I use a combination of '00' (or all purpose flour) and fine semolina.

Butternut squash - You need 600 grams of finished cut pieces to roast so you'll need to start with a butternut squash about 1kg (2 - 2.5 pounds). You could also halve the entire squash lengthwise, drizzle with olive oil and roast each half whole then scrape out the middle when cooked.

Ricotta cheese - Adds some creaminess to the filling.

Parmesan Cheese - This is always a must!

Tomato paste - Adds some acidity to the filling, you could use lemon juice also.

Brown sugar - Just a touch to enhance the sweetness of the butternut.

Sea salt and black pepper - Season to taste and don't be shy as ravioli fillings benefit from a lot of seasoning.

For the sauce

Butter - I generally use unsalted butter in sauces but I think this dish suits a lot of seasoning so use regular, or whatever your preference is.

Fresh sage leaves - A brown butter sage sauce is truly my favourite thing. Butternut and sage is a match made in heaven.

Hazelnuts - Toasted in the oven and sliced, they add a toasty crunch to the dish. Feel free to substitute for pine nuts, walnuts or anything else you like.

Goats cheese - It adds the perfect flavor and tang to the dish. I used an ash goats cheese as it looks so lovely. You could use anything you like, goats feta would work perfectly.

Ingredients on a wooden cutting board. From top a bowl of butternut filling, fresh sage, a ramekin of butter, a bowl of hazelnuts and a block of goats cheese.

Substitutions and variations

Filling - Use butternut squash or any type of pumpkin you like and is available to you. You could also substitute for a cup of canned pureé, it just won't have the same depth of flavor.

Pasta - There are plenty of filled shape options if you don't have a ravioli press or mold. Use my homemade ravioli guide or try my triangoli which is the easiest filled pasta shape for beginners.

Goats cheese - You can totally leave this off you are not a fan!

White plate with ravioli in a brown butter. Golden hazelnuts, pieces of goats cheese and crisp sage on top.

Expert tips

Timing

A filled pasta dish might look complicated but broken down into steps it's really achievable. Even if this is your first time making filled pasta, I know you'll love it!

Make the pasta and let it rest.
Roast the butternut and combine it with all the other filling ingredients.
Toast the hazelnuts in the oven when butternut comes out. Rub them in a clean tea towel to remove the skins.
Roll out the pasta and form the ravioli. Put the finished shapes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and dusted with semolina flour. Loosely cover with plastic wrap.
At this point you could freeze the ravioli to make at a later date. I always do this if having people over for dinner the next day, so on the night I just need to boil water and make the butter sauce! Check out my guide on how to store ravioli.
Cook the pasta in well salted boiling water and make the sage butter pretty much at the same time.
Divide the cooked ravioli between plates and top with the hazlenuts, goats cheese and butter sauce.
Serve!

Serving

Heat your plates! I NEVER serve pasta on cold plates, especially filled pasta where the plating might take a little longer. Have your plates in a warm oven while you boil the pasta, it's a top tip!

Cubed roasted butternut on a baking tray.

Butternut filling blended in a stainless steel bowl with a stick blender.

Making the pasta

You'll make my homemade pasta dough recipe, it has the perfect ratio of flour to eggs and works every time. There is also a guide on rolling the perfect pasta sheet with a pasta machine (or kitchen aid pasta roller) in that post. To cut down the work load you could bring the pasta dough together in a food processor, I do that a lot!

Have a nice clean work surface when making the ravioli, take a bit of extra time to clear any clutter away, you always need more room than you think.

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Pasta sheet being rolled through a pasta maker.

Make and roll the pasta.

Use a ravioli mold if you have one.

Homemade ravioli being cut on a wooden cutting board.

Or shape the pasta into any shape you like!

How to make a brown butter sauce

Lucky for you making a crispy sage butter sauce is kind of my specialty. I have a more intensive guide in my 10 minute brown butter for pasta. I also have a full guide to the best butter sauce for pasta so definitely check both of those out! Here is a run down:

Cubes of butter melting in a stainless steel pan.

Melt butter in a large skillet over a medium-high heat.

Melted cubes of butter sizzling with fresh sage leaves.

2. When the butter starts to get a good sizzle going, throw in the fresh sage leaves.

3. Continue cooking, swirling the pan.

Butter bubbling with sage leaves starting to crisp.

4. The butter will crackle quite loudly, keep swirling the pan so it cooks and browns evenly.

Crisp sage leaves in a foamy brown butter.

5. It will quieten down and the big bubbles will turn into a foam and will start to smell nutty. Turn the heat down to a medium heat if you are worried it will burn. You can remove the leaves with a slotted spoon if getting brown.

Stainless steel pan with a brown butter and crisp sage leaves. Butter has a layer of foam on top.

6. Continue to swirl so you can see under the foam and take it off the heat with the milk solids have turned into brown bits NOT black. The whole process will take 4 - 5 minutes.

Ravioli made with a mold with a brown butter, hazelnuts, goats cheese and sage.

Try this pumpkin risotto next!

Perfect for Fall, topped with crispy sage leaves.

Get the recipe

Want some other filled pasta dishes to try?

I have some delicious filled pasta recipes. Each time you make dishes like this you'll get quicker and grow in confidence. Try my Spinach and Ricotta Agnolotti or my Potato Ravioli with Prosciutto and Pine Nuts. If you want a super quick filling try my Simple Ricotta Ravioli Filling.

Agnolotti in a brown butter with walnuts, crisp sage and a fork piercing into pasta. — Spinach and Ricotta Agnolotti

Square ravioli on a white plate in a light cream sauce. Pine nuts and prosciutto on top. — Spinach and Ricotta Agnolotti

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