Cheat’s ricotta gnocchi with sage butter
This recipe is from Donna Hay and we guess that she calls it ‘cheats’ because normally gnocchi are made from semolina or potatoes and take a reasonable amount of time and effort to make whereas these are very quick and easy. Is that cheating just because you cut out the hard work? They turn out to be light and delicious so where’s the problem with ‘cheating’?
She suggests using a crumbly pressed ricotta but we can only buy the normal ricotta so that is what we used. We found the mixture too soft and sticky to roll so started making quenelles with two spoons but they were really too soft to handle. Our friend Bob, who was visiting, decided to just work in a little more flour and this made it possible to make the rolls and cut them into pieces. They are still very soft and delicate but once into the boiling water they cook to perfection and are very light and delicious. We ate them with sage butter as suggested in the recipe but John thinks a nice tomato sauce and some parmesan would be good too.
serves 4
- 500g ricotta
- 40g parmesan, finely grated plus extra to serve
- 2 medium free-range eggs, beaten
- 150g plain flour, sifted
- semolina or flour for dusting
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 40g butter
- 32 sage leaves
Melt the 40g of butter in a saucepan, add the sage leaves and then cook for about 1 minute until the leaves are crispy (take care not to burn the butter). Set aside.
Put the ricotta, parmesan, eggs, flour and salt in a bowl and mix well (you may need to add more flour to achieve a soft dough). Divide the dough into 4 pieces and roll each one on a lightly floured surface into 30cm x 2cm lengths. Cut into 3 cm pieces and set aside. Bring a large pan of water to the boil and cook the gnocchi in small batches until they float to the surface and then cook for another 20 seconds before removing with a slotted draining spoon. Keep warm while you cook the remainder. Divide between serving plates, top with the sage leaves and butter. Give each one a dusting of grated parmesan and freshly ground black pepper.
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