Directions

1. Begin by preheating the oven to 400 F.
2. Halve the butternut squash and place both pieces, skin side-down on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Roast the squash halves for 45-50 minutes or until a knife slides cleanly through the flesh.
3. While the squash is roasting, toss the walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat for 5-10 minutes until they are browned and fragrant. Remove from the heat, roughly chop and set aside in a small bowl. Remove and cool while you make the pasta dough.
4. Pour the flour into a large mixing bowl and using your fist, create a well in the center. Crack the eggs and yolks into the well and sprinkle with salt. Using a fork, begin by whisking the eggs until homogenous and then, begin to slowly cut in bits of the flour surrounding the well to incorporate into the egg mixture. Drizzle in the olive oil and continue mixing by cutting in more and more flour as the egg and olive oil mixture thickens and a shaggy dough forms.
5. At this point, move from using the fork to using your hands to gently knead the dough. Lightly dust a clean, flat work surface with flour and turn out the dough. Knead for 5-7 minutes, adding a small handful of flour as needed, until it is no longer wet and has formed a smooth, soft ball.
6. Set the dough aside in a clean, lightly floured bowl and cover with plastic or a dish towel. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
7. While the dough is resting, scoop out the butternut squash flesh and place it in a food processor or blender. Strain the ricotta through cheesecloth or doubled up paper towels to release some of its moisture. Then, add the ricotta in with the butternut squash. Blend until the mixture is smooth and homogenous. Add the salt, pepper and nutmeg and blend to incorporate.
8. To begin making the tortellini, cut a quarter of the dough to use and rewrap the rest in plastic so it does not dry out. Using either a pasta machine or rolling pin, roll out the dough to roughly ¼” thickness.
9. Using a knife or pasta cutter, cut small rectangles of dough, approximately 4” x 2”. Spoon or pipe a teaspoon of the butternut squash mixture in a roughly inch long line near the bottom of a rectangle of dough, leaving a ¼” of space between the filling and the edge of the dough.
10. To form the caramelle, roll the dough lengthwise as to encase the filling, ensuring none has escape out of any of the seams. Use your index fingers to press down on the ends of the rolled pasta, on either side of the filling, therefore sealing and enclosing the filling. Finish by taking the flattened ends of the dough and pinching them between your thumbs and forefingers to create the candy-like shape.
11. Place the caramelle on a plate or baking sheet lightly dusted with flour and cover with a dishcloth. Continue with the rest of the dough and filling until all the caramelle are formed.
12. Make the sauce by melting the butter in a shallow saucepan. Whisk in the cream and follow by crumbling in the Shropshire cheese, stirring constantly until it has melted and the sauce thickens to a smooth consistency.
13. Meanwhile, heat the canola oil in a separate skillet and drop in the sage leaves, one by one. Fry until fragrant and lightly browned. This shouldn’t take long, so pay close attention as you don’t want to burn the leaves! Remove to the leaves to a paper towel-lined plate.
14. Boil a pot of salted water and carefully drop the caramelle in, stirring gently to ensure none of the fresh pasta sticks to the bottom of the pot.
15. Once the caramelle rise to the surface of the boiling water, allow them to cook for a minute more before removing with a slotted spoon to the Shropshire cream sauce, sitting over low heat next to the boiling pot.
16. Toss the pasta in the Shropshire cream sauce to generously coat and plate. Top with the crushed toasted walnuts and the fried sage leaves.