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This quick and easy Pesto Cheese Zucchini Ravioli with Burst Tomatoes is best for nights when you’re craving Italian, but also wanting to keep things light and summery. Summer zucchini is sliced into ribbons and rolled up with a basil pesto and ricotta cheese mixture. Then baked in a simple wine and burst cherry tomato sauce with fresh thyme and garlic. This ravioli is creamy and cheesy with a sauce that bursts in your mouth with flavor. Totally delicious. And surprise? It’s also so quick and easy!
It’s a ravioli kind of Tuesday! Welcome back guys! Hope you all had a fun long weekend and July 4th! I will hopefully have made it to Mexico by the time you all read this. Though I’m currently sitting on the studio floor typing this up on Sunday night in prep for a day of travel tomorrow….
But, I’m envisioning today, when I’ll be hanging with Asher by the pool in the Mexican sun.
Anyway, I’m really excited to tell you about this zucchini “ravioli”. It’s extra cheesy, saucy, delicious, and you know, even pretty healthy too. But most importantly, it’s just delicious, and a great way to use up that farmers market zucchini.
Here’s the truth…
I’ve never loved, loved zucchini. Sure, I do enjoy it roasted, but it needs to be roasted, not underdone and watery. I’ve found that most zucchini dishes can tend to be watery thanks to the huge amount of water zucchini contains.
Whenever I work with zucchini, I always try to think up a fun way to, one, reinvent it, and two, make sure it’s extra delicious and perfectly cooked.
This means I’m either grilling it up, like I did with this vegetable sandwich. Or I’m cutting it into ribbons and giving it a whole new look, like with this ravioli. Zucchini is not the most flavorful vegetable, so I figure we ought to really dress it up.
The details
This dish is simple and so fun to make. I love to start with the cherry tomato sauce. It’s simply a toss up of cherry tomatoes, olive oil, wine, garlic and thyme. We’re roasting the sauce in the oven until the tomatoes just begin to burst.
The tomatoes will caramelize and be just a touch sweet. But the balsamic vinegar and wine add just the right amount of acidity to balance out the tomatoes.
While the tomatoes are roasting, make the ravioli.
Start out by slicing the zucchini into thin ribbons. I find this easiest to do with a mandoline, but you can use a knife as well. You’ll want to lay the zucchini flat, sprinkle it with salt, and let it sit a few minutes. Doing this will draw out any excess water and make the zucchini ribbons pliable for rolling.
Then just mix fresh ricotta cheese with some basil pesto and provolone. Wrap the cheese up in the zucchini. It looks all fancy, but it’s actually the easiest to do.
At this point, place the zucchini “ravioli” seam side down into the tomatoes. Then just roast the entire dish in the oven until the zucchini is warmed throughout.
No boiling water, and only one messy baking dish too!
Your kitchen will smell incredible as this bakes away. It’s just like cheesy ravioli, but minus the pasta, so it’s perfectly light and fitting for warm summer nights.
You guys know me, I’m usually all about the pasta. But this cheesy zucchini is surprisingly filling and layered with great flavor and texture! I would add bread on the side though for scooping up the extra tomatoes. YUMM!
Hope you guys enjoy!
Looking for other zucchini recipes? Here are some favorites:
Spicy Zucchini Ricotta Lasagna with Oregano Breadcrumbs
Zucchini Parmesan Chicken Meatballs with Lemon Pasta Carbonara
Cheesy Zucchini Chicken and Rice Bake
Chocolate Chunk Almond Butter Zucchini Bread
Lastly, if you make this Pesto Cheese Zucchini Ravioli with Burst Tomatoes, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Pesto Cheese Zucchini Ravioli with Burst Tomatoes
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 298 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 3 cups cherry tomatoes
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 1/3 cup dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 3-4 medium zucchini or summer squash
- 3/4 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded provolone cheese
- 1/3 cup basil pesto
- fresh basil and thyme, for serving
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425° F. 2. In a baking dish, toss together the tomatoes with the garlic, olive oil, wine, balsamic vinegar, thyme, and a pinch each of crushed red pepper, salt, and pepper. Bake 10-15 minutes or until the tomatoes begin to burst. 3. Meanwhile, make the ravioli. Using a mandolin or sharp knife, peel the zucchini into 1/4 inch ribbons and lay them flat on a kitchen towel. Sprinkle the zucchini with salt. Let sit 5-10 minutes, then blot away the excess water. 4. in a bowl, combine the ricotta, provolone, and pesto. Grab 3-4 zucchini ribbons and layer them to make a star. Start with 1 ribbon, then add another to make an X. Now make another X with the remaining 1-2 noodles that will overlap with the current X (see above photo). Spoon 1 tablespoon of filling onto the center of the zucchini. Bring the ends of the zucchini together, laying them over the cheese. Repeat with remaining zucchini and filling. 5. Remove the tomatoes from the oven and lay the ravioli seam side down in the sauce. Drizzle the ravioli lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 15 minutes or until the ravioli is warmed through. Serve with fresh basil and thyme. Enjoy!
