Making tortellini does require a little patience and time; however, the final result is worth every fiddly moment, and if you get everyone on board in the assembly line filling up the table, it speeds up the process and allows for a wonderfully intimate and fun afternoon together.
roasted pumpkin tortellini with sage butter
4 servings
The fulsome sage butter is soft and simple allowing the pumpkin tortellini to shine through. The addition of the fried sage leaves adds a nice crunch which contrasts with the silkiness of the tortellini.
The inspiration for this post is found here.
ingredients
pumpkin filling
1 kg pumpkin
1 Tbsp melted ghee/butter
¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
½ tsp fine rock salt
¼ tsp freshly ground pepper
sage butter and toasted leaves
60g unsalted butter
40 sage leaves – divided
salt and pepper, to taste
4 Tbsp peanut oil
to serve
few rounds of black pepper
a sprinkling of fine rock salt
preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
2. To make the filling, slice the unpeeled pumpkin in half, scoop out the seeds with a spoon, then slice each half into 5-6 wedges and place in a large bowl. Drizzle over the melted ghee or butter and toss with your hands until the wedges are sufficiently coated.
3. Arrange on a lined baking tray and roast for 30 – 40 minutes until soft. Allow to cool and scoop the pulp away from its skin with a spoon and place in a medium bowl and with a hand blender, puree until smooth. Allow to drain through a cloth or fine sieve for 1 hour.
4. Place the pumpkin back into the bowl and sprinkle over the nutmeg, salt and pepper; stir to combine.
5. Prepare the dough; divide the pasta dough into thirds. Work with one piece at a time and keep the other pieces covered. Follow the detailed instructions here. Roll your dough as thin as possible – #6 on pasta roller.
6. To shape the tortellini, cut the sheet of pasta into rounds using a 3-inch cutter or tin. Gather the scraps into a ball and put them with the remaining pieces of dough to roll later.
7. To fill the tortellini, place 1 teaspoon of filling in the middle of each round. (Don’t be tempted to overfill; otherwise, they will break and you will have difficulty sealing them.) Dip your finger in a water bowl and run it along the edges of the circle. Fold the rounds into a crescent shape, pressing the top together carefully, pressing out any air trapped inside, and then working your way along the sides. Bend the bottom two corners round to meet each other and press well to seal. Set aside, spacing them apart slightly, on a well-floured board, covered.
8. Repeat with remaining pieces of dough, re-rolling the scraps. (It is important to work on a well-floured surface to avoid the tortellini sticking as you repeat with remaining pieces of dough.) Cover with a cloth, or lightly dust them with semolina flour if you are making them a few hours in advance.
9. When ready to cook, bring a large pan of lightly salted water to a boil. While waiting for the water to boil, make the sage butter.
sage butter
10. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add half the sage leaves and season with salt and pepper. Turn off the heat and set aside.
11. Toast the remaining sage leaves in a small skillet, heat the peanut oil over medium-high heat and fry 6 – 8 sage leaves until crisp, 2–3 seconds. Transfer with a fork to paper towels.
12. Once the water is boiling, gently drop the tortellini and cook 1 ½ – 2 minutes – they will rise to the top. Gently lift out with a slotted spoon onto individual plates.
13. To serve, drizzle with the sage butter, sprinkle over a few spoons of pine nut parmesan, a few rounds of pepper, and decorate with the crispy sage leaves. The tortellini goes well with a plate of sauteed kale or nettles.
