Fall

Spinach, Ricotta, and Parmesan Gnocchi

December 14, 2015
4
4 Ratings
Photo by James Michael Seaton
  • Serves 5
Author Notes

Adapted from the Silver Spoon (same ingredients, but with different measurements and different preparations), these cheesy gnocchi are hand-piped instead of rolled, making them extra light and not doughy. —From James to Jamie

Test Kitchen Notes

It's such a great, easy side dish! The color was a gorgeous bright speckled green but the flavor was mild and creamy. I am allergic to potatoes/tomatoes and am always looking for a good gnocchi recipe that I can eat and my family will enjoy. My step-kids liked this gnocchi because it did not taste like vegetables, despite the color. The butter sauce was perfect but these could handle a hearty tomato sauce with no trouble. It was a quick and easy recipe but the batter was just a tad too thin and the dumplings ended up small. Next time, I will add more flour (up to 1/4 cup) and use salted butter. As far as technique, using a heavy-duty Ziploc bag with the corner cut off worked well for piping the dough into the boiling water! Definitely a recipe to make again. —Grace Mack

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Ingredients
  • 1 large bunches spinach
  • 250 grams ricotta
  • 2/3 cup finely shredded Parmesan, plus extra for serving
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/4 cup butter
Directions
  1. Pick the leaves from the spinach bunch, wash under running water, and toss into a large pot without drying. Cook the spinach over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Spinach will wilt significantly in this time. Remove from heat and squeeze as much liquid out of the spinach as possible. It may require allowing the spinach to cool, then squeezing the liquid out by hand. You should end up with approximately 1/2 to 2/3 cup of cooked spinach.
  2. Place the spinach in a food processor and process on high for 20 to 30 seconds. If the spinach sticks to the side of the food processor, use a spatula to clean the sides, then process a little longer.
  3. Add the ricotta, Parmesan, salt, pepper, and egg yolks, and process on high until the ingredients are mixed well. Add the flour and process on low until the flour is fully incorporated. The mixture will be quite sticky and slightly dense. If your processor appears to struggle with the dough, then remove to a bowl and mix with a wooden spoon.
  4. Place a large pot of lightly salted water on high and bring to a light simmer.
  5. As the dough is stickier than other gnocchi versions, it requires piping. Place the dough into a piping bag and, working in batches, pipe the dough into the simmering water, cutting the gnocchi into 1-inch cylinders. Kitchen shears work well for this step.
  6. The gnocchi is finished cooking once it floats to the surface of the water. Remove with a slotted spoon, and place on a plate to allow some of the excess water to evaporate. To finish the drying process, place the cooked gnocchi on paper towels. Waiting for the gnocchi to dry/firm up slightly helps to ensure they don’t stick to the paper towel.
  7. For serving, plate the gnocchi, drizzle generously with the melted butter, and sprinkle the extra grated Parmesan overtop.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

6 Reviews

sarah January 20, 2019
Made this tonight as per the recipe, really easy and delicious!
LeBec F. January 8, 2016
j2j, i'm def trying this soon! Thought you might like this piping bad trick:
https://food52.com/recipes/16858-no-muss-piping-bag-technique
Isabel M. January 6, 2016
It was a little too thin to make nice dumplings. Taste was fantastic, super creamy and rich. Will definitely try again! The anti-vegs thought it was good, did not taste as green as it looked so that's a big win.
From J. January 6, 2016
Hmm...I'm thinking that maybe there was still too much water in the spinach, causing the dough to be too thin. I made these again this week and squeezed the spinach like crazy, and it seemed like no matter how much water came out, there was still more I could have squeezed out. A little extra flour should probably help thicken them up if necessary. I'm glad they tasted good - thanks for letting me know!
Analisa P. December 31, 2015
Simple, delicious and beautiful dish!
From J. January 6, 2016
100% agree - thanks!