How To Make: Gluten Free Ricotta Gnocchi
Making any type of homemade pasta is a labor of love. There’s no doubt about it. If you’ve ever thought about making your own fresh gluten free pasta but need a simple entry point, this fresh gluten free ricotta gnocchi is just what you’ve been waiting for. You could even make the dough and shape the gnocchi, then freeze them in a single layer on a lined baking sheet before piling them into a freezer-safe bag. Then, store them in the freezer. When you’re ready to impress your friends and family with these light and tender little dumplings, just defrost them overnight in the refrigerator.
The dough comes together very easily when you use your KitchenAid® 7-Cup Food Processor. Just place the simple ingredients in the bowl, and your food processor does all the work for you. There are a few tips and tricks to shaping the dough, but you’ll get into a rhythm pretty quickly.
After chilling the dough and flouring it lightly, you divide it into balls, each about 1 1/2-inches in diameter. Then roll each ball into a rope about 6-inches long and 3/4-inch in diameter. Just be sure not to squish the dough while you’re rolling it into a rope. You’ll position the underside of the fingers of both of your hands over the dough, and roll firmly but carefully away from your body, pressing lightly down and out. Then, cut the ropes of dough into dumplings, each about 1-inch long.
All that’s left to do is to mark the top of each dumpling with the floured tines of a small fork. Press down gently, just until the ridges appear. They’re there to catch all of the tomato sauce you serve with the gnocchi.
Once they’re formed, you have an important choice to make: sauté, or boil. Or, half one way, half the other!
How To Make: Gluten Free Ricotta Gnocchi
Makes 4 servingsINGREDIENTS
1 1/4 cups (175 g) all purpose gluten free flour (I used my mock Better Batter blend), plus more for shaping
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum (omit if your blend already contains it)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, finely grated (about 1 cup)
1 egg (50g, out of shell), beaten
1 pound (16 ounces) part-skim or whole milk ricotta cheese
Extra virgin olive oil, for serving
Tomato sauce, for serving
Fresh or dried herbs, for serving
DIRECTIONS
In the bowl of your KitchenAid® 7-Cup Food Processor, place all of the ingredients in the order in which they are listed. Pulse until the mixture begins to come together. Turn the food processor on high and process until the mixture is thick and well-combined. Turn it out onto a lightly floured flat surface, sprinkle lightly with more flour, and pat into a disk. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and place the dough in the refrigerator to chill for 10 minutes.
Once the dough has chilled, remove the plastic wrap and place on a lightly floured surface. Using a sharp knife or a bench scraper, cut off pieces of dough and roll them into rounds that are about 1 1/2-inches in diameter, sprinkling lightly with more flour to prevent sticking.
Using the fingers of both hands and pushing away from your body, roll each round into a rope of dough about 6-inches long, and about 3/4-inch in diameter. Be careful not to push down on the dough, but rather roll it out. Sprinkle lightly with additional flour as necessary.
Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut the ropes of dough into 1-inch long pieces. Mark the top of each piece with the floured tines of a fork to make ridges. Continue to flour the tines of the fork as necessary to prevent sticking.
To cook the gnocchi, drop them in batches in generously salted boiling water. The gnocchi will float after they have been boiling for about 2 minutes. Continue to boil for another 2 minutes before removing with a strainer. Allow most of the water to drain out of the strainer before placing the cooked gnocchi in a bowl and tossing it with a bit of olive oil to prevent the gnocchi from sticking to one another.
Instead of boiling the gnocchi, it can be sautéed in small batches in a light coating of hot olive oil in a large, heavy-bottom saucepan over medium-high heat until golden brown (about 2 minutes per side).
Serve with tomato sauce, and fresh or dried herbs.
