Great news for pumpkin lovers who are looking for something new and different! This month all of the food blogs are just brimming with pumpkin recipes. There are pumpkin bars, cheesecakes, cookies, and breads all of which are just too luscious to resist. But finding pumpkin recipes that lean to the savory side is a bit more challenging. UNTIL TODAY! I have found Trader Joe’s Honey Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli! What a delicious idea and the little pillows of pumpkin joy have inspired me to create a sauce that does them justice.
I thought that Honey Roasted Pumpkin would be on the sweet side so I wanted to go for a more savory sauce. I started thinking about spaghetti carbonara (stay tuned on that one as I plan on posting a recipe I have been using for over 40 years for the best version of that dish) and the ingredients that might mesh well with a pumpkin filling. Crispy bacon, caramelized onions, mascarpone, sage (a great companion to pumpkin) and a smooth, creamy sauce.
So, while I claim to be leaning to savory, I could not resist adding a bit of the most delicious Pumpkin Butter from Trader Joe’s. It added a bit of a spice to the sauce that gave it some additional color and the pumpkin really enhanced the pumpkin in the ravioli. Any pumpkin butter will do but the Trader Joe’s version is really amazing. I have been eating it on EVERYTHING. Did I mention, while on this interesting pumpkin theme the pumpkin and cranberry crackers that happen to be coated in cinnamon sugar. Yeah, that pumpkin butter is almost gone. Not going to admit I opened it three days ago. Might have put a spoon in it and just took a taste………….not confessing anything here.
Today’s tips and tricks is about onions, both cooked and raw. First, caramelized onions are a huge favorite of mine. If I see them on a menu as an ingredient, I almost always order that dish. Same with wild mushrooms. And goat cheese. And truffle anything. Do you love some ingredients so much that they jump out and say “ORDER ME, ORDER ME, ORDER ME” when you eat out? I’m like that. So, back to caramelized onions.
Tips and Tricks–Caramelized onions
There is a very simple way of making them but shortening the time is not in the caramelized onion equation. Sorry. The best caramelized onions are very soft and brown (not burned). Caramelized has meaning here folks. The best way of making onions do the caramelized thing is to slice them into thin slices and dry them off.
Saute them in a large, very hot skillet in two tablespoons of olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon of salt per onion, first over medium high heat. The pan should be very hot. The salt helps them soften a bit. Keep stirring them. When they start to get nice and toasty brown, you give them a little bath in a small amount of either chicken broth or water ( 2 tablespoons for each onion you are using) to stop the browning for a little while and let them soften. The liquid cools them down a bit and gives them a chance to get some heat to cook them through so they are not burned on the outside and raw on the inside. You want them soft and brown, remember?
Once the liquid has boiled off, turn the heat down to medium and stir, stir, stir until the onions are evenly brown and look almost like jam. If the onions are not getting soft enough, you can raise the heat back to medium high, add a bit more broth or water and when the liquid evaporates, turn the heat down again and cook for awhile longer over medium heat. The whole process should take about 20 minutes for 2 large onions, more if you are using more. Remove from the heat and use in any recipe. The recipe can be modified for any number of onions so long as they fit in the pan and can be stirred often without flying all over the stove.
Tips and Tricks–Calming raw onions down
I love cooked onions. They add a terrific flavor to so many dishes. The raw ones, not so much in my opinion. I love the taste but I hate that they bite back. They are pungent and strong and what I hate most is that the taste lingers in your mouth for hours. So to solve that problem (some people might disagree that this is actually a “problem” and I understand that), the best thing to do is before you use raw onions in any recipe, soak them in ice water for 15 minutes, dry them off, and use them. This works with all kinds of onions–red, yellow and white–and with shallots as well. For example, when making salad dressing with shallots, this little tip/trick really preserves the flavor but eliminates the one-two punch. Subtle. I like subtle in salad dressing!
So there you have two new tips and tricks which can be used in your general repertoire!
As for the Trader Joe’s Honey Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli, I hope you agree that a little touch of savory sauce combined with the sweet, delicious pasta is a great combination. Enjoy the Fall days and pumpkin everything. Like everything else in life that gives us pleasure, time moves too fast and things disappear before our eyes. Take time to savor what you can (including pumpkin and pumpkin and more pumpkin!)
Trader Joe's Honey Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli "Carbonara"
This recipe uses the limited edition Honey Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli from Trader Joe's in a delicious sauce that would also go with any pasta. Perfect for Fall as the weather turns chilly!
Ingredients
- 1 package Trader Joe's Honey Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli can use any package of fresh ravioli or any type of dry pasta
- 4 slices thick cut bacon
- 1 T. olive oil
- 1 large onion thinly sliced and dried off with paper towels and salted with 1/2 tsp salt don't use sweet onions like Vidalia as those are not great for caramelizing
- 2 tsp. dried sage make sure it is a fresh jar so it has lots of flavor. Rub between your fingers to release the oils
- 4 T. chicken broth or water
- 1/3 c. mascarpone cheese can also use plain cream cheese (regular or low fat)
- 1/3 c. hot chicken broth
- 1/4 c. hot pasta water remove from the pot when the ravioli are done
- 1 T. Pumpkin Butter preferably Trader Joe's
- salt and pepper to taste
- parmasean cheese
- 2 T. chopped parsley
Instructions
-
On a lined sheet pan, bake the bacon in a 350 degree oven until it is brown and crisp. Drain on paper towels, crumble and set aside.
-
In a large saute pan, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add the salted onions and stir often. They will cook fairly quickly over medium high heat. Do not lower the heat as the onions start to brown.
-
After 5-6 minutes, the salted onions should be nicely browning. Add the chicken broth or water all at once and stir quickly. Be careful as the liquid will bubble vigorously.
-
When the water is nearly all evaporated, lower the heat to medium and keep stirring until the onions are soft and brown.
-
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and put a colander in the sink. Be ready to add the ravioli as soon as the sauce is finished. They only take 2 1/2 minutes to cook.
-
Add the mascarpone cheese to the sauce and stir until blended. Add the chicken broth, crumbled bacon, salt and pepper to taste. Don't over salt because the bacon is salty.
-
Add the ravioli to the boiling water and keep stirring the sauce until it is thickened. By the time the ravioli is cooked after 2 1/2 minutes, the sauce should be thick and creamy.
-
Scoop out 1/4 c. of pasta water from the ravioli pot and add to the sauce. Drain the pasta in the colander.
-
When the pasta water is incorporated, stir in the pumpkin butter and add the ravioli to the pan all at once and give the ravioli a nice coating of sauce. Stir them gently until well coated and remove pan from the heat.
-
To plate them, put half of them on two plates, sprinkle them with parmesan cheese and parsley.
Recipe Notes
Only serve these to the person(s) you really love and appreciate because these ravioli are truly SPECIAL.
The pumpkin ravioli looks delicious! I can’t wait to try this recipe!!! – Laura E-B
Thanks for the support!
Please let me know how you like it!
Oh my god! These look amazing. I bet a certain Italian man loved them!