Belly-Button Ricotta Gnocchi in a Quick Tomato-Basil Sauce

I was hungry and wanted something I could whip together in less than an hour. I was thinking about gnocchi and decided to make ricotta gnocchi instead of potato gnocchi that take longer. Just make sure you drain excess liquid from the ricotta in mesh strainer over a bowl for about an hour before you start.

Ricotta gnocchi come together quickly. You just mix all the ingredients together in a bowl, let it rest in the fridge for a bit and then you can quickly form the gnocchi. The sauce will be ready in the 15 minutes or so that it takes to form the belly-button gnocchi. How easy is that?

I’m using “00” flour, the one from Naples that is used for pizza dough. It makes the gnocchi even lighter than using unbleached all-purpose flour but you can use either and they’ll be good.

This recipe will yield about 40 gnocchi, more if you cut the ropes shorter for a smaller gnoccho.

Choose from a few sauces with these belly-button ricotta gnocchi depending on your mood. The potato gnocchi video has 3: gorgonzola cream, pizzaiola tomato sauce and Trapananese Pesto (tomato and toasted almonds) and the sweet potato gnocchi post has the sage brown butter sauce.

Ricotta Belly-Button Gnocchi with a San Marzano fast Garlic-Basil sauce

Ingredients

Gnocchi

• 15-ounces whole milk ricotta
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano or pecorino plus more to grate atop each serving
• 3/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour or “00” flour
• 1-tablespoon sea salt

Sauce

• 28-ounce can of imported San Marzano tomatoes, squashed by hand
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, smashed
• 1 sprig of basil or at least 3-4 large leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Directions

1. Put the ricotta in a mesh strainer set over a bowl and let the excess liquid drain out for about an hour.
2. When the ricotta is drained put a large pot over high-heat with 4-5 quarts water, cover and bring to a boil. When it boils add the sea salt.
3. Put a large saucepan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil and garlic.
4. When the garlic starts to take on color add the tomatoes and basil. Stir well. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let the sauce simmer for about 10 minutes to thicken by reducing the volume by about a third. Stir occasionally. Shut off the heat when thickened.
5. Put all of the gnocchi ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Put the mixture in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes.
6. Take the dough out of the fridge. Check out the dough by rolling a small piece in your hand. It should be tacky but not sticky.
7. If it’s too sticky add more flour a tablespoon at a time, mix well and test to see if it’s tacky.
8. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface.
9. Break off a baseball sized piece of the dough and roll it to form a rope about 3/4 of an inch thick.
10. Use a knife or bench scraper to cut the rope in about 3/4 inch pieces. Poke each gnocchi with you thumb to form a belly-button on each. Place the bell-button gnocchi on a well-floured baking sheet or pan and toss them in the flour. Separate them so they don’t stick together.
11. Repeat until all the gnocchi are formed.
12. Reduce the heat under the cooking water to medium-low so the boil reduces to a rapid simmer. A rapid boil may damage the gnocchi.
13. Add the gnocchi a handful at a time and gently stir to make sure they don’t stick together.
14. Put the sauce back over medium-low heat.
15. When the gnocchi come to the surface cook them for 2 minutes more. Taste one to make sure they’re ready. Don’t let them stay in the water too long or they’ll start to fall apart.
16. Using a slotted spoon add the gnocchi to the sauce and coat the gnocchi well. If your using a colander reserve a cup of the cooking water before you drain the gnocchi and add them to the sauce. If the sauce is too thick add a little cooking water.
17. Serve immediately with a sprinkle of grated cheese on top.

(If you not cooking the gnocchi immediately spread them out on a baking sheet and put them in the freezer. When they’re frozen store them in a freezer bag. When you’re ready to cook them put them directly from the freezer into the boiling water to cook. They may take a minute or two more to fully cook before adding them to the sauce.)