Robiola cheese ravioli.

If you are a homemade ravioli fan, you’ll want to make this robiola cheese ravioli from Lombardy. The ravioli filling is super simple to make and super tasty with no cooking involved! The pasta dough has soft and hard wheat flour and eggs.

Serving the cooked cheese filled pasta with melted butter, grated cheese and chopped chives also makes this recipe extra delicious and pretty effortless!

The origins of this robiola ravioli recipe.

I found this recipe on a website about the food, wine and products of the Lombardy region called buonalombardia.it. Apart from information about the region’s food and wine, there are also articles on agrobiodiversity and food education.

Plus, they have recipes (some in English),and a section about educational farms and agriturismi (working farms with accommodation and/or restaurants). Definitely worth checking out if you are planning a visit to this part of Italy!

What is robiola?

Robiola is a soft cheese similar to stracchino (crescenza). The name robiola is said to come from the town of Robbio in Lomellina, in the province of Pavia, Lombardy, where they were already producing robiola in the 16^th century.  Also called robiolina, this is a soft, unfermented and slightly matured cheese that Italians make with whole cow's milk, sheep milk, goat milk or a mix.  

Robiola is a specialty in the Langhe area of Piemonte as well as the Brescia region of Lombardy and the Valsassina (Sassina valley) also in Lombardy.

Where to find robiola and what to use instead.

Although not as well-known as other Italian cheeses, you can usually find Robiola in cheese shops or Italian specialty shops. You can also buy it online. If not available, you can substitute the robiola in this cheese filled ravioli with stracchino (crescenza) , taleggio (robiola is milder) or even a mix of half ricotta and half mascarpone.

A little ravioli history.

Ravioli and other similar stuffed pasta originated in Northern Italy. There are actually many types of filled pasta, the names and the shapes can differ from region to region or, even from town to town. Many are square, rectangular or half-moon shaped.

But, there are also those shaped like candy or even shoes! What they nearly all have in common is the use of flour and eggs for the dough and a filling which can be with or without meat.

Though types of filled pasta are known to date back to early Roman times, it wasn’t until the 12th century that the first written evidence appeared describing ‘raviolus’ (square or round shaped pasta, most likely filled with ricotta and other ingredients).

This first written evidence originated in Liguria. However, other regions also claim the invention of stuffed pasta. In Lombardy, they believe casoncelli to be the first or one of the first types of stuffed pasta.

Ingredients for this robiola cheese ravioli.

The pasta dough.

Soft wheat flour: Italian usually use ‘00’ soft wheat flour to make stuffed pasta. ‘00’ is the finest ground white flour. Some people also use ‘0’ flour. You can make this cheese filled pasta with all-purpose flour too.

Hard wheat flour (durum wheat or semolina flour). In this recipe, I used 100g (3.5oz) of semolina flour with 300g (10.5oz) of soft wheat flour. Many Italians use some hard wheat flour in their ravioli pasta dough because it has a higher gluten content which helps the pasta keep its shape and consistency during cooking.

Eggs: As in most egg pasta recipes, the ratio of eggs to flour in this recipe is one egg per 100g (3.5oz) of flour. Use large eggs brought to room temperature. I also prefer organic eggs from free range chickens. They taste better and are healthier.

The filling.

Robiola. As mentioned above, if robiola is unavailable you can use taleggio, stracchino (crescenza) or a mix of ricotta and mascarpone for the filling.

Grana: Lombardy is one of the regions that produce Grana Padano cheese. So, this recipe calls for it. You can use parmigiano instead.

Chives: Chives are what give this filling a fabulous slightly oniony flavour. Use fresh chives not dried. You can use green onion tops instead of chives, but they have a stronger flavour.

Nutmeg: Freshly grated nutmeg is a common spice in Italian stuffed pasta fillings and white sauces. It adds a warm slightly sweet flavor. However, it is usually used very sparingly as too much can make a recipe taste soapy. Just grate in a little, maybe just a pinch.

The condiment.

This robiola cheese ravioli is traditionally served in a simple melted butter sauce with a little grated grana and a little more chopped chives.

Step by step instructions.

Make the pasta dough.

Sift the flours into a large bowl. Break in the eggs and add a pinch of salt.

Then use a fork to beat the eggs and start to mix them into the flour.

Next, use your hands to mix and knead the eggs and flour until you have the start of a dough that no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl.

Turn the dough out onto a flour dusted work surface and continue kneading for 5-10 minutes until the dough is quite soft and elastic.

Roll the dough into a ball and wrap it in some clingfilm (plastic wrap) . Let it rest for 30 minutes.

Make the robiola cheese filling.

While the dough is resting, put the robiola and grated grana into a bowl. Add some chopped chives, nutmeg and salt and then mix everything together with a fork. Put the filling in the fridge until ready to use it.

Make your robiola cheese ravioli.

Cut off a quarter of the dough and rewrap the rest so it doesn’t dry out. Flatten the dough piece with your hands or a rolling pin. Then pass it through your pasta machine at the widest setting. (Mine is 7 but some are 1).

Fold the first dough sheet into thirds and pass it through the same setting with the narrowest side first. Repeat this step again twice.

Then pass the dough sheet through two narrower settings (I use 5 then 3, for others it will be 3 then 5). Place the ready dough sheet on a flour dusted surface. Cut it in half so you have 2 sheets of equal length.

Place the second dough sheet on top of the first and press down gently around each ball of filling.

Use a pasta/ravioli cutter to cut out the filled ravioli. Place the ravioli on a flour dusted tray, tea towel or sheet of baking paper. Repeat with the rest of the dough and filling.

Finish and serve.

Once you are ready to serve your cheese filled ravioli, put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. Add salt once it starts to boil and bring to a boil again!

While the water is heating melt the butter in a skillet large enough to hold the pasta. Heat it until it just starts to brown.

Cook the ravioli in the boiling salted water until they are al dente. Cooking times may vary depending on the size and thickness of your stuffed pasta. I usually wait until a minute after the ravioli have risen to the surface of the boiling water. But test taste before draining!

Using a slotted spoon transfer the ravioli to the pan with the melted butter. Mix the pasta and butter carefully over a low heat until the ravioli are coated in butter. Add some grated cheese and more chives and serve immediately.

What to do with leftovers.

You can freeze your homemade robiola ravioli and then cook from frozen. Place a tray with the pasta into the freezer. Once the raviolis are frozen, transfer to freezer bag.

You can store your cooked and dressed robiola ravioli sealed in the fridge for 2-3 days. Reheat in the microwave or fry them in a little butter (delicious!).

Let me know what you think.

If you like making homemade ravioli, this recipe is a must-try. These robiola filled raviolis are so delicious and pretty easy to make. The filing is no-cook and the dressing just melted butter, grated cheese and chives!

If you make this recipe I’d love to hear how it turns out and if you liked it. Please leave a comment here on the blog or on The Pasta Project Facebook page. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Buon appetito!

Pin for later.

Other homemade ravioli recipes to try.

1. Ligurian potato and mint ravioli.
2. Sardinian ricotta and saffron ravioli.
3. Sweet ravioli from Friuli Venezia Giulia.
4. Heart shaped chocolate ravioli.
5. Meat ravioli (agnolotti) from Piemonte.
6. Ricotta ravioli with steak sauce from Marche.

If you are interested in buying some traditional pasta making tools check out my shop page (affliate links). Plus while you’re there, why not order a copy of one of my pasta recipe cookbooks? They make great prezzies for pasta lovers!