Pumpkin & Walnut Ravioli With A Creamy Sage Dressing

This is a wonderful recipe for Thanksgiving. It uses some of the traditional ingredients you want to see on the menu like pumpkin, walnuts and sage and it's so wonderfully colorful that it enhances any Thanksgiving table.
The ravioli are time-consuming, but simple to make. They can be made days, even weeks, in advance and frozen. Prepare your sauce Thanksgiving morning and then just before serving time plop the frozen ravioli into a big pot of boiling salted water for a few minutes, drain and toss in the sauce and serve!

For the pasta:
600 grams (1 1/3 pounds) flour
6 eggs
75 grams (2.6 ounces) fresh spinach, steamed and squeezed dry

For the filling:
400 grams (14 ounces) pumpkin, baked at 300 oF until tender
100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) grated parmesan cheese
100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) ricotta cheese
1 egg
100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) walnuts, finely chopped

For the sauce:
20 sage leaves, finely chopped
150 grams (5.3 ounces) butter
100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) pumpkin, baked at 300 oF until tender, finely cubed
1 Cup (237 ml) cream
1 teaspoon salt
100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) grated parmesan cheese
150 grams (5.3 ounces) walnuts, finely chopped

To prepare the filling:
Put the baked pumpkin through a potato ricer.
Add the other filling ingredients.

To prepare the pasta:

Place the flour on your work surface. Make a large well in the flour and put your eggs and spinach in the well. Gently beat the eggs with a fork and then gradually begin to incorporate the flour into the eggs. When the dough becomes too stiff to work comfortably with the fork, flour your hands and work in the rest of the flour. knead the dough for 5 minutes until it is smooth and elastic. Divide the pasta into four pieces. Work with one piece at a time, keeping the remaining pieces covered so they do not dry out. Roll the pasta into one long, paper thin strip. The strip should be about 8 inches wide (20 centimeters). Cut the strip in half lengthwise. If you use a pasta machine roll the pasta out to the thinnest setting.
Put a teaspoon of filling along one of the pasta strips, about two inches (5 centimeters) apart. Using a pastry brush, moisten the pasta strip around the filling and lay a second pasta strip on top. Gently press around the filling to seal, pressing out any trapped air.
Cut the individual ravioli into squares using a pasta cutter or a knife. Place the ravioli on a lightly floured dish towel to rest while you prepare the remaining ravioli. At this point the ravioli can be cooked or frozen for future use. If you freeze the ravioli do not thaw them prior to cooking.

To prepare the sauce:
Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the sage, the cream, cubed pumpkin and salt. After a minute remove from the heat.

Cook the ravioli in boiling salted water until al dente. Gently remove the ravioli using a slotted spoon and transfer to the sauce. The ravioli are very delicate and can easily break if not removed from the water with care. Toss the ravioli gently in the sauce, transfer to a serving platter & sprinkle with parmesan cheese and walnuts.