Ricotta and Spinach Gnocchi

What is Gnocchi? Potato or Pasta?

Gnocchi is a type of Italian pasta traditionally made with potato, egg and flour, but the variations are endless. In Italian the word Gnocchi is derived from “nocchio” meaning “knot in the wood” or from nocca meaning “knuckle“.  I found this recipe in Food Network Magazine and Tuscan chef Gabe Bertaccini claims it as his own. I thought it would be interesting to try making Gnocchi with NO potato.

The ingredients looked so different and I was curious to try it. I read a lot of Food Blogs and many Bloggers “work” a recipe 20, 30 or 50 times before posting. That is not really my style. I am not about perfection and take delight and trying new recipes even if they are not perfect first time and love to share them with you as soon as I do! I’m happy to say these Gnocchi’s were pretty darn good right out of the gate!

Even though it is a little more work to make the sauce, it is definitely worth it! Make it the day before you are making and serving the Gnocchi’s, which makes the dish easier to come together and gives the sauce a day for the flavor to deepen. This red sauce is very similar to a sauce my good friend, Francine D’Anna makes called “Simple Sauce”. I learned how to make it when my husband, Jerry and I, were in Sicily visiting she and her husband, Joe a few years back. Joe was born in Sicily and we had loads of fun food shopping, cooking, touring, wine tasting and enjoying all that beautiful Sicily has to offer. Francine’s “Simple Sauce” is just that: Simple and delicious: Tomatoes cooked down with a tiny bit of olive oil and salt. This one uses the addition of basil, onion, garlic, salt and pepper.

Gabe did not use tomato paste in his recipe, but I decided to add 1 Tbsp. to further develop the flavor.

Start by gently cutting crosses at the top of each tomato. This allows the skins to begin to peel back as they are boiled making peeling very easy.

Bring a pot of salted water to boil and drop the tomatoes in for a couple minutes until you see the skins start to curl. Remove from the boiling water. Cool and using a pairing knife peel off all the skin. Chop the tomatoes and set aside. I used 6 tomatoes making about 2 1/2 cups chopped. Dice a small onion and 2 cloves of garlic.

Heat 2 Tbsp. of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook for a few minutes until just browned. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, basil (Gabe uses a sprig of fresh basil. I didn’t have any so used 1 tsp. of dried basil.), salt and pepper; reduce heat, cover and cook until thickened; about 45 minutes. Using the back of a spoon break down the tomatoes so the sauce thickens, but is still chunky. I continued cooking, with cover ajar, on very low heat for another 30 minutes.

TO DEHYDRATE THE RICOTTA

Preheat the oven to 225 degrees. Spread 1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese in a shallow baking dish and bake until very dry. Gabe suggests baking for 1 1/2 hours. At that point my ricotta was still very wet so I baked for another hour. I think I could have baked longer or possibly spread the ricotta thinner so more moisture was removed more quickly. This dehydrating technique is new to me and may need a bit of fine tuning.

Ready to dehydrate.

Out of the oven, dehydrating for 2 1/2 hours.

TO WILT THE SPINACH

Wash spinach thoroughly and remove the weed that grows alongside spinach. It is bitter and can alter the mild, pleasant taste of the spinach. There is nothing more annoying then to order a spinach salad in a restaurant and have these nasty things left in the salad.

Very bitter and for some reason shortens shelf life of the spinach. You can see that some of these leaves are already rotting.

I also took a short-cut in wilting the spinach. The traditional, and probably ‘proper’ way to wilt spinach is to add the spinach to a large pot of salted, boiling water and cook for 30 seconds. Remove and plunge into an ice bath to stop the cooking. Transfer to a kitchen towel and squeeze dry. Then finely chop.

After washing the spinach I placed in the microwave in batches. Cook for 30 seconds. Toss the spinach and cook another 30 seconds. Repeat until all the spinach is wilted. Cool completely and then using your hands squeeze as much water as possible out of the spinach.

Chop the spinach and set aside.

Finely chop 1 shallot. Grate about 3 Tbsp. parmesan cheese; more for topping when served.

I used a Bellavitano cheese, which is a cows milk cheese that starts out like parmesan but ends with hints of melted butter. This cheese also has merlot infused into the rind. Very yummy!

Heat 2 more Tbsp. of olive oil and add the shallot and cook 3 to 5 minutes until just browned. Next add the spinach.

