Ricotta Gnocchi

Gnocchi hold a special place in my husband's heart. (You can read all about it in my post on potato gnocchi.) So when I mentioned the Daring Cook's Ricotta Gnocchi challenge, he was intrigued. When I told him the ingredients were ricotta, eggs, and Parmesan, he said "so it's a cheese ball?"

Regardless, my husband and I enjoyed the gnocchi-shaped ricotta cheese balls. I just had to avoid calling them gnocchi lest I trod upon his sentimental attachment to the potato version.

The ricotta gnocchi proved to be delightfully delicate, unabashedly cheesy, and intensely flavorful. So intense, these gnocchi were satisfying sauced only with a cloak of butter. But I was worried about the photo shoot, so I served mine with a tomato butter sauce enriched with a bit of cream and white wine, with italian sausage rounds on the side.

This was my first challenge with the Daring Cooks, a community of food bloggers who every month all cook the same recipe and share the results on their individual blogs. This month the chosen recipe was Ricotta Gnocchi from the Zuni Cafe Cookbook by Judy Rodgers. It was a daring recipe because it called for fresh ricotta and because gnocchi can be temperamental.

I used Heidi Swanson's Homemade Ricotta recipe, which you can find at her website 101 Cookbooks. It's whole milk ricotta and the recipe worked like a charm, making 4 cups of tangy curds. The ricotta drained nicely, leaving a dense, dry mass of cheese that squeaked slightly in my teeth.

Ricotta Gnocchi

This recipe is based on the Ricotta Gnocchi recipe in The Zuni Cafe Cookbook. It was delicious in a simple butter sauce, but equally as enticing in a creamy & buttery tomato sauce.

2 cups fresh ricotta, thoroughly drained
2 large eggs
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 cup finely shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour, for shaping gnocchi

1. Use a fork to vigorously break up the ricotta in a medium bowl, making sure there are no large chunks. Add the eggs and stir well. Add the melted butter, nutmeg, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and salt. Stir vigorously until dough is cohesive and soft.

2. Prepare a large pot of salted boiling water for the gnocchi. You'll need it ready for a test batch before you form the whole batch of gnocchi.

3. Spread the flour on a large tray or rimmed baking sheet. The flour helps to form the gnocchi and keeps them from sticking.

4. Make a few test gnocchi. I didn't want a smooth surface on the gnocchi, so I deviated from the Zuni Cafe method a bit. I used the tip of a spoon to scoop about 2 teaspoons of dough into a roundish ball, which I dropped onto the floured tray. I gently pushed the gnocchi around in the flour to coat it on all sides. Then I picked it up and very gently rolled it along my wooden gnocchi board, using just enough pressure to flatten the ball into an oblong and to make striped indentations on the gnocchi. [This technique is much different from the rolling technique I use for potato gnocchi. The result is a solid oblong of dough, without the concavity of potato gnocchi as I know it.]

5. Cook the test gnocchi. Drop them in the large pot of boiling water. Reduce heat immediately to a gentle simmer. After the gnocchi float to the surface, continue simmering gently for 5 minutes. Start checking for doneness earlier (at 3 minutes), but I found 5 minutes just right for gnocchi that were fully cooked and tender, without a gooey center.

6. If your test batch was a success you're good to go. You can add more salt to the dough at this point if desired. (If your test gnocchi fell apart, the Zuni Cafe Cookbook suggests the addition of a teaspoon of egg white into the batter. My advice would be to stir some flour into the dough; start with 1/4 cup. With either method, you'll have to make another test batch.)

7. Form the remaining dough into gnocchi using the same technique described above. Rest each formed gnocchi on the floured tray, keeping space between individual gnocchi to avoid sticking.

8. Heat up your sauce in a separate pan and keep warm over low heat until the gnocchi are done. If you want to coat the gnocchi with butter before saucing, melt 2 to 4 Tablespoons of butter in a medium saucepan separate from the sauce.

9. Cook the gnocchi in 2 batches. Drop half the gnocchi one at a time into the simmering water. Adjust heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer. When all the gnocchi have floated to the surface, continue simmering for 5 minutes, until gnocchi are firm and cooked through. Remove gnocchi with skimmer, toss in melted butter if desired, and add to the sauce. Repeat with the second batch of gnocchi. Do a little happy dance and serve.

This recipe makes 48 gnocchi.

Nutrition facts for 1/4 recipe (about 12 ricotta gnocchi): 297 calories, 18 g protein, 21 g fat, 174 mg cholesterol, 330 mg sodium, 0 g fiber

Nutrition facts for 12 ricotta gnocchi with about 1/4 cup tomato butter sauce and 2 oz. italian sausage: 500 calories, 28 g protein, 36 g fat, 217 mg cholesterol, 858 mg sodium, 1.5 g fiber