These homemade ricotta ravioli are delicate pasta pockets filled with creamy ricotta cheese. We toss them in a sage brown butter sauce that is so simple and beautiful!
Why I love it:
Homemade ravioli are completely different from the store-bought “fresh” pasta we can buy at the local chain grocery store.
They are incredibly delicate and tender-- beautiful pillows of pasta. The ricotta melts in the hot water to become lusciously creamy and milky sweet. And the layers of egg-rich pasta dough feel like silk on your tongue, with the satisfying balance of toothsomeness to tenderness.
Here’s the sad reality about homemade ravioli: they’re usually a little too tough and the ricotta filling is unpleasantly grainy.
Luckily, I’m all about perfecting recipes and techniques (this is how I rebrand my OCD) so you don’t have to waste precious hours making homemade pasta that isn’t very good. It’s so disappointing and discouraging. I want your homemade ravioli to blow.your.mind.
So read the tips below and get so excited to learn how to make the most delicate pasta pockets you’ve ever had.
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ricotta ravioli ingredients:
- pasta dough
- ricotta
- parmesan
- butter
- sage
How to make ricotta ravioli
- Make pasta dough.
- Roll it out to the second to last setting (7 on Kitchen Aid attachment) of a pasta roller.
- Dollop 1 tsp mounds of ricotta filling on a sheet, about 2” apart. Top with another sheet and press out air bubbles.
- Cut into individual ravioli.
- Melt butter and sage in a skillet, cook until nutty and browned.
- Gently boil pasta for 2- 3 minutes until tender and al dente.
- Add ravioli to brown butter with a splash of pasta water and parmesan, stir and cook until glossy. Top with crispy sage leaves. Enjoy!
Tips for the best ricotta ravioli:
- Use my homemade pasta dough recipe that is super high in egg yolks for the most delicate bite. I’ve included a few egg whites to keep the dough elastic and workable for filling the ravioli. Use 00 flour for best results!
- Roll the dough as thin as possible! Go to 7 on a Kitchen Aid pasta roller attachment, or the second to last setting on most pasta rollers. Pasta dough swells when you boil it, and the ravioli will always be thicker than you expect. We want them ultra-delicate, so go thin with the dough!
- To crank out ravioli even faster, get a ravioli mold! It’s actually my favorite way to make ravioli-- it’s fast and they come out so uniform looking.
- Use a water bottle to lightly spritz the dough sheets if they feel dry. This will help the dough seal itself!
- Cut up the rolled out scraps into small, random shapes called “maltagliati”. Freeze them and save for soup. You CAN re-roll those scraps, but the pasta always comes out a little bit tougher.
- Don’t overcook: Boiling for 5+ minutes will curdle the ricotta and give you a grainy textured filling. Gently boil just until the pasta is tender, about 2 minutes. Your filling will be indulgently light and velvety smooth.
- Cook at a gentle simmer! Full on boiling can jostle the ravioli against each other and cause breakage.
- Make these ricotta ravioli on a leisurely weekend afternoon and freeze them. Then boil the ravioli for 3- 4 minutes, straight from the freezer, and toss them in your favorite sauce. So quick!
To learn even more about ravioli, get my guide for perfect ravioli. I also share 5 delicious store-bought fillings that are fast and easy!
more homemade pasta recipes to try:
ricotta ravioli with sage brown butter
These homemade ricotta ravioli are delicate pasta pockets filled with creamy ricotta cheese. We toss them in a sage brown butter sauce that is so simple and beautiful!
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 4
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Homemade
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
ricotta ravioli
- 2 cups whole milk ricotta
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 batch egg pasta dough
- 00 or all-purpose flour, for rolling
- semolina flour, for dusting
brown butter sage sauce
- 1 stick (8 tbsp, 4 oz) unsalted butter, sliced
- 20 fresh sage leaves
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan
- kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Mix together the ricotta and parmesan in a bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper. If desired, transfer filling to a piping bag with a wide circle tip. Otherwise cover and chill until ready.
- Cut the pasta dough into 4 pieces and work with one at a time, keeping the rest covered with plastic wrap to prevent drying.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the pasta dough into a very thin sheet, about 1/32 inch thick. If using a pasta roller, start on the widest setting and gradually roll it to the second to last setting (setting 7 on the Kitchen Aid attachment).
- Generously dust a work surface and a baking sheet with semolina flour. Lay the sheet of dough on the work surface and cut it in half lengthwise. Spoon or pipe 1 teaspoon-sized dollops of filling onto the dough, spaced 2 inches apart. Place the second sheet of dough over the first, pressing gently around each mound to remove air pockets and seal the edges. Use a 2” cookie cutter to cut out individual ravioli and gently transfer to the prepared sheet pan.
- Repeat rolling dough and shaping ravioli. Cover loosely and refrigerate for up to 6 hours or freeze.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Meanwhile, in a skillet large enough to hold the ravioli, melt the butter with the sage over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring often, as butter foams and then begins to brown and smell nutty, 7- 10 minutes. Transfer crispy sage leaves to a small plate.
- Add ravioli to the boiling water and cook for about 2 minutes, until just tender. Use a spider to transfer pasta to the skillet along with ¼ cup pasta water, parmesan, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring and gently tossing the ravioli, until a light and glossy sauce forms and coats the pasta, 1- 2 minutes.
- Divide the ravioli among the bowls and top with crispy sage leaves. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ½
- Calories: 460
- Sugar: 0.5g
- Sodium: 497mg
- Fat: 29g
- Saturated Fat: 16g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10.5g
- Trans Fat: 0.1g
- Carbohydrates: 29g
- Fiber: 0.9g
- Protein: 21g
- Cholesterol: 282mg
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