Ricotta Gnocchi

Gnocchi is usually made with potatoes, but one of my favorites uses ricotta as the base.  They are very simple to make, although sometimes it's more fun when you have other people to help you roll them.  You can serve these with anything, but my favorite is a slow-cooked meat ragout.  Pictured below, I made a trio, with a meat sauce, tomato sauce, and a green olive and almond pesto.  I think these are best served in small portions as an appetizer.  

Ingredients

Whole Milk Ricotta (I don't give an amount because you can make as many or as few as possible)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese

2 tbsp herbs (use anything here: parsley, basil, oregano, etc)

1 tsp grated nutmeg

Pinch salt and pepper

1 egg

1/2 to 1 cup flour, plus extra for dusting

Boiling water, for cooking

I will give you the ingredients for the sauces in an upcoming post.  Stay Tuned!

 Unfortunately, I was only using plain supermarket ricotta, but ideally you would get something of a  higher quality.  Or you can make your own ricotta.  I have done this before and the effort is weel worth it.  Regardless, you will need to drain the cheese of excess moisture so that you won't need as  much flour, which will make the gnocchi dense.  I do this in a strainer lined with coffee filters but you could also use cheesecloth or even paper towels.  

 The ricotta should drain for several hours.  Then transfer to a bowl.  

 Add the rest of the ingredients except for the flour, and mix well with a fork.  

 Gradually, stir in the flour, a few tbsp at a time, until a soft dough has formed.  You don't want to knead this any more than you have to.  

 Let the dough rest for 20 minutes.  

 Then break off a few pieces and roll then into a snake, like you're playing with play-do, and cut them into 1/2 inch pieces.  Repeat with the remaining dough.  If you want, you can press them against the tines of a fork to make the traditional ridges that gnocchi have, but you don't have to.  

 Then just boil them for 2-3 minutes in salted water, and top them with sauce and a little more parmesan.  

Enjoy!