Recipe for success: Sweet Potato Ravioli

Since I flaunted a raw meat picture on the last recipe entry, I thought it best to cater to the vegetarians this time. Please to enjoy.

Sweet Potato Ravioli
For me, the best part of homemade pasta is making your own ravioli. The cut pasta is alright, but being able to make ravioli stuffed with all kinds of deliciousness is something you can't always get at your local grocery store. With a few sweet potatoes on hand, I thought whipping together a sweet potato ravioli in sage butter sauce would really hit the spot. Even though the recipe seems involved, I assure you it is fairly easy to pull together. I mean - "mash the potatoes" is a step all its own - it can't be that bad, can it?


Pasta (or get pre-rolled pasta dough. I am sure at least the posh grocery stores carry it)

1. Assemble the ingredients: 1 cup flour plus more for rolling. 1 egg . pinch of salt . up to 1/3 cup water


2. Add the flour, salt and egg to a food processor and mix. While mixing add the water until the dough starts to come together.


3. Dump the contents of the food processor on a floured surface. Roll the mixture into 2 balls and let sit for a few minutes.


4. Roll the dough using a pasta roller or by hand (I highly recommend the former method for nice, consistently flat dough). For ravioli I find stopping at a setting 3 is perfect (on my pasta roller 8 is the thickest and 2 is thinnest).

Filling

1. Assemble the ingredients: 2 sweet potatoes . brown sugar . butter . salt
2. Cook the sweet potatoes. I chose to nuke the suckers in the microwave, but whatever your preferred method should do.
3. Peel and mash the cooked potatoes.
4. Add the brown sugar and butter to the mashed sweet potatoes, throw in a dash of salt. Really very little brown sugar and butter goes a long way. Mix the mash thoroughly.

Assembling and cooking the pasta

1. Place a teaspoon of the filling on the pasta dough.


2. Using your finger or a kitchen brush, brush water around the edge of the filling. (This step helps seal the edges of the ravioli. No ones wants leaky ravioli.


3. Place another layer of rolled pasta dough over the dough with the filling.


4. Press the top layer of dough down around the edges of the filling, being sure to not get air bubbles. If you do happen to get an air bubble, puncture the dough to let the air escape and then pinch the dough back together.


5. Cut the ravioli to size with a knife, cookie cutter or whatever cool contraption you may have.


6. Once all the raviolis are assembled, drop them in boiling water. Since it is fresh pasta, it will cook quickly (like 2 minutes or less).

The sauce

1. Assemble the ingredients: 3 Tbsp Butter . a few Sage leaves (fresh or dried - fewer if using dried)


2. Add the butter and sage leaves (whole) to a skillet.


3. Melt the butter and let the sage flavor the butter.


4. Pull out the sage leaves and drizzle the butter sauce over the cooked pasta.