Remove to a bowl. Cool slightly and then add the dehydrated ricotta, egg yolks, parmesan cheese, and flour. Taste and add salt, pepper and nutmeg. I didn’t get a photo as I was freaking out over my ricotta thinking it was too wet. I just added a little more flour and the consistency came together beautifully. Form the gnocchi into 1 1/2 to 2 inch balls or oblong shapes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and drop the gnocchi’s into the boiling water. Cook until they float to the surface; about 4 to 5 minutes. When they rise to the surface, gently remove and place in a colander to drain. At this point they are quite soft, but harden up as they cool.

Melt 6 Tbsp. of butter in a small pan over medium high heat and cook until the butter slightly browns and foams up.

Drop the gnocchi’s in and fry until golden brown about 4 minutes; gently rolling to brown all sides.

Divide the tomato sauce among plates or bowls, add the gnocchi and sprinkle with parmesan.

Both my husband, Jerry and I loved these Ricotta and Spinach Gnocchi’s, but I have to admit they are a fair amount more work than traditional potato gnocchi’s. Fun for a change, but be ready to spend a few hours preparing! Now that I’ve made them once I’m sure the next time will be easier!

BUON APPETITO!

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Ricotta and Spinach Gnocchi

Cheesy spinach power bombs, but still light and pillowy.

Ingredients

For the Gnocchi

• 1 1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese
• 2 Tbsp. Olive oil
• 11 oz. Spinach
• 1 Shallot, finely chopped
• 3 Lge. Egg yolks
• 1/2 cup Flour
• 3 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese, grated. More for serving.
• 1/8 tsp. Nutmeg, or to taste.
• Salt/pepper to taste.
• 6 Tbsp. Butter for frying Gnocchi after they are boiled.

For the Tomato Sauce

• 6 Tomatoes or enough to make 2 1/2 cups
• 1 Tbsp. Tomato paste
• 1 Onion, finely chopped; about 1/2 to 3/4 cup
• 2 Garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tbsp. Olive oil
• 1 tsp. Dried basil
• Salt/Pepper to taste

Instructions

To Dehydrate the Ricotta

• Preheat oven to 225 degrees.
• Place 1 1/2 cups Ricotta in a shallow baking dish and bake until most of the water is evaporated; about 2 1/2 hours. You don't want the Ricotta to turn to dust, but you don't want it watery either.

To make the Tomato Sauce

• While the Ricotta is dehydrating make the red sauce. Peel and chop 1 1/2 cups tomatoes. To make peeling easier, cut crosses in the tops of the tomatoes. Drop into salted, boiling water and boil until the peel begins to curl. Remove from the boiling water. Cool and using a pairing knife pull the skin off the tomatoes.
• Finely chop 1 onion and 2 cloves garlic. Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil over medium heat in a heavy bottomed skillet and cook onion and garlic stirring until browned. Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, salt and pepper and cook for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened. Using the back of a spoon, smash the tomatoes to make a chunky sauce. Reduce heat to very low and tilting the cover cook another 30 minutes. You can make this a day in advance.

To Make the Gnocchi

• Wash and stem the spinach. Wilt the spinach by either blanching or using the microwave. If blanching place spinach in a large pot of salted boiling water. Cook for about 30 seconds. Remove and place in an ice bath to stop the cooking. Remove to a dish towel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. If using the microwave; cook in batches 30 seconds at a time until wilted. Let cool and using your hands squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Chop finely.
• Heat 2 Tbsp. Olive Oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook until just browned; 3 to 5 minutes. Add the chopped spinach. Remove from the heat to a bowl. Let cool slightly.
• When the Ricotta has lost most of its liquid remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
• Add the baked ricotta, egg yolks, flour, and parmesan to the spinach shallot mixture. Mix until well combined. Add the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Adjust seasoning accordingly.
• Form into 1 to 1 1/2 inch balls. If the mixture is too loose, add a little more flour.
• Fill a large pot with water. Add 1 tsp. salt and bring to a boil.
• Meanwhile melt the butter in a small skillet and cook until browned; about 4 to 5 minutes.
• Cook the gnocchi in the boiling water until they float to the surface; about 4 minutes. Drain and let cool slightly as this helps firm them up.
• Toss them into the browned butter being careful not to crowd, as they are still soft and delicate. Brown on all sides.
• Serve on a bed of the tomato sauce and top with freshly grated parmesan cheese.