Homemade Cheese Raviolis (Freezer Friendly)

The delicious creamy pillow of cheese that is ravioli may be my favorite pasta.

Raviolis were one of the first types of pasta I learned to make a few years ago. They can take some trial and error to get them right, but when you do, they are so satisfying.

If you have never made raviolis, I would suggest starting with this recipe. It is a simple cheese mixture that is a good base for future recipes.

How to make homemade pasta for raviolis?

You can make the pasta by hand or with a stand mixture with the dough attachment. Start by mixing the eggs with the flour. You can do this by making a pile of flour on a flat surface. Make a well in the center and place the eggs in the middle. Start adding a little bit of the eggs at a time until they are all incorporated. Once you have a loose ball formed you can add it to a Kitchen Aid mixer with the dough hook attachment and let it kneed the dough for 6 minutes. If doing it by hand, this part does take some time and some muscle. You will need to kneed the dough for about 10 minutes to make sure it is nice and smooth.

Once the dough has been made, place it in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest. Letting the dough rest relaxes the gluten that makes it easier to roll out later. During this time you can start the filling.

How to make raviolis by hand?

Once you have the dough made and rolled out to a sheet, you have the choice to form them by hand or use a ravioli press. If you are forming them by hand, these are the steps you want to follow.

1. Lay out the pasta sheet. Spoon 1 tsp of filling every 3 inches.
2. Using your finger, wet in-between the filling, where you want the top pasta sheet to stick.
3. Add the top sheet of pasta and press around the filling trying to get out as much air as you can.
4. Cut the raviolis out using a knife. With each ravioli press the edges together with your fingers or use a fork to press around the edge. You just want to make sure the edges and together so they don’t break while cooking.

How to make raviolis with a ravioli tablet?

Having a ravioli tablet or press is such a great way to make raviolis. It creates nice, evenly sized raviolis, but they are really only worth buying if you are going to be making raviolis often. I use the Marcato Ravioli Tablet. A less expensive version is the Amazon Ravioli Mold. If you have a ravioli tablet, this is how to use it.

1. Flour the tablet well and place a sheet of pasta over it.
2. Press the pasta into the dips. Make sure not to press too hard that you poke a hole in the dough.
3. Add your filling into each dip, about the size of 1 tsp.
4. Lay another sheet of pasta on top and using the roller press down the pasta. This part can be a little tricky. I normally do a few rolls over the whole thing and then press down on each edge individually to make sure the crease is created.

What sauce to use with the raviolis?

The beautiful thing about making cheese raviolis is that can go with many different types of sauces. A few that I like to use are:

• Drizzle olive oil, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes on top
• Tomato Sauce
• Vodka Sauce
• Arrabbiata Sauce
• Brown butter with sage and walnuts

Can I use different flour?

We use 00 flour in this recipe. 00 flour is a fine Italian flour that helps create a silky smooth dough. I typically buy the Antimo Caputo 00 Flour. If you can’t find 00 flour you can substitute it for all purpose flour. I have not tried it with whole wheat or gluten free flour so I am not sure how it would work in these. Typically whole wheat flours require more water, so this recipe might not be right for that.

Can I make these ahead of time?

Absolutely! You can make the filling ahead of this or you can make the full raviolis ahead of time. To make the filling ahead of time mix all the ingredients together and place in the fridge in an airtight container for 1-2 days. I wouldn’t make just the dough ahead of time. If you leave it in the fridge too long it may dry out. You can also make the raviolis and before cooking you can freeze the to save them for later.

How to freeze homemade raviolis

This is how to make frozen homemade raviolis:

1. Make raviolis how you normally would. Right before cooking them, place them in a single layer on a flour lined baking sheet. Place them in the freezer.
2. Let the freeze for about 1 hour. Then add them to a freezer bag and store until you are ready to use.
3. When you are ready to cook them, add the raviolis to boiling water and cook for 4 minutes.

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What to serve with raviolis?

Looking for some side dish ideas? Check out this post: What to Serve with Ravioli (Sides and Sauces)