Homemade Ravioli Pasta Dough

A basic pasta dough recipe and traditional homemade Ricotta-filled dough, a family favorite.

We used to traditionally have these only for Holidays or special occasions.

A family favorite that has been handed down from generation to generation.

Easy to make, a little time consuming but so very worth the efforts!

Sometimes store-bought ravioli will do.

But the real deal is to make this soft pillow-like-filled pasta, homemade.

Tender pasta filled with fabulous flavored cheese inside topped with Traditional Italian Sunday Sauce.

this is a big pan of homemade ravioli with tomato sauce and fresh basil

The Sauce

Mom always said ravioli is best topped with Traditional and Classic Italian meat sauce.

You can make your own sausage-style meat bolognese sauce which has ground sausage in it or get a good brand that's store-bought.

I have topped them with marinara sauce, shredded mozzarella, and broiled the top with all that melted cheese heaven.

We also love to use an Alfredo sauce or Vodka Sauce, now and then for a change.

These ravioli are delicious with so many sauce toppings, we even love them with a little pasta water, butter, little pepper and loaded with grated cheese on top!

homemade tomato sauce with sausage and meatballs for pasta

Ravioli

Ravioli is an Italian pasta macaroni dough with a filling enveloped in the thinly rolled egg dough.

These shapes to make are commonly square, though other forms are also used, including circular and semi-circular.

The earliest writing on the recipe comes from Francesco di Marco, a merchant of Venice in the 14th century.

Typically, ravioli are boiled and served with a rich tomato meat sauce, although some parts of Italy bake their ravioli in cream sauces after boiling them.

Ingredients

eggs
egg yolks
flour
water
oil
for filling:
ricotta
eggs
parsley
cheese
pepper
salt
mozzarella

Dough

Preparation for the dough.

Dump the flour in a pile on a work surface.

Make a deep, wide well in the center and pour in the eggs, olive oil, and salt.

Wash and dry your hands. Wrap the dough loosely in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 8 hours.

If you love ravioli you may also like Italian Fried Ravioli.

Tips:

It's hard to get them all the same size unless you have a machine Use a square cookie cutter with fancy edges or even used a round glass that's has a 3-inch width in size
seal edges with fork tines or a crimping tool
if using a mold spray with cooking oil first for easy removal
do not overuse flour or this will make the dough tougher
keep the dough covered when not in use with a wet dish towel so it doesn't dry out
roll the dough out to 1/4 inch in thickness
always salt the water
homemade ravioli cook quickly when they float to the top of the boiling water they are done
use any kind of sauce you prefer
check out our filling suggestions below for a variety this dough is very versatile
for baked ravioli boil them drain add to a baking dish and pile the top with mozzarella cheese and broil the top until browned or use ravioli for a baked lasagna

these are homemade ravioli that are crimped with a fork on a cutting board with flour

Looking for Gourmet fillings?

Try our filling combinations: for seafood use a scampi sauce instead of tomato sauce
spinach and crushed meatballs in tomato sauce
mushrooms with spinach and ricotta cheese
butternut squash pureed, eggs, and nutmeg
crab meat or lobster meat mixed with ricotta and grated cheese
crushed sausage in tomato sauce
meatballs crushed with tomato sauce
ground beef cooked without sauce with grated cheese and garlic, eggs mixed

Pin for later Homemade Ravioli

this is a recipe for ravioli homemade and how to make them

More Recipes We Love

Mom's Homemade Italian Sausage Recipe

Pasta and Broccoli Aioli

Homemade Orecchiette

Mom's Recipe

As I said earlier, this is an easy recipe for ravioli dough that takes a little time and you will never buy them again.

The dough is delicious, soft, and nothing like anything you can buy.

Treat yourself and try mom's recipe.