Ricotta Gnocchi With Delta Asparagus And Meyer Lemon Recipes

RICOTTA GNOCCHI

Steps:

• Stir together the ricotta cheese, eggs, Parmesan Cheese, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a large bowl until evenly combined. Mix in 1 cup of flour. Add additional flour if needed to form a soft dough.
• Divide the dough into 3 or 4 pieces, and roll into 1/2-inch-thick ropes on a floured surface. Cut each rope into 1-inch pieces, and place on a lightly floured baking sheet. Place in the refrigerator until ready to use.
• Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in garlic, and cook until softened and fragrant, about 1 minute. Pour in diced tomatoes and red pepper flakes; bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, and cook for 10 minutes. Stir in shredded basil and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• While sauce is simmering, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil over high heat. Boil the gnocchi until they float to the surface, 1 to 2 minutes, then drain.
• To assemble the dish, stir the cubed mozzarella cheese into the sauce and allow the heat of the sauce to soften, but not melt the cheese. Place gnocchi into a serving bowl, and spoon sauce overtop.

GLUTEN-FREE CHICKPEA GNOCCHI

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with water and salt generously. Tie a piece of butcher's twine tautly from one handle to the other across the center of the pot. Bring the water to a boil.
• Meanwhile, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, nutmeg, eggs, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper in a large bowl. Add the chickpea flour and mix until just combined. The dough should be slightly sticky. Do not add any more flour or overwork the dough, as this will make it tough.
• Fit a large pastry bag with a large round tip, about 3/4 inch wide. Alternatively, snip one corner of a large resealable plastic bag with scissors to create a 3/4-inch-wide opening. Fill the pastry bag with the gnocchi dough; set aside.
• Melt the butter in a large saute pan over medium-low heat until foamy, 2 to 4 minutes. Continue to cook, swirling the pan often, until the butter is light golden brown, about 2 minutes. Add the sage and cook until the butter is toasty brown (similar in color to graham cracker crumbs) and the sage is crisp, about 1 minute more. Remove from the heat.
• Holding the pastry bag over the boiling water, lightly squeeze the bag to release a 3/4- to 1-inch piece of dough, then rub it across the string to "cut" it off. Continue until you have made about 15 gnocchi. Cook until they float to the top and are warmed through, 60 to 90 seconds. Do not walk away from the pot or overcook them; the lack of gluten in the chickpea flour makes them very tender, and they will fall apart if boiled for too long. Transfer to a serving bowl and cover with foil to keep warm. Continue with the remaining gnocchi dough (you will have about 4 servings).
• Spoon some of the butter and sage mixture over each bowl and serve warm.

RICOTTA GNOCCHI WITH ARTICHOKE, LEMON AND MINT

Steps:

• In a bowl, mix together 3/4 cup of the flour, the ricotta, salt and egg yolks. Dust a work surface with the remaining 1/4 cup flour. One cup at a time, roll the ricotta mixture into 1/2-inch-thick ropes. With a dough cutter or pasta knife, cut the ropes into 1/2-inch pieces. Transfer the gnocchi to a cookie sheet and freeze until ready to use.
• Heat the olive oil and butter in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until lightly browned. Add the artichoke hearts and saute for 1 minute. Add the lemon juice and mint and salt and pepper to taste. Remove the sauce from the heat and add half of the Parmigiano-Reggiano; stir to thicken the sauce.
• Boil the gnocchi in a large (6-quart) pot of salted water until they float to the top. Remove the gnocchi with a slotted spoon and add to the sauce. Garnish with the remaining Parmigiano.

SPINACH AND RICOTTA GNOCCHI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot salted water to a boil.
• Cut the stems off the spinach, and soak the leaves in the sink. Wash them thoroughly.
• Add the spinach to the boiling water and cook 1 minute. Remove spinach from the water and plunge in a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.
• Drain the spinach very well, and using a clean tea towel, squeeze out the extra water. Chop the leaves very fine.
• Put the cooked spinach in a large bowl, add the ricotta, 3 tablespoons Parmesan, egg yolks, and season with a couple pinches salt and some freshly ground black pepper. Mix well, and make sure that the ricotta crumbles into fine pieces, and mixes properly with the spinach. Shape the mixture into balls about the size of walnuts.
• Lightly butter a 13 by 9-inch casserole dish, lay all the gnocchi in it, and dress it with a few very thin slices butter and a sprinkling of Parmesan. Cook the gnocchi at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes, and then use the broiler for the last 5 minutes to crisp and brown the top of the spinach balls.
• In a medium skillet, melt the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, and saute the sage until it starts to brown. Serve the gnocchi on a warm plate and dress with the sage-butter sauce, and garnish with freshly grated Parmesan.

RICOTTA GNOCCHI

Steps:

• Stir together ricotta, eggs, 1 cup cheese, nutmeg, and 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Add flour, stirring to form a soft, wet dough.
• Shape dough on a well-floured surface with lightly floured hands into 2 (1-inch-thick) ropes. Cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces with a lightly floured knife. Put in 1 layer on a lightly floured parchment-lined baking sheet.
• Cook gnocchi in 2 batches in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (3 tablespoons salt for 6 quarts water), adding a few at a time to pot and stirring occasionally, until cooked through (cut one in half to check), 3 to 4 minutes per batch. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain in colander.
• Meanwhile, cook butter with rosemary in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-low heat until golden brown, about 5 minutes.
• Toss gnocchi with brown butter in skillet and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Season with salt.