Ricotta gnocchi are surprisingly easy to make – much less finicky than potato ones. They’re also lighter and fluffier. The trick is to dry the ricotta really well by squeezing the water out with a dish towel. The little dumplings hold together with just one yolk and not much flour. The ricotta gnocchi are best as soon as they’re cooked, so have the sauce ready and waiting for them to pop out of the boiling water.

Ingredients:

For the gnocchi:

• 1 container (~1 pound) ricotta cheese (whole milk or skim)

• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

• 1 egg yolk

• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• ½ cup all purpose flour

• A pinch of salt

For the pesto:

• 2 cups fresh basil, leaves only

• 1/2 cup cilantro, leaves only (optional)

• 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese

• 4 garlic cloves, chopped

• ¾ cup shelled pine nuts

• Freshly grated pepper to taste

• ½ cup olive oil

Garnish:

• A few leaves of basil or cilantro, grated parmesan and pine nuts (optional)

Preparation:

For the dumplings:

Pour the ricotta into a colander lined with a clean cotton dish towel above a bowl. Wrap the ricotta tightly with the towel, press and squeeze as much of the liquid as you can.

Transfer the dry ricotta into a bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and mix gently.

Form about 20 small balls, about the size of a walnut, squeeze the ball rather tightly, and place them on a large plate. You can refrigerate the balls until ready to cook.

For the pesto:

Place all the dry ingredients in a food processor bowl. Using the “pulse” setting, pulse several times, while slowly adding the olive oil, until you reach the consistency you prefer. I like my pesto coarse, with no visible oiliness. Add more oil if the sauce is too dry to your taste. 

Move half the pesto to a nice serving bowl, you can keep the rest for a later time (put in an airtight container, it will keep a few days in the fridge and much longer in the freezer). 

Putting it all together:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, when the water’s boiling, gently place the ricotta balls in the water.

Take out about ½ a cup of the boiling water, and gently mix it into your pesto one tablespoon at a time, to thin it to sauce consistency.

Wait for the gnocchi to float to the top (it will take just a few minutes) and remove them with a slotted spoon, placing them directly into the warm pesto, and gently roll them around so the gnocchi are well coated from all sides.

Garnish with a few leaves of basil or cilantro, parmesan and pine nuts (optional), serve immediately.

Serves ~4 people

Enjoy, 

Dr. Ayala