| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 1 hr 10 min |
| Active: | 40 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 10 ounces ricotta cheese, drained through cheesecloth overnight in the refrigerator
- 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus extra for finishing
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 10 turns freshly ground black pepper
- 1 large egg yolk
- Kosher salt
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1/2 cup neutral oil, such as canola
- 1 tablespoon capers, drained and dried
- 1 sprig fresh sage plus 4 leaves
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges
Instructions
- Put the ricotta, Parmigiano-Reggiano, nutmeg, pepper, egg yolk, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 cup of the flour in a large bowl. Use a wooden spoon to mix until a shaggy dough forms. Do not overwork. Continue to mix until the dough comes together and forms a ball, adding an additional 1/4 cup flour if needed.
- Lightly flour your hands and roll the mixture into quarter-sized balls; there should be 25 to 30 balls. Place the gnudi onto a lightly floured tray and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, add the oil, capers and sage leaves to a small saute pan. Place over medium heat and fry until crispy, 6 to 8 minutes. If the sage leaves become too dark, remove them before the capers. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. Set aside.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a low boil.
- Add the butter and sage sprig to a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Melt the butter and continue to cook, swirling the pan in a circular motion to prevent the butter from burning, until it starts to turn golden brown and begins to smell nutty. Squeeze the juice from a lemon wedge into the pan to stop the butter from turning too dark and burning.
- Once the water is at a low boil, add the gnudi and cook until they float, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the gnudi directly into the browned butter. Stir to coat.
- Plate the gnudi onto a serving plate and garnish with the fried sage and capers and additional Parmigiano-Reggiano. Serve with lemon wedges.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 685 |
| Total Fat | 56 g |
| Saturated Fat | 19 g |
| Carbohydrates | 34 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 7 g |
| Sugar | 8 g |
| Protein | 17 g |
| Cholesterol | 127 mg |
| Sodium | 1068 mg |
Reviews
Delicious! I doubled the recipe (should have tripled it to have leftovers!) and used fresh ricotta cheese. So pillowy! Would definitely make again. I didn’t make the sauce in the recipe, instead I topped the gnudi with palomino sauce- yum!!!
Made it last night – loved it!! If it was too bland when you made it, you made it wrong. The only substitution I made was using fresh basil leaves instead of sage – which also came to a lovely crisp to use with the sautéed capers. I’ve never made a Zakarian recipe I didn’t love – this one didn’t let me down!
I couldn’t wait for dinner to eat these. So delicious. Making more for dinner. I have some in the freezer for another time.
First time – easy to make and delicious, melts in your mouth … adjustments made to recipe by adding garlic paste to brown butter instead of sage leaves – added lemon zest to the mix – and a bit more of cheese at time of browning … a delicate bite …
I made them today thinking I don’t know how Michael Simon can possibly make them without flour. I cooked them in the boiling water then sautéed them in melted butter lemon and sage until they were golden brown. They turned out good. First batch fell apart after they were out of the water so I threw all the balls in a bowl and put in about a half cup of flour and remixed and reformed into balls. They were warm and creamy inside. Far better than if I left them white.
We tried this per the recipe, it was a little hland. Surprised with a recipe from GZ
It will take a little tweeking next time.
It will take a little tweeking next time.
This recipe is not difficult to make but there is a lot of cleanup involved. My wife and I thought it was mediocre at best and somewhat bland. The fried capers and brown butter were a good compliment to this dish. The Gnudis themselves lack flavor so the brown butter is a must. Not what we like to call a “keeper” recipe.
This recipe was not only easy to make it was amazing! I will be putting this on my dinner rotation and for guest from now on.
I made Gnudi for the first time tonight. It was really good with the brown butter and capers. I may try it again with a tomato sauce. At first the mixture seemed too wet and I was afraid the gnudi would fall apart in the water, so I added a little more flour . I think refrigerating them for an hour helped firm them up. I’ll definitely make them again, very easy.