Italian National Dishes
Balanzoni
Last updated: 2026-08-26
Recipe at a glance
Balanzoni
Key recipe details from the source.
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Preparation
- 40 minutes
- Cooking
- 20 minutes
- Total
- 60 minutes
- Approx. energy
- 660 kcal per serving
Bologna, Emilia-Romagna
Balanzoni
Balanzoni are Bologna’s green stuffed pasta parcels, with spinach in the dough and a filling of ricotta, mortadella and Parmigiano Reggiano. The shaped pasta is boiled briefly, then coated with pale butter and sage rather than buried under a heavy sauce.
01 · Overview
Overview
Bologna’s De.Co. register recognises balanzoni as a local specialty. Their identity comes from two elements working together: a spinach-coloured egg pasta and a savoury dairy-and-mortadella filling, shaped in a form related to tortelloni.
Moisture control matters twice. Squeeze the spinach very dry so the dough remains firm, and drain the ricotta so the filling stays compact. Good sealing then becomes much easier and the parcels are less likely to open in the pot.
Dry spinach thoroughly
Water hidden in the greens quickly turns a manageable pasta dough into a sticky one.
Keep the butter pale
The finishing pan is for coating the pasta, not frying it.
02 · Ingredients
Ingredients
Green pasta
- 300 g
- plain flour
- 2 large (about 100 g without shells)
- eggs
- 60 g
- cooked spinach squeezed very dry
Filling
- 250 g
- cow’s-milk ricotta well drained
- 60 g
- Parmigiano Reggiano finely grated
- 120 g
- mortadella finely chopped
- 1 g
- ground nutmeg about 1/2 teaspoon
- 3 g
- fine salt
Butter and sage finish
- 50 g
- unsalted butter
- 3 g
- sage leaves about 10 leaves
- 30 g
- Parmigiano Reggiano finely grated for serving
03 · Directions
Directions
Make the pasta and filling
About 35 minutesDry the spinach
Cook the spinach with very little water, then uncover and drive off excess moisture. Cool and squeeze it firmly before weighing 60 g.
The spinach must be dry enough not to soften the pasta dough.Knead the green dough
Blend or chop the spinach finely, then knead it with the flour and eggs until the dough is smooth, firm and evenly green.
The dough should be elastic and not sticky.Mix the filling
Finely chop the mortadella and combine it with ricotta, 60 g Parmigiano, nutmeg and salt. Mix until evenly distributed but not runny.
The filling should hold a spooned mound without spreading.
Shape, boil and finish
About 25 minutesShape the balanzoni
Roll the dough thinly and cut it into 7–8 cm squares. Place a small mound of filling in each, fold into a triangle, seal the edges firmly, then bring the two corners around a finger and join them.
Keep the edges free of filling so they seal securely.Boil
Bring a large pot of salted water to a gentle boil and cook the balanzoni for 3–5 minutes, until the pasta is tender and the parcels rise and move freely.
The pasta should be cooked through while the parcels remain intact.Finish with butter and sage
Melt the butter with the sage in a wide pan without browning it. Drain the balanzoni carefully, turn them through the butter and serve with the remaining Parmigiano.
Coat rather than fry the pasta; the butter should remain pale.
04 · Control points
Control points
Dough
Firm and elasticAdd no extra water unless the dough genuinely cannot come together after sustained kneading.
Boil
Gentle movementUse a steady rather than violent boil so the filled parcels do not split.
| Problem | Guidance | Adjustment |
|---|---|---|
| The parcels open in the water | Filling or flour prevented the edges from sealing. | Keep filling away from the border, brush off loose flour and press out trapped air before closing. |
| The dough is sticky | The spinach or ricotta introduced excess moisture. | Squeeze the spinach more firmly and dust minimally with flour while rolling. |
05 · Practical
Practical
Freezing
Freeze uncooked balanzoni in a single layer, then bag once firm; boil from frozen, allowing a little extra time.
Serving
Finish with butter, sage and Parmigiano so the mortadella-ricotta filling remains the dominant flavour.
06 · FAQ
FAQ
Are balanzoni the same as tortelloni?
They are related in shape, but the locked Bologna version is defined by green spinach pasta and its mortadella-ricotta-Parmigiano filling.
Can the filling be made ahead?
Yes. Keep it refrigerated and use it within the normal safe handling window for fresh ricotta and mortadella.
07 · Nutrition
Nutrition
- Calories
- 660 kcal
- Carbohydrate
- 58 g
- Protein
- 31 g
- Fat
- 35 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
- Sodium
- 980 mg
Approximate values per 1 of 4 servings. Based on the four-serving source formula plus a fixed 30 g Parmigiano serving allowance. The source reports 640 kcal; this calculation rounds slightly higher after locking the finishing cheese.