RICOTTA CHEESE GNOCCHI

 

The other day I opened the fridge looking for ideas for lunch; it was quite late so I needed something that didn't take more than 30/45 minutes to make. I realised that the ricotta cheese hidden at the back was about to expire so I had a look online and decided to make some gnocchi with it. I found a few recipes and took the best of them. This one doesn't require potatoes, just ricotta, flour and eggs.  The result has been great, the kids really loved them, so here is the recipe for you 

P.S. ingredients are for 4 very abundant portions, 5 normal portions, 6 small portions...depends on the appetite!

INGREDIENTS 

500 gr Ricotta cheese (Sheep ricotta , if you find it, is even better)

250 gr plain flour

2 medium eggs

100 gr grated Parmesan cheese

Pour the flour in a bowl. Add the egg, ricotta and grated Parmesan. Mix the ingredients gently with a wooden spoon, you don't need to work it too much or for too long. Some pieces of ricotta must remain chunky. 
Roll the dough into finger-thick rolls and cut off 2 cm long pieces. Place the dough pieces on a couple of kitchen towels or big wooden chopping boards dusted with some flour. Make sure they're evenly dusted otherwise the gnocchi will stick to them. 

Put them into boiling water (don't forget to add salt to it first!) reduce the temperature a little and let the gnocchi cook for 2-3 minutes. As soon as the gnocchi float to the surface, remove with a skimmer and drain well. Put them in a bowl and add the sauce.
For the sauce just fry some chopped onion, add 400 gr finely chopped tomatoes, salt, pepper and some fresh basil leaves. 

If you don't have chopped tomatoes you can serve them with melted butter, a few sage leaves and lots of grated Parmesan on top!

Buon appetito!