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Italian Cuisine Expert and Food Blogger
Guido Pedrelli
Guido Pedrelli, the mastermind behind Nonna Box, has honed his culinary expertise for decades, inspired by family feasts in Emilia-Romagna. Mentored by his restaurateur nonna, he mastered Italian classics and furthered his skills with professional culinary studies in desserts and gelato making from Mec3. Today, he shares this rich legacy and authentic recipes through Nonna Box.
Spinach and ricotta tortelloni pasta is one of the most iconic recipes from Bologna and it plays a big part in traditional Italian cooking. Recently, I was feeling nostalgic and wanted to create a traditional meal from scratch that took me back to my time spent in Bologna, so I decided to make this popular dish following the original recipe. I made the pasta dough, rolled it with a pasta machine and hand-made each tortelloni filled with my creamy spinach and ricotta mixture.
There are many types of stuffed pastas: ravioli, tortellini, cannelloni, but I love the round, belly-button shape of tortelloni. I paired it with a simple butter and sage sauce and voila…the perfect pasta dish was served.
Here is a list of the items you will need to make this yummy dish for yourself.
The recipe, although long, is not complicated to follow. It will take you about an hour from start to finish.
To make the filling, start by putting the frozen spinach in a large skillet over medium heat, add a little water and cover and cook for 5 minutes or until defrosted and warm all the way through (photo 1).
Transfer into a large sieve in the sink and drain and then leave to cool. When cooled, squeeze all the excess water from the spinach (photo 2).
Put the spinach, ricotta, Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, nutmeg, salt and pepper in a food processor (photo 3) and pulse until the mixture has a creamy consistency and set aside (photo 4).
To make the tortelloni dough by hand: on a cutting board or other flat surface, create a mound with the flour and then create a large crater in the center of the mound. Add the salt and the eggs into the crater and slowly incorporate the flour into the eggs with a fork until it is fully mixed (photo 5). Now knead by hand for 5-7 minutes, folding and flattening and turning. Create a ball and wrap it in plastic wrap and leave it to rest for 30 minutes (photo 6).
To make dough with a stand mixer: Add flour, eggs, and salt in the mixing bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment. Knead on speed 2 for five minutes. Remove the dough and knead by hand for 2 minutes. Shape into an round disc, cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Cut off a 1-inch piece of dough, flatten into a rectangular shape and add a small amount of flour to both sides.
To make pasta by hand with a rolling pin: Place the piece of dough on a flat surface and roll out with a rolling pin (photo 7). Fold in half and roll out again. Now fold in half and roll out until you have a thin long sheet (photo 8). You can dust with flour at any point if the dough starts sticking to the rolling pin. Once it is thin enough, set aside to rest on your working table.
To make pasta with a pasta machine: Use a pasta machine or attach the pasta attachment to your stand mixer and set it to #1. Turn on the stand mixer to speed 2 and run the first piece through the roller. While on #1, fold the dough in half and run it through again (photo 9). Do this twice. Adding a little bit of flour on each side again, change setting to #2 and pass the pasta dough through the sheet roller twice. Now pass the pasta through twice on #3 and then once on #4 #5 #6. Add flour to each side of your long pasta sheet and set it on your working table.
Let the rolled out pasta rest for 3 minutes.
Cut into squares of approximately 3-inch square cookie cutter or with a thin knife.
Put one heaping teaspoon of filling on each square, brush water all around the edges.
Fold the square in half to form a rectangle and press down to remove any air and seal the edges where they come together (photo 10-11).
Bend the rectangle so that the outer corners come together, forming a classic tortelloni shape, a pinch them to seal and set aside on your work surface (photo 12-13).
In a large pot bring water to boil, add coarse salt and then cook the tortelloni for 3-4 minutes (photo 14).
For the butter sage sauce, saute the butter and sage in a skillet over medium heat for 4 minutes.
Add cooked and drained tortelloni directly into the saucepan and gently stir to coat with the butter sauce (photo 15).
Serve immediately and garnish with some Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, black pepper and some torn sage leaves.
Try other homamade pasta from scratch:
Our favorite filling variation is amaretti biscuits and pumpkin, a variation that is from Northern Italy:
Yes! You can easily freeze uncooked tortelloni. Place them on a flat cookie sheet or other similar flat dish that will fit in your freezer. Freeze for several hours on the sheet and then transfer to a freezer-safe Ziplock bag once fully frozen. They can then be stored for up to 3 months and used directly frozen (without defrosting) by boiling in water.
Cooked tortelloni can be stored for 24/48 hours in the fridge in an airtight container. They can be reheated with a splash of water and a little extra butter or drizzle of olive oil and then cooked for a few minutes in the microwave or in a saute pan on the stove top over medium heat until warmed through.
The difference between the big and small version of this pasta is simply the size and the typical fillings. While tortelloni are traditionally stuffed with ricotta and spinach, the smaller version of this pasta, tortellini, are traditionally stuffed with a meat filling and served in chicken broth. There is also the tomato sauce with meat, called Bolognese, that is a favorite from Bologna to top the smaller or bigger version.
How big is a package of spinach? It must vary by brand and location surely, perhaps better to include weight measurement please