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    Home » How-To

    Ligurian Pansotti

    Published: Dec 17, 2022 Modified: Dec 16, 2022 by Alan Bergo This post may contain affiliate links 7 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe


    Pansotti are one of the most famous dishes in Ligurian cuisine and the Italian Riviera. They're essentially a triangular ravioli filled with wild herbs, served with a walnut sauce sometimes referred to as white pesto.

    ravioli in a bowl with walnut sauce
    Ravioli with walnut sauce. Here using butternuts, or white walnuts.

    History


    Accounts vary. One version says the dish was born in the town of San Martino di Noceto, the word noceto translating to walnut grove.

    Another theory claims the dish was published by Touring Club Italia. A sort of cooking guide, they published a dish called "pansoti cu a salsa de nuge" or pansoti with walnut sauce in 1931.

    wild greens for sale in Italy
    Greens at the market. Sent from a reader in Torino, Italy.

    Finally, another theory claims General Pansoit invented the dish to serve his troops in the Italian Riviera. Either way, Ristorante Manuelina, a famous Michelin starred restaurant in Genoa, probably deserves some credit for popularizing the dish after it was introduced.

    close up of pansotti pasta
    Pansotti are similar to tortellini, but the filling sticks up to resemble a pot belly.

    The Shape

    If you want to be traditional the shape is important. The name pansotti comes from the word pansa, or pancia, meaning belly, referring to the filling that stands up.

    rolling out pasta dough with a pasta machine
    A machine is easier than a rolling pin.
    filling pansotti pasta with a pastry bag full of filling
    A pastry bag makes things go faster.
    Shaping pansotti pasta
    Making the traditional shape.

    The Filling

    There's two parts to the filling: the wild herbs and a specific cheese. You can mimic both easily at home.

    green pasta filling in a food processor
    Nettles give the filling a blue tint.

    Prebboggion

    The prebboggion, or prebuggiùn is a mixture of foraged bitter herbs and greens. Just like the history of the dish, what it "traditionally" contains can be up for debate. Some recipes call for up to 14 wild herbs, another recipe calls for 7 or as few as 4.

    a mix of many wild plants on a board
    My favorite version to date. Nettles, bladder campion, dame's rocket, dandelions, wintercress, violets and waterleaf.

    Modern recipes typically call for a mix of chard, parsley, chervil, endive or even spinach. Instead of trying to pin down an exact blend it's fine to use whatever you have on hand. Just make sure you have some bitter greens in the mix.

    a description of Italian preboggion from a book
    One reference includes 18 different plants.

    Borage

    If you want to stick to tradition, the mixture of greens should include 50% borage. Borage has a long history of use as a food in the Mediterranean and Italy where it's known as boragine.

    Borage flowers
    Borage greens and flowers are both edible.

    Prescinsêua

    Traditionally the filling is made with prescinseua: a sort of sheep or goat's milk cheese with a sour note. You can substitute chevre, or a mixture of ricotta and sour cream.

    There's a video below where I walk through a few different variations you could try. The video was commissioned by a pottery company in the Spring. Per their request it's much longer than my usual videos so feel free to skip ahead.

    ravioli in a bowl with walnut sauce
    Print Recipe
    5 from 3 votes

    Ligurian Pansotti with Walnut Sauce

    A traditional Ligurian ravioli filled with wild herbs served with a walnut sauce. Serves 6. Yield: Makes about 40 pansotti
    Prep Time1 hr 30 mins
    Cook Time30 mins
    Total Time2 hrs
    Course: Main Course, Pasta
    Cuisine: Italian
    Keyword: Mushroom Ravioli
    Servings: 6 Servings
    Calories: 488kcal
    Cost: 15

    Equipment

    • 1 Pasta roller
    • 1 Food processor

    Ingredients

    Filling

    • 1.5 lb foraged greens such as nettles, borage, dock, and dandelions.
    • 8 oz chevre or ricotta mixed with 25% sour cream
    • 2 egg yolks
    • 3 Tablespoons Grated parmigiano reggiano or grana padano plus more for serving
    • Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
    • Scrapes of fresh nutmeg to taste

    Pasta Dough

    • 10 egg yolks
    • 1 lb OO flour or all purpose flour
    • White wine as needed, a few tablespoons
    • 1.5 teaspoons kosher salt

    Walnut Sauce (makes about 2 cups)

    • 2 oz soft bread crust removed
    • 1 small clove garlic
    • ¾ cup milk
    • ¾ cup toasted walnuts
    • ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
    • 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh marjoram or oregano

    Instructions

    Pasta

    • Combine all ingredients except the wine in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Mix, adding teaspoons of white wine as needed to bring the dough together.
    • When a dough forms, use the hook attachment and knead the dough smooth, then wrap in cling film. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes.

