Prepare the filling first | Preheat the oven on 200^oC. Peel and dice the squash, approximately 1 inch cubes. Place on a baking tray, add the garlic and thyme, olive oil, salt and pepper. Stir to make sure everything is well mixed and bake for 20 minutes or until the squash is soft. Remove from the oven and allow to cool down. In the meantime, put the ricotta in a bowl, discard any excess liquid. Add the parmesan, egg, salt and pepper. Finally, crush the squash finely and add to the ricotta mixture, fold in gently.

To make the pesto | Blend all the ingredients together and season with salt & pepper.

To make the beetroot pasta dough | Put the beetroot and the egg in a container. Blitz together to form a creamy liquid. Mix the egg mix and flour together, add a pinch of salt, and more flour if necessary. The mixture should be compact but workable. Divide the pasta into smaller pieces and feed through the pasta machine with the dial switched to the widest setting. Fold the sheet in half and feed it through again. Reduce the dial a notch at a time as you continue to feed the pasta back through the machine until you arrive at the required thickness (no.6 with my pasta machine). For ravioli, lay the sheet flat and brush with egg wash. Place a heaped teaspoon of filling at 4cm intervals. Place the second sheet on top of the first sheet and fillings. Using your fingers press firmly around each spoonful of filling before cutting the pasta (using a heart-shaped cutter for Valentine's!). Sprinkle the pasta with a little semolina flour to stop it from sticking. Bring a pan of water to the boil, add a pinch of salt and add the fresh pasta. Leave to cook for approximately 5 minutes. Drain and serve.

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Baking time 10 minutes | Mix the sugar and butter together. Add the remaining ingredients to the butter and sugar to make a compact dough. If using cold butter, the dough should be ready to roll, if not, cover the dough in clingfilm & put it in the refrigerator to chill before rolling. Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Divide the dough into small batches and roll out one batch at a time. Roll the dough approximately 5mm thick and cut into heart shapes. Place the hearts on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and put them in the oven. Bake for 8 minutes. Remove the biscuits, brush them with a little bit of egg white and sprinkle them with chopped pistachios. Bake for a further 2 minutes or until pale golden. Once cool they can be stored in an airtight container for up to 10 days.

Mix the eggs and flour together, add a pinch of salt and water if necessary. The mixture should be compact. Divide the pasta into smaller pieces and feed through the pasta machine with the dial switched to the widest setting. Fold the sheet in half and feed it through again. Reduce the dial a notch at a time as you continue to feed the pasta back through the machine until you arrive at the required thickness. Pass the pasta through the machine as required - spaghetti, tagliatelle etc. Sprinkle the pasta with a little flour to stop it from sticking. Bring a pan of water to the boil, add a good pinch of salt and add the fresh pasta. Leave to cook for approximately 5 minutes. Drain the pasta.

Baking time 10-15 minutes, plus rising | Put the flour in a large bowl and add the salt and sugar. Measure out the warm water and dissolve the yeast in it. Pour it into the mixture, add the oil, and stir with a wooden spoon. Using your hands mix the flour into dough until it leaves the sides of the bowl clean. Add a little extra flour if too sticky. Sprinkle some flour onto a clean work surface. Knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball and cut into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece until round. Grease a baking tray and space the balls on it, cover with a cloth or greased cling film. Place the tray in a warm place for 20 minutes or until the balls have doubled in size. Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6. Remove the cling film. Put the rolls in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes until golden brown.