You may or may not have heard of gnocchi, an Italian pasta dish that's made from potatoes and flour and typically served with melted butter or ragu sauce. They're essentially fluffy pillows of dough that will make you feel warm and fuzzy inside. 

Although gnocchi are widely popular in Italy and abroad in restaurants, there are similar pasta dishes that are variations of gnocchi. Many Americans aren't aware of the different types of gnocchi, and these dishes will vary depending on the region of Italy they're made in. 

One similar dish is spätzle, which can be found in the Alpine regions of Northern Italy that boarder with Switzerland and Austria. Another example would be gnudi, which are made in a very similar manner to gnocchi, except instead of using potato as the base, you use cheese. Yes, lots and lots of cheese. 

Gnudi originated in the Toscana region of Italy, which is home to Florence and the Western coast of central Italy. Gnudi can be served with many different sauces, but are traditionally served with a butter and mushroom sauce. But what makes it different from gnocchi?

Ricotta cheese. Buckets of the smooth creamy cheese mixed with flour make this gnudi recipe just perfect. Of course, it's topped with a generous amount of grated Parmigiano Reggiano. So get your pots and pans out and in no time you will be whipping up a new pasta dish that you might just fall in love with. 

Tuscan Gnudi

  • Prep Time:35 mins
  • Cook Time:10 mins
  • Total Time:45 mins
  • Servings:3
  • Medium

    Ingredients

  • 2 cups ricotta cheese
  • 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
  • 1 egg beaten
  • 2 teaspoons + 4 tablespoons butter
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 pound mushrooms
  • 4 cloves sliced garlic
  • 1 teaspoon thyme
  • 1/4 cup water
  • Pinch salt
  • Pot boiling water
mushroom, vegetable, sauce, pork, beef, meat
Mireille Heidbreder

  • Step 1

    Combine the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, beaten egg, 2 teaspoons melted butter, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Mix all the ingredients together by folding the Ricotta cheese with the other components until a smooth paste is formed.

  • Step 2

    Add the cup of flour to the cheese mixture. Continue to fold the flour into the cheese mixture until a dough is formed.

    #SpoonTip: Don't dump your cup of flour in the middle of your cheese mixture, but instead pour it around the rim of the bowl. This will make it easier to fold all the ingredients so your dough doesn't become all flour or all cheese in certain parts.

  • Step 3

    Form dough into a ball while still in the bowl and then transfer the dough ball to a floured surface and start working it into a rope shape that is between 2 and 3 inches thick.

  • Step 4

    Once the dough rope has been formed, cut into about 1 1/2-2 inch pieces and place onto a floured baking sheet.

  • Step 5

    Prepare a pot of boiling water and place the gnudi (cut dough) into the water and let cook for 5 minutes at high heat.

  • Step 6

    While the gnudi are cooking, pour the olive oil into a pan and let the oil heat up for about 1 minute to start on the mushroom sauce for your pasta.

  • Step 7

    Once the oil has heated up, put the mushrooms and pinch of salt into the pan and let cook for about 10 minutes on medium heat until the mushrooms are browned and have shrunk in size.

  • Step 8

    Add the cloves of garlic and thyme to the mushrooms and let cook for an additional 30-60 seconds on high heat.

  • Step 9

    Finally, add the 4 tablespoons of butter and 1/4 cup of water to the mushroom mixture and let cook for about 5 minutes on high heat.

  • Step 10

    Strain and place the cooked gnudi into the pan with the mushroom sauce and combine everything together so it's are covered by the sauce. If needed, place the gnudi and sauce back on the stove for a few minutes to warm everything up.

  • Step 11

    Grate some extra Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top of your gnudi and enjoy!