This is the perfect starter to a dinner party.  With the holidays upon us we all need ideas on what to serve to keep our guests satisfied until dinner.  Gnudi is perfect with a great tomato sauce or with this recipe where I made an earthy mushroom sauce.  You may also enjoy this as your main course with a salad and bread. Totally up to you on how you want to play with it.  Gnudi is like the inside of a ravioli (creamy, light and full of cheesy flavor.)  Enjoy with a nice glass of Cabernet.

Ingredients:

2 lbs of Ricotta Cheese, drain for at least a couple hours or overnight

1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese

Salt & Pepper, to taste

1/2 cup of sauté spinach, chopped

6 Tablespoons of All Purpose Flour

4 Tablespoons of Panko or Bread Crumbs

Pinch of nutmeg

2 Egg yolks

Crushed red pepper, optional

Wild Mushroom Sauce:

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Tablespoon of Butter

6 oz of Exotic Mushrooms

4 Cups of Vegetable Stock   

Salt & Pepper, to taste

2 Shallots, chopped

2 Garlic Cloves, minced

Preparation of Gnudi:

In a medium bowl mix together; Ricotta, egg, spinach, panko, salt, pepper, flour and nutmeg. Don’t over mix. Then begin to form small golf size balls (you can make them bigger or smaller).  Take 4 to 6 balls at a time and place them in boiling salted water.  When they start to float to the top about 2 to 3 minutes.  Take them out and place them in ice cold water for a couple seconds.  Take them out and place to the side and drizzle some olive oil on them until ready to serve.

Preparation of Exotic Mushroom Sauce:

In a medium sauce pan add some olive oil and butter on medium heat.  Add shallots cook for about a minute. Then add garlic and mushrooms.  Cook for about 3 minutes or so until mushrooms start to sweat out the juices.  Then pour the stock and cook for another 4 to 5 minutes then take that and put into a food processor and pulse. Pour sauce into a plate and add the gnudi. Top with some fresh parmesan cheese. 

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