Gnudi means “naked dumpling,” because it’s truly a stuffing without a pasta shell. So if you love those stuffings in ravioli, skip the pasta—this dish is for you.

　　

Ingredients

25 to 30 gnudi, serving 6 as a first course or 4 as a main dish

　　1 pound fresh ricotta, drained

　　1 egg

　　1 cup dry spinach purée, prepared from 20 ounces frozen or fresh spinach (see page 178)

　　1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano

　　6 tablespoons fine bread crumbs

　　1/4 cup flour, plus flour for rolling

　　1/2 teaspoon salt

　　Freshly ground black pepper, a generous amount

　　1 recipe Butter and Fresh Sage Sauce (page 118)

　　1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano

　　

Recommended Equipment

Baking sheet covered in parchment paper

　　

Step 1

Start heating a large pot of salted water.

　　

Step 2

Blend the ricotta and the egg together in a large bowl. Mix in the spinach, cheese, bread crumbs, flour, salt and pepper, and knead lightly.

　　

Step 3

Test the consistency of the dough by scooping up a heaping tablespoon, forming it into a ball, and flouring it. Drop it into the boiling water; if it does not hold its shape and rise to the surface of the water within a minute, add more bread crumbs to your dough.

　　

Step 4

When you have the right consistency, shape all of the dough into balls the size of golf-balls, roll them lightly in flour, and lay them out on baking sheets covered in parchment paper.

　　

Step 5

Drop the gnudi gently one by one into the boiling water and cook for about 2 or 3 minutes, until they rise to the top, and come to a rolling boil. To test for doneness, scoop out a ball and press it with your fingers: the dumpling dough when cooked should bounce back, leaving no indentation.

　　

Step 6

Transfer to a sauté pan with Butter and Fresh Sage Sauce. Top with freshly grated cheese before serving.

　　From Lidia's Family table by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich Copyright (c) 2004 by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich Published by Knopf.Lidia Bastianich hosts the hugely popular PBS show, "Lidia's Italian-American kitchen" and owns restaurants in New York City, Kansas City, and Pittsburgh. Also the author of Lidia's Italian Table and Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen, she lives in Douglaston, New York. Jay Jacob's journalism has appeared in many national magazines.From the Trade Paperback edition.