As you’ve all come to realize reading this blog, I often have a story to accompany the dishes I make and write about. Because to me, all food has a story and I like sharing mine with you. This week, however, I don’t have much to say other than I recently simply wanted to try out a new recipe so I went through my cookbooks and honed in on this ricotta gnocchi recipe from bon appetit’s The Best Recipes of 2015 cookbook. I do love plopping myself down in front of all my cookbooks and scanning through to earmark new recipes I haven’t tried. Old-school style.
I will admit I was a little intimidated by this recipe at first, gnocchi does that to a girl, but I can’t stress enough how easy it is. It is as flavorful as it is simple, and perfect for a quick weeknight meal or weekend entertainment. The sauce, veggies, and ricotta complement each other beautifully. Comfort food at its finest, as most Italian food is. You can also make the gnocchi mixture a day ahead if you want to make this for a dinner party.
A few things to note: We cut the recipe in half for the two of us and had some leftover, and we also used shiitake mushrooms instead of morels because the man at Whole Foods looked at me like I was a crazy person when I asked where the morels were. We also didn’t finish with chives because I’m not a fan but up to you.
Enjoy!
Bon Appetit’s Ricotta Gnocchi with Asparagus, Peas, and Morels/whatever mushroom you can find
Ingredients:
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4 cups ricotta (from two 16-oz. containers)
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2 large eggs
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1 cup finely grated Parmesan
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2 teaspoons kosher salt
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Freshly ground black pepper
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1 cup all-purpose flour
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1 bunch asparagus, trimmed
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Kosher salt
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2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more
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¼ pound fresh morel/whatever mushrooms
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1 small shallot, finely chopped
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1 cup frozen peas, thawed
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¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter
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Freshly ground black pepper
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Chopped fresh chives (optional)
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Finely grated lemon zest (optional)
Directions:
- Line a baking dish with three layers of paper towels; spoon ricotta onto paper towels and let sit 20 minutes so the ricotta partially dries.
- Combine ricotta, eggs, Parmesan, and salt in a food processor; season with pepper and process until smooth.
- Add flour and pulse just to combine (mixture should be smooth and fairly wet).
- Transfer gnocchi mixture to a pastry bag fitted with ½” round tip or a large resealable plastic bag.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop the asparagus in until it turns bright green and crisp-tender, about 1 minute. Don’t let it go longer than 1 minute or the water will turn the gnocchi bitter.
- Transfer asparagus to a bowl of ice water to cool; drain. Slice asparagus on the diagonal into bite-size pieces, leaving tips intact.
- Time to cook the gnocchi! Reduce heat on the boiling water so it begins to simmer. If using a resealable plastic bag for gnocchi mixture, cut a ½” opening in the bottom of the bag.
- Working in small batches, pipe dough into pot, cutting off 1” lengths with a knife and letting dough drop into the water. Cook until doubled in size, about 3 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer gnocchi to a lightly oiled baking sheet. Reserve ¼ cup cooking liquid.
- Meanwhile, heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook mushrooms, tossing occasionally until slightly softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add shallot and cook, tossing occasionally, until shallot and mushrooms are soft, about 5 minutes.
- Add gnocchi, asparagus, peas, butter, and reserved cooking liquid to skillet with the mushrooms and shallot.
- Cook, tossing gently until vegetables are warm and the sauce has thickened slightly, about 2 minutes; season with salt and pepper.
- Serve topped with chives, Parmesan, and lemon zest (optional)
Makes 4 servings.
Heaven on a Plate 
Nice recipe