I made these but used feta and shredded mozzarella because that’s what I had and it was great! My husband said it was like an explosion of flavor in every bite! ?
Hey Cindy,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for making it! Have the best weekend! xTieghan
Made this tonight & it was delicious! I read the comments first so I used the mandolin to slice the zucchini & it worked great. I served mine over orzo, along with a glass of Chardonnay, which is what I put in the tomatoes. This is a great end of summer dish for using up your zucchini, tomatoes & basil!
Hey Jennifer,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear it was a winner:) xTieghan
Made this for lunch and it was delicious! Cut the zucchini 1/8 thick and 1 inch wide. Used 3 slices per ravioli to make a star. Thanks for the great recipe! Can you please try beaver tails and a pizza sauce?
Hey Reba,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear it was a winner:) I will add to my list. xTieghan
Oh my goodness it’s to die for! The only thing I changed, because I wanted to use it up, was blending some sun dried tomatoes into the ricotta. But I am definitely going to make this on the regular! Another stellar recipe!!
Hey Dani,
Awesome! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! Have the best weekend:) xTieghan
Serious amazing!!!! I have a bit of a tough crowd over here and your recipes are a slam dunk every time. Thank you for all you do!!!
Hey Lisa,
Awesome! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! Have the best weekend:) xTieghan
Recipe calls for 1/4″ cut on the zuchinni. Needs to be 1/8″. 1/4″ to thick to form into ravioli, needed toothpick to hold together. Rest of the recipe, fabulous.
Hey Karen,
Thank you so much for giving this recipe a try, love to hear that it was enjoyed! Have the best week:) xTieghan
This was unbelievably delicious. I love so many of your recipes however the flavors of this one that linger after eating are so good.
Hey Christine,
Happy Sunday! I am so glad this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! xxTieghan
Super tasty! I made little cannolis instead of ravioli & it worked great!
Hey Amanda,
Happy Wednesday! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for making it! xTieghan
Recipe was great! Will definitely make it again. Similarly to another comment, the ¼ slices were a bit tough to mold so next time I’m going to try ⅛. Thanks!
Hey Alyse,
Happy Wednesday! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for making it! xTieghan
OK, flavor-wise this was good. However, I followed the directions for cutting the zucchini but it was still too thick to roll/fold properly. A lot of my zucs ended up snapping in half, which then meant that the filling fell out. I would make this again but mandolin the zucs thinner.
Hey Ashley,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try! Sorry you had issues with your zucchini, I slice mine 1/4 inch thick but you can always go thinner if needed:) xTieghan
Hi, I’ve been making your recipes for months now!! Always good. I tried this one, it was delicious! However I made it as a lasagna, as I had trouble keeping the zucchini ribbons folded over. It was still awesome, and I’ll make it again!!
Hey Michelle,
Fantastic! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am delighted that it was enjoyed:) xTieghan
Absolutely beautiful! Really enjoyed it, super tasty and fresh ?
Hey Sharna,
Fantastic! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am delighted that it was enjoyed:) xTieghan
This recipe was so so SO good! And it was really fun to make. I need to make double next time because I want a pan to myself ?
Hey Zoe,
Wonderful! Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear that it was enjoyed! xxTieghan
These were amazing! For the past month, I’ve only been making Half Baked Harvest recipes….they have all been wonderful! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Hey Colleen,
Happy Friday! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! Have a great weekend:) xTieghan
Loved the flavor profile – so gave it a go!
Tweaks –
Once the zuchs were sliced, I salted them, left them in a strainer for ~10 mins to remove water
I added fresh sliced corn to the ricotta mixture and topped the ravioli with a little parmesan at the end.
Reatlly fantastic, simple meal!
Hey Laurie,
Happy Friday! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! Have a great weekend:) xTieghan
Perfect meatless Monday dinner! I didn’t get pliable slices from my zucchini so I just made rollatinis. Really delicious with fresh pesto.
Hey Meg,
Happy Wednesday!! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for making it! xxTieghan