Ricotta Dumplings With Red Pepper Sauce Recipes

MALFATTI (ITALIAN SPINACH RICOTTA DUMPLINGS IN NAPOLI SAUCE)

Steps:

• Saute garlic and onion: Heat oil in a small pot or large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and onion and cook for 3 minutes until onion is softened.
• Simmer sauce: Add remaining ingredients plus the stem of basil. Bring to a simmer, then reduce stove to low and cook, stirring every now and then, for 20 minutes. It should be fairly thick rather than a loose runny sauce.
• Drain ricotta, if needed: The ricotta should be the dry and fairly crumbly type rather than wet, soft and almost spreadable. If it's wet, see Note 1 for removing excess water (wet ricotta makes Malfatti hard to shape and cook!)
• Sweat spinach: Toss spinach with 1/2 tsp salt in large colander. Leave for 20 minutes. Roll up in tea towel and squeeze tightly to remove excess liquid. Roughly chop.
• Sauté garlic, eschalot and spinach: Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and eschalot, cook for 1 minute until translucent. Add spinach and cook until just wilted. Transfer to large bowl, allow to cool.
• Malfatti mixture: Add ricotta and all remaining Malfatti ingredients into the bowl. Mix well to combine. It should be too wet to roll with hands without sticking, but still firm enough to shape into dumplings.
• Form dumplings: Using 2 dessert spoons, scoop up about 1 1/2 tablespoons of mixture then shape into a football (quenelle) using the two spoons. Place on a paper-lined tray. You should get about 24-30.
• Boil dumplings: Bring a large pot of water to the boil, then carefully put 6 dumplings in. Cook for 2 minutes, they should float to the surface. Remove with slotted spoon on to paper towel lined tray. Repeat for remaining Malfatti.
• Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F.
• Assemble: Pour Napoli Sauce into a baking dish, then top with Malfatti. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.
• Bake 15 minutes or until the Malfatti has a faint blush of gold on the surface (Note 3).
• Serve! Sprinkle baked Malfatti with parmesan and basil leaves (tear large leaves). Spoon into bowls and served as-is. No starchy side is required, think of these as like gnocchi. Just add a leafy green salad with Italian Dressing or Balsamic Dressing!

RICOTTA DUMPLINGS WITH RED PEPPER SAUCE

Steps:

• To make the sauce, place the red pepper chunks and tomato in a saucepan with 1 1/4 cups water. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to low, cover and boil gently for 10 minutes. Push the mixture through a food mill.
• Return the pureed mixture to the saucepan, and stir in the salt, pepper and dissolved cornstarch. Bring to a boil, add the butter and oil and emulsify with a hand blender for about 15 seconds. Keep the sauce warm while making the dumplings.
• For the dumplings, bring 3 quarts of water to a simmer in a pot. Meanwhile, place the ricotta, salt, pepper, eggs, Parmesan and flour in the bowl of a food processor, and process at maximum speed for 10 seconds. Transfer the dumpling batter to a bowl, and mix in the chives.
• Make the dumplings in two batches, dropping the batter, one tablespoon at a time, as quickly as possible into the hot water. Let the dumplings cook just below the boil, at a low simmer, for 10 minutes. (The dumplings will rise to the top of the water and float as they cook.)
• After 10 minutes, lift the dumplings with a slotted spoon, drain well, arrange on a platter and keep warm while making the rest of the dumplings. When the second batch is cooked, add them to the platter or divide all the dumplings among individual plates. Spoon on the warm red pepper sauce, and serve with a few sprinklings of Parmesan.

ROASTED RED BELL PEPPER AND RICOTTA SAUCE

Steps:

• Puree ricotta, roasted red peppers, oil, Parmesan, and garlic in a food processor.
• Stir in parsley and oregano. Toss with hot pasta and serve.

RICOTTA DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix together ricotta, cheese, egg yolk, lemon zest, and 1/2 teaspoon salt until combined. Sift 1/2 cup flour over mixture and use a rubber spatula to gently fold together. Turn mixture out onto a lightly floured work surface and sift remaining flour over top. With fingertips, gently incorporate flour into dough and lightly knead just until dough comes together (do not overwork dough).
• Set a large pot of salted water to boil. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a log about 3/4 inch thick and 20 inches long. With a knife or dough scraper, cut each log into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Drop pieces into boiling water. Cook until they plump up and float to surface, 2 minutes. Drain dumplings and shake off excess water.
• In a large skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium. When it sizzles, add dumplings and cook, undisturbed, until golden on one side, 6 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon butter to skillet and toss to coat. Transfer to a serving bowl and top with cheese. Serve warm.