Every time, this method produces incredibly delicate, light gnocchi that are at least as nice as the traditional potato-based gnocchi. And a lot simpler. Additionally, you can prepare them beforehand and then brown them in butter before serving.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 5 mins |
| Additional Time: | 1 hr |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 20 mins |
| Servings: | 4 |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 cup packed fresh basil leaves
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 (12 ounce) container whole-milk ricotta cheese, drained well
- 1 ¼ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- 1 ½ ounces freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- 10 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter for browning (Optional)
Instructions
- Briefly blanch basil leaves in simmering water, about 20 seconds. Transfer immediately to a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking. Drain on towels. Place basil in bowl of a blender. Add eggs. Blend until basil is blended in and mixture achieves an even green color with flecks of basil.
- Place ricotta in a mixing bowl. Add basil/egg mixture, salt, cayenne, Parmesan cheese, and flour. Thoroughly mix together using a spatula; whisk mixture to ensure ingredient are evenly blended. Cover and refrigerate until chilled and firm, about 2 hours.
- Scoop out a small portion of dough using a teaspoon. Using a second spoon, shape into a rounded oval. Repeat until you have enough gnocchi for a batch, about 6 or so.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a simmer. Drop shaped gnocchi in batches into pot as you form them. After a minute or so they will rise to the surface. Continue simmering until they spring back to the touch when you remove one from the water to test it, 2 to 3 more minutes. Transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon to cool. Repeat with the remaining dough.
- Optional step: Melt butter in a skillet until bubbling. Add cooked gnocchi and brown on each side. Serve with a dusting of grated Parmesan cheese and a drizzle of the butter from the pan.
- You can serve with any of your favorite pasta sauces for a main dish, or served “as is,” they make a stellar side dish or first course.
- My fancy basket ricotta tends to be low-moisture, so if you’re using the much wetter supermarket brands, be sure to drain in a strainer in the fridge for a few hours to allow the excess water to drip out.
- To check seasoning, cook a test piece of dough in salted water. Add more salt if needed.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 324 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 20 g |
| Cholesterol | 144 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Protein | 19 g |
| Saturated Fat | 11 g |
| Sodium | 906 mg |
| Sugars | 1 g |
| Fat | 18 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
I tried this recipe to use my basil that’s been growing like gang-busters….but now am going to plant even more basil. I made them toasted in the butter as described as optional. They are not just good, but addictive. Tonight, we ate them plain as they were done . I can hardly wait to serve them with a pasta sauce or in a soup!
Chef John; I’m a big fan of yours. But this did not turn out at all for me. I’m rating a 3 because I’m going to partially blame the cook (me). Bought fancy whole milk ricotta. I let drain for like 30 min; only to find a small, white “stain” was in my sink. Is this drained? I figured that it was. Then – I debated how my blanched basil leaves would break down? I considered slicing but followed the recipe. My leaves never “broke up” in my blender. I used a kitchen aid vs a food processor. Maybe that was the problem? Or not dried enough? So despite beating for a few min, I was still left with whole basil leaves and no change in hue when mixed with egg. Refrigerated for 3 hours. When came time to boil; these turned out more like dumplings than gnocchi. Next; started the browned the butter….they somewhat fell apart. Ugh! I give up! I ate a couple but these didn’t turn out nor did I care for them. I do want to master making homemade gnocchi but will try another recipe first. Thank CJ!
Yeah this one was a bust for me, which is unusual because I’ve had good luck with Chef John’s recipes. But even drained and refrigerated and looking as thickened as they should from the video, the “gnocchi” just fell apart and fouled the cooking water rather than actually holding together in their little blobs. Perhaps it just won’t work with anything less than fresh fancy basket-pressed ricotta, I don’t know. I was able to salvage the mixture and use it in stuffed shells instead and it at least tasted good that way, but this isn’t a recipe I’ll be making again.
I made it I used 5.4 oz of 00caputo flour
Really good but a little trickier than me made it look. I dried the ricotta with paper towel like in Kenji Lopez Alt’s ricotta gnocchi video. Might try to roll it out and cut it next time. Very rich and great texture though
These gnocchi were excellent. I used homemade ricotta that I drained thoroughly before making the gnocchi which definitely improves the texture of the finished product. The fresh basil added a subtle flavor and finished in a brown butter sage sauce. I left the to brown in the pan for a better texture and taste. The recipe made lots of gnocchi so I froze the leftovers after boiling and reheated in a pan with brown butter sauce. Thanks Chef John!
Traditionally, these are NOT Gnocchi. Gnocchi is made from potatoes. These are Gnudi are made from Ricotta and are made much smaller than what this recipe says to make them. All the information I just put out there, this recipe is different than what I grew up with and is quite tasty.
easy and delicious
Never made gnocchi before and didn’t know what to expect. Had to use more flour for the right “feel” and made them more like in tablespoons. Wonderful and different side dish!
i made this as described and loved it! a lot of the reviews say it is so good but i wondered why there wasn’t a lot of 5 stars and i think that is because of 2 things – the dough definitely has to refrigerate and get cold which took me over an hour, and also forming them can be frustrating because if they aren’t chilled they sort of fall apart. but i loved the flavor and i did do the extra step of saute-ing them. i also added vodka sauce when i served it. will def make again.
Okay, here’s the thing. For some reason I left out the entire step of steaming the basil and rinsing it off in cold water. I simply threw a cup of fresh basil into the blender and charged ahead. But here is the amazing part. It came out perfectly. I found it was difficult to mold with the two spoons and mine looked pretty rough, but they were delicious! So while I don’t recommend skipping Chef John’s instructions, it won’t necessarily be a disaster if you do.
Did leave it in the fridge for the couple hour suggestion and it wasn’t very firm when scooping it to add it to the water. otherwise tased great. i could have done a better job! No fault of the recipe!
Frying them made them the bomb.
Try frying some lightly and some more golden brown. Preferred the golden brown gnocchi. Looking forward to having these again.
Mine turned out great. I served them browned in butter and parmesan the first night, and with marinara the next.
i would use much less salt, maybe omit it completely. the parmesan adds the needed salty kick. and i added a healthy dose of ground pepper
This was the wettest recipe for gnocchi, that I thought it was labeled in error and was supposed to be a spaetzle. I dusted the dough generously with flour in order to cut and shape them, and then it was still a challenge. Chef John is usually right on target, but I think he missed the mark with this one.
My first batch came apart during the boiling. I scooped them on oiled wax paper lined pan and stuck them in the freezer for 30 minutes. They fared much better. So I would recommend doing them ahead of time and refrigerating or freezing for 20 mins to an hour.
The consistency was really off but it was very tasty. My attempt to boil in batches and hold the prior batches caused it to get very mushy. Then when I attempted to brown them’ they completely lost their shape and looked more like mashed potatoes. This requires a lot of hands-on time so pair it with something that doesn’t.
Super easy to make but not pleased with how this turned out, so for that reason wouldn’t make it again
It needs a little more flour than it says. The puffs are huge once they are in the rolling boil. They were good but better for a side dish.