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The rich and luxurious creamy white wine sauce in this easy ravioli recipe is a showstopper! It’s ready in just 20 minutes for a special weeknight treat.
Try my Easy Marsala Sauce or Easy Pink Sauce Pasta or Ravioli alla Vodka next.
Why you’ll love it
Here we completely transform store-bought cheese ravioli into a gourmet dish that’s effortless to throw together! It’s absolutely smothered in a homemade white wine sauce with everyday ingredients. You could even use lobster ravioli with this cream sauce for an unforgettable date night meal.
It’s such a good feeling when you can actually create a restaurant-quality meal at home and impress your family and friends, and that’s exactly what will happen when you make this cream sauce for ravioli with parmesan, white wine, and plenty of garlic.
What you’ll need
- Ravioli – we chose a refrigerated 4-cheese variety with ricotta, mozzarella, pecorino romano, and gorgonzola. You can also use frozen if you wish.
- Butter and flour – to make a quick roux to thicken the sauce
- Garlic – if you’re a garlic lover, you can of course add even more than suggested
- Dry white wine – choose one you’d enjoy drinking since it’s a star of the sauce, not cooking wine
- Heavy cream – really important to get that decadent consistency!
- Italian seasoning – it’s a fragrant blend of dried herbs that comes in a single jar
- Parmesan cheese – always grate your own for optimal freshness and taste
- Fresh parsley – Italian parsley adds a pop of freshness and contrast
Helpful tips
- I used a pinot grigio for this recipe. Other dry white wines like sauvignon blanc or even chardonnay will work. I suggest using a wine you’d actually drink since the taste does come through in the sauce. You can always drink the rest of the bottle with dinner. 😉
- In general, I don’t recommend subbing the cream for a lower fat alternative in sauces like this one. It may not thicken up the same way, so you may need to adjust cooking time/add more flour. Half-and-half could work, but you’ll likely need to adjust cooking time so it thickens up enough, and there’s a greater chance it’ll curdle.
- Always grate your own parmesan from a block. The pre-grated stuff isn’t nearly as fresh or good quality, and it won’t incorporate into the sauce well. I use my Microplane zester to grate it.
How to make ravioli sauce
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Boil a salted pot of water for the pasta. Refrigerated pasta doesn’t take too long to cook, so don’t boil it too early. Meanwhile, in a skillet make a quick roux with the butter and flour. Add in the garlic, followed by the wine. Let it bubble until reduced.
Whisk in the heavy cream until the flour is dissolved. Stir in the Italian seasoning, and cook it until it thickens up. Add the parmesan cheese, stir until combined, and remove the skillet from the heat.
Sprinkle in the chopped parsley, and season generously with salt & pepper. Add in the drained cooked ravioli, toss with the sauce, and enjoy!
Substitutions and variations
- Feel free to swap the ravioli with tortellini! This sauce would work great with any pasta, really.
- Want to make it even more special for date night? Change up the cheese ravioli for something different like lobster ravioli.
- Try swapping the Italian seasoning for Herbs de Provence for a fancy touch, or you could use chopped fresh herbs if you happen to have some. Chives and oregano would be good options!
What to serve with this recipe
- For a lighter option, try this Arugula Salad with Fennel and Cheese and a slice of crusty bread or a dinner roll.
- If you’d like to serve it as a side dish, try it with these Garlic Butter Steak Bites or this Easy Pan Seared Salmon Recipe.
Leftovers and storage
- Keeping in mind that the ravioli may soak up the sauce, I recommend eating this within a couple of days. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Reheat slowly over a low heat on the stove so that the sauce doesn’t separate. You could try microwaving it, but use 30-second increments so it doesn’t overcook.
- I don’t recommend freezing cream sauces. Once thawed, the texture is grainy and usually becomes separated.
I’d love to hear from you in the comments below if you made this pasta or have any questions!
White Wine Cream Sauce for Ravioli
Ingredients
- 20 ounces refrigerated cheese ravioli
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning or Herbs de Provence
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 1-2 tablespoons parsley chopped
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Boil a salted pot of water for the ravioli. Try to time the pasta being ready the same time as the sauce (the sauce will take about 8-10 minutes to make).
- When the pasta is about 10 minutes away from being done, add the butter to a skillet over medium heat. Once it melts, sprinkle the flour in and cook for about 1-2 minutes, stirring fairly often. Let the roux turn slightly golden but not too dark.
- Add in the garlic, followed by the wine. Let it bubble until it's reduced by half (this will happen quite fast, so keep an eye on it).
- Whisk in the cream so the flour dissolves completely, then stir in the Italian seasoning. Cook it for a few minutes until the sauce has thickened up to your liking.
- Stir in the parmesan cheese and take the skillet off the heat.
- Stir in the parsley and season with salt & pepper as needed (I am generous with both).
- Add the drained ravioli to the skillet and toss until coated (add a tablespoon or so of the hot pasta water to the sauce prior to draining it if it's thickened up too much). Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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supper sauce made it last week w/ ravioli. this week vegies and salmon.
I love that!!
Would this be good with beef ravioli’s? I have beef not cheese
I think so!
Made this tonight for hubby’s birthday it was sooo delicious will definitely be making it again & share with friends.
Fantastic!! 🙂 I’m so glad it was a hit. Thanks so much for your review, Trish!
Love this recipe it’s easy and tastes yummy! My whole family loved it!
Fantastic!! Thanks so much for your review, Caryn!
Delicious. Ate with grilled shrimp and spaghetti.
Awesome!! I’m so glad it was a hit. 🙂
Simply delicious 1st. Time making this and we loved it thank you for a great recipe
You’re very welcome! Glad you liked it. Thanks for your review!
Finally I found you. I have been trying to find the “go to” white sauce for quite some time. The requirements are not that stringent.
1. it has to be simple.
2. it has to be constructed with ingredients I regularly have around, no exotics.
3. it has to enhance the flavor of the ravioli, not bury it.
4. everyone has to like it…
Well Ms. Natasha, you have done it. I followed your recipe this evening and within 45 minutes “Start to finish from a bare kitchen” I had a meal on the table that all would be going in for seconds.
Thank you for creating my “go to” white sauce.
That’s great, Tim!! 😀 Thanks for your review! So happy you like this recipe.
Thank you! Turned out great! Even using dried parsley 😀
That’s awesome! 😀 Thanks for your review, Bill!
I always wing a sauce for Costco frozen spinach and cheese ravioli and this one was a hit! Love the wine flavor and the creamy decadence, plus it was super quick and easy. Will definitely make again.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Kathleen!! 🙂
Wonderful recipe! I think I actually had it ready in less than 20 minutes. So easy but delicious! Subbed tortellini for the ravioli. The whole family loved it!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Leslie!! 😀 Appreciate your review!