    Filling

    • Wash the greens, then immerse them in boiling salted water until they're just tender. Remove the greens, cool and squeeze dry. Put the greens and remaining ingredients in a food processor and pulse until smooth.

    Assembly

    • On a surface dusted with flour, roll the dough out to the second-thinnest setting on the pasta machine. Cut the pasta into rough 3 inch by 15 inch rectangles.
    • Brush the pasta with water. Quickly divide 6 tablespoon scoops in the middle of the pasta. Cut the pasta into squares. Fold the edges over to make a triangle.
    • Fold over the opposite points and seal. Dust the pasta with flour and place on a cookie sheet in a single layer while rolling out the rest of the dough.

    Walnut Sauce

    • Tear the bread into pieces and cover with milk. Squeeze dry and add to a food processor with the other ingredients except the oil. Puree until smooth, adding a splash of milk to help it puree. Drizzle the oil in at the end.

    Serving

    • Boil a gallon of salted water. Simmer the pansotti until they float and are tender. Use a slotted spoon to put them in a bowl and add 1 ⅔ cups of the walnut sauce.
    • Gently toss the pasta with the sauce, taste and adjust the seasoning, adding hot pasta cooking water to thin the sauce and serve.

    Video

    Notes

    Different sizes 

    Some recipes will call for small quantities or teaspoons of filling. Make them whatever size you like.

    Freezing 

    You can freeze the pansotti after making on a cookie sheet lined with parchment. When they're frozen, put them into a container. Cook directly from frozen in boiling water. 

    Nutrition

    Serving: 6ravioli | Calories: 488kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.003g | Cholesterol: 88mg | Sodium: 150mg | Potassium: 537mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 11878IU | Vitamin C: 106mg | Calcium: 442mg | Iron: 4mg

    More

    Prebboggion: The Wild Edible Plants of Liguria

    References

    « Hickory Smoked Ice Cream
    Bladder Campion or Collejas »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Laura

      December 17, 2022 at 7:21 am

      Swoooon - beautiful video

      Reply
    2. Chris

      December 17, 2022 at 8:01 am

      Longer video: I definitely appreciated seeing the whole process. Thank you!

      Reply
      • Alan Bergo

        December 18, 2022 at 9:17 am

        Thanks Chris. I was shocked when they said 12 minutes. Too, 3 days just to edit.

        Reply
    3. Aurora

      December 17, 2022 at 10:03 pm

      the video is soo lovely to watch (and listen to) Alan, the foraging, prepping, cooking and eating - all beautifully done. Cant wait to cook this,... (am still trying to nail gf pasta, so darn fragile!)
      Merry Christmas and an awesome New Year to you - and a loving energy to all Natures bounty - from Oz x

      Reply
      • Alan Bergo

        December 18, 2022 at 9:16 am

        Thanks Aurora. Yeah, GF pasta is tricky. I've had success using pierogi dough and just making it a little thicker.

        Reply
    4. Chuck

      December 31, 2022 at 7:24 pm

      I googled Sochan plant and was directed to your website. You the man! Is it related to Celery?

      Reply
      • Alan Bergo

        January 02, 2023 at 9:40 am

        Chuck, it's not related to celery as celery is in the carrot family. Sochan is related to dandelions and daisies in the Aster family. The taste similarity doesn't reflect a genetic relation. Hope that helps.

        Reply

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    Chef Alan Bergo

    HI, I'm Alan: James Beard Award-winning Chef, Author, Show Host and Forager. I've been writing about cooking wild food here for over a decade. Let me show you why foraging is the most delicious thing you'll ever do.

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