The Chopping Block Cooking & Wine Blog

Taking the Easy Pumpkin Way Out

Written by Kelly | Oct 6, 2015 1:30:00 PM

It’s not that I’m a lazy person. Really. Just… some days you really want dinner to be as simple as possible. I had one of these days recently. It was on my day off and it had wonderfully turned to fall overnight. Almost by magic, everyone in Chicago had pulled their hoodies out from the back of their closet.

Autumn is my favorite time of year for so many reasons. The chilly weather seems to revitalize me. Also, I love the flavors. When October rolls around, we all know that it is pumpkin season. Whether you are getting your pumpkin flavor in your coffee, baked items, or perhaps a nice stiff drink - it’s hard to avoid pumpkin. So, why not just embrace it?

I was torn. I wanted to go out and enjoy that pure, crisp fall air, but I also wanted a nice warm meal at the end of the day… and seeing as it was my day off, I didn’t want to work too hard.

I am the master of finding easy recipes. By which I mean, I type whatever I want to make on Google and I simply add the word ‘Easy’ to the front. And today was no different. I was looking for a nice EASY pumpkin ravioli.

I just recently started venturing in making my own pasta at home and it’s wonderful! I love the flavor, the freshness, how involved the recipe is… but I didn’t want to go through all that today so I found a simple Pumpkin Ravioli Recipe that I am going to keep for a long time to come.

Easy Pumpkin Ravioli

Filling:

  • ½ cup of canned pumpkin
  • 1 lightly beaten egg yolk (save the white, we’ll use it later)
  • 2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese grated.
  • 1 tablespoon of breadcrumbs
  • 1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon of sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper.
  • Pinch of nutmeg
1. Mix all of the ingredients for the filling in a bowl until well mixed.
2. Lay out 16 wonton wrappers on parchment paper and place a rounded teaspoon of the filling inside each wrapper.
3. With the remaining egg whites, whisk lightly and brush along the edges of the wonton wrapper.
4. Fold the wrapper in half and press to seal the sides.
5. Set aside and cover with damp towel.
6. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the ravioli. Be sure not to add too many at once and be sure that are not sticking to one another.

For the sauce:

  1. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan.
  2. Add as much dry sage as desired (or fresh sage would be really great too!)
  3. Stir in 2 teaspoons of dry sherry.
  4. Season with salt and pepper.

Once the raviolis are done, plate them and put the butter sage sauce on top. Garnish with walnuts or pomegranate seeds or both!


There are so many reasons I love this recipe. It’s easy and quick, but it doesn’t feel or present itself that way. You can easily have a really nice day at the pumpkin patch or walking along the lake, and come home and make this light pasta dish in no time at all.

Looking for other wonderfully autumn dishes that utilize pumpkin? Our Pumpkin Donuts are definitely a favorite. Come take a look at The Chopping Block's fall hands-on cooking class The Great Pumpkin, and discover what other dishes really showcase one of my favorite gourds: the pumpkin.

Saturday, October 17 10am Lincoln Square

Sunday, November 15 3pm Lincoln Square
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