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Overhead view of pansotti con salsa di noci, coarse walnut sauce, marjoram leaves, grated Parmigiano, wooden table.

Pansotti con Salsa di Noci: Herb Ravioli, Walnut Sauce

Ligurian pasta parcels stuffed with greens and ricotta, boiled and tossed in a coarse walnut sauce made from soaked bread, garlic and olive oil.
Prep Time 50 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 35 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Main Course (Pasta)
Cuisine: Italian (Ligurian)
Calories: 435

Ingredients
  

For the pasta dough
  • 300 g '00' flour plus extra for dusting
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 pinch salt
For the filling
  • 350 g spinach and chard mix (or preboggion) washed
  • 200 g ricotta well drained
  • 1 large egg
  • 40 g Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
  • 1 pinch nutmeg
  • 1 tbsp fresh marjoram, chopped or 1 tsp dried
  • salt and black pepper to taste
For the walnut sauce
  • 100 g walnuts, shelled
  • 30 g day-old bread, crust removed about 1 slice
  • 80 ml whole milk for soaking the bread
  • 1 garlic clove small
  • 50 ml extra virgin olive oil
  • 20 g Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
  • salt to taste
  • 2 reserved pasta water to 4 tbsp; to loosen the sauce
To serve
  • Parmigiano Reggiano, grated extra, to taste
  • 2 tbsp walnut pieces, toasted optional, for garnish

Method
 

Make the pasta dough
  1. Mound the flour on a work surface and make a well in the center. Crack the eggs and salt into the well and whisk with a fork, gradually pulling in flour from the edges.
  2. Knead the dough for 8 to 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Wrap in cling film and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Make the filling
  1. Wilt the spinach and chard in a pot with just the water clinging to the leaves, 3 to 4 minutes until fully collapsed. Drain, cool, then squeeze bone dry, this step matters, a wet filling will thin the ricotta and split the pasta later.
  2. Chop the squeezed greens finely and mix with ricotta, egg, Parmigiano, nutmeg, marjoram, salt and pepper until evenly combined.
Make the walnut sauce
  1. Soak the bread in the milk for 5 minutes, then squeeze out the excess milk.
  2. Blitz the walnuts, garlic, soaked bread, olive oil, Parmigiano and a pinch of salt in a food processor, pulsing in short bursts to a coarse, spoonable sauce, not a smooth paste.
Shape the pansotti
  1. Roll the pasta dough to about 1 to 2 mm thick, using a pasta machine or rolling pin. Cut into 6 cm squares.
  2. Spoon a teaspoon of filling into the center of each square. Fold into a triangle and press the edges firmly to seal, pushing out any air pockets. You should end up with about 45 to 50 pansotti.
Cook and serve
  1. Bring a 8-quart / 7.5 L stockpot of salted water to a boil. Working in two batches so the pot isn't crowded, cook the pansotti for 3 to 4 minutes, until they float and the pasta is tender. Lift out with a slotted spoon before adding the next batch.
  2. Reserve a cup of pasta water, then drain the pansotti gently.
  3. Toss the pansotti with the walnut sauce in a warmed bowl, loosening with 2 to 4 tablespoons of reserved pasta water until the sauce coats the pasta evenly.
  4. Plate and top with extra Parmigiano and toasted walnut pieces. Serve right away.

Notes

  • Squeeze cooked greens bone dry before mixing the filling
  • Rest pasta dough 30 minutes before rolling for easier handling
  • Keep walnut sauce coarse, don't over-process it into a paste
  • Cook pansotti in two batches so they don't stick together in the pot
  • Freeze uncooked pansotti on a tray before bagging to keep them separate