Raised in Australia by a New Zealand mum, it’s no surprise the concept of Halloween was beyond. Given my sisters and I were asking to knock on strangers doors and ask for food, I can understand why. Putting aside the costumes made out of sheets and Candy Corn which is the absolute worst lolly I can’t seem to put down, pumpkin anything and everything is A-OK with me!
Gnudi are like little Italian dumplings. Super similar to gnocchi, these are potato free and kept light through ricotta. They take about 1 minute to cook and are super easy to prepare, so don’t feel overwhelmed by the length of the recipe below, just follow it and you’ll get a good result. Given the ricotta and pumpkin are quite subtle flavours, I’ve paired this gnudi with a strong balsamic vinegar butter, making the balance quite delicious if you ask me!
Pumpkin & Ricotta Gnudi with Balsamic Butter
Serves 2 as a main
Ingredients
1 can of pumpkin puree
250g tub of ricotta
1 cup of grated parmesan
1 egg
1tsp salt and pepper
300g of plain flour
1tsb chopped rosemary
4tbs butter
4tbs balsamic vinegar
2 handfuls of baby spinach
Salt & pepper
Method
In a large bowl combine the pumpkin, ricotta, parmesan, egg, salt and pepper until smooth then stir through the flour until you have a sticky wet formed dough.
Sprinkle a little extra flour on your bench top then plop the dough onto it. With floured hands, bring the dough into a ball then using a knife, cut into quarters. Continuing to flour each quarter, roll into a long log then cut 2cm dumplings. Again, with floured hands, squish into even sized ovals. Once you’ve done them all, leave aside on the floured bench top.
Now for your sauce, melt the butter with the rosemary in a big pan and let it bubble over a super low heat then turn off the heat.
Bring a big pot of water to the boil. Dividing the gnudi into three (you don’t to over crowd the pot) drop them in. When they float to the top – around 1-2 minutes they are ready. Remove them from the water and keep aside in a bowl. Repeat this until all the gnudi are cooked.
So now back to your butter sauce. Turn the heat back on and add the balsamic vinegar and spinach and season with a little salt & pepper. Once the spinach has wilted, add the cooked gnudi to the pan. Turn up the heat and continue stirring until caramelised and glossy – around 1 minute. Any longer in the pan and they’ll lose their form, so don’t take your eyes off them. Serve with extra parmesan. Eh nom nom nom.
