I had been meaning to make Ravioli Gnudi for months. I’m so glad that I finally got around to it.
These Italian dumplings are basically “nude ravioli.” Their ingredients are very similar to those of a standard spinach ravioli filling, except that they aren’t wrapped in pasta. Instead, they have the addition of flour inside and out. They turn into wonderfully light dumplings that can go with a variety of sauces. You could even add them as dumplings in a soup, but treat them carefully as they are delicate.
- 1 box Frozen Spinach, defrosted
- 12 Ounces Full Fat Ricotta
- 3 Eggs
- 1-1/2 Cups GF Bread Flour with Xanthan Gum (or All Purpose Wheat Flour for Non-GF)
- Freshly grated Nutmeg
- 1 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 Cup Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
- Zest of 1/2 Lemon
- 1 – 1 1/2 C Additional “Flour” for rolling
In a large bowl, combine the ricotta, eggs, salt, lemon, Parmesan, a good grating of nutmeg, and mix well. Slowly mix in the flour, a half cup at a time. Set the bowl aside for 15-20 minutes for the flour to absorb moisture. It will still be quite soft.
Fill a flat soup plate (or other flat dish) with about a half inch of additional flour. With a small scoop, make 1 1/2 inch balls of the filling, dropping them a few at a time into the dish of flour. Roll them around gently to cover them in a good thick layer of flour. Gently move them to a sheet tray, and continue until you have used up all of the mix.
Refrigerate the dumplings for 1-5 hours.
Bring a large pot of water (at least a gallon) to a boil and add plenty of salt. Reduce the heat to a strong simmer and drop in 1/3 of the dumplings at a time. Once they’re in, give them a gentle stir with a spatula, to make sure that they don’t stick to the bottom. Cook for about 3 minutes, or for about a minute after they float. Fish them out with a spider or large slotted spoon. Repeat with the remaining two thirds.
Serve with a sauce of your choice. I like basil pesto, but you could use a tomato sauce, walnut pesto, alfredo, or cream sauce.
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