Ligurian pansotti with nut sauce
4 servings
90 minutes
Ligurian pansotti with walnut sauce is a classic dish of Italian cuisine from Liguria. These tender dumplings, filled with a mixture of fresh herbs and ricotta, embody the lightness of Mediterranean gastronomy. The thin handmade dough envelops the fragrant filling, while the delicate walnut sauce gives the dish a soft creamy texture with a subtle nutty bitterness. The taste of pansotti is a balance of fresh herbs, creaminess of cheese, and spice from nutmeg. This dish is perfect for a warm family dinner or a romantic evening, revealing the richness of Italian traditions and highlighting the simplicity yet sophistication of local cuisine. Serving with a drizzle of olive oil and fresh parsley makes each portion a true culinary masterpiece.
1
Prepare all the ingredients.
2
Prepare the dough. Pour half the flour into a bowl, crack an egg into it, and mix with a fork until smooth. Gradually add the remaining flour.
- Wheat flour: 400 g
- Chicken egg: 4 pieces
3
Place the dough on a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for 1 hour.
- Wheat flour: 400 g
4
Boil water in a pot, add salt, and toss in the chard, spinach, and arugula. Blanch for 30 seconds, then transfer the greens to ice water to retain their color.
- Chard (Swiss chard): 100 g
- Spinach: 100 g
- Rocket (arugula): 100 g
5
Squeeze the blanched greens and chop them.
6
Add ricotta, chopped parsley (leave a little for garnish), 20 grams of grated Parmesan, lemon zest and juice, and nutmeg to the greens. Season with salt and pepper and mix thoroughly.
- Ricotta cheese: 100 g
- Parsley: 10 g
- Parmesan (Parmigiano Reggiano): 30 g
- Lemon: 1 piece
- Nutmeg: to taste
- Salt: to taste
- Ground black pepper: to taste
7
Prepare the nut sauce. Remove the crust from the bread and soak it in milk. Then blend the bread with milk, walnuts, remaining parmesan, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, and salt.
- White bread: 30 g
- Milk: 50 ml
- Walnuts: 50 g
- Parmesan (Parmigiano Reggiano): 30 g
- Garlic: 0.5 clove
- Olive oil: 100 ml
- Lemon: 1 piece
- Salt: to taste
8
Divide the dough into four parts and cover with plastic wrap. Take the first part and roll it through the pasta machine — the thickness of the finished sheets should be 1–1.5 mm. Do the same with the remaining dough.
9
Place the sheet on a surface sprinkled with semolina flour, cut it into squares of 8 cm sides. Place 1 teaspoon of filling on each square, join and press the corners to form triangles. Repeat the same with the remaining dough.
- Semolina: to taste
10
Boil the pasta in salted water for 3-5 minutes.
11
In a saucepan, heat the nut sauce, diluting it with a few tablespoons of pasta water. Drain the pasta and add the pansotti to the sauce.
- Olive oil: 100 ml
12
Serve the pansotti warm, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with chopped parsley.
- Parsley: 10 g
