3-Ingredient Ricotta Gnocchi (No Potato!)

Why make your own ricotta gnocchi

I’ve made potato gnocchi before (once very disastrously when I added far too much flour – yuck). It was good and quite easy, but still too much hard work for my liking.

But ricotta gnocchi is another matter. It’s EASY. And I really mean easy. Like throw 3 ingredients in a bowl, mix, roll and cut into gnocchi sized bits easy. It takes literally around 10 minutes. Almost as fast as opening that supermarket package of pre-made gnocchi. Nothing wrong with that, of course, but once you make these you won’t believe the difference.

Here’s a summary of what I think you’ll love:

• So easy to make. Mix three ingredients, roll, and cut. It couldn’t get any easier than that!
• Deliciously light and fluffy. Unlike heavier potato gnocchi, ricotta gnocchi has a tender, light and melt-in-your-mouth texture that’s really hard to beat.
• Ready in minutes. Around 10, to be exact.
• Perfect for freezing. Ricotta gnocchi is quite soft and delicate, so it’s easier to handle when it’s frozen. You can even cook it without defrosting first (in fact that’s the best way to go).

You may know that ricotta gnocchi is usually made with an egg, just like other types of gnocchi. This recipe however is egg free. And did I mention no potatoes, either? It has only these 3 ingredients:

• Ricotta cheese: Creamy, soft ricotta cheese is what gives the gnocchi its light, tender texture and delicate flavor. For best results, use full-fat ricotta and drain any excess moisture before mixing in the flour and parmesan (just let it sit for a while, then drain off any liquid that seeps out).
• Flour: Use white all-purpose flour. You just need enough flour to bring everything together and create a dough that’s easy to work with. You’ll also need plenty extra for rolling and coating your hands because the dough is very sticky.
• Parmesan cheese: This adds some savory flavor and really takes these gnocchi to the next level! Finely grated parmesan will work best.

So no eggs, and in my humble opinion it doesn’t suffer in the slightest for it. The gnocchi are soft, deliciously cheesy pillows. They don’t need salt either (thanks to the salty parmesan cheese!).

How to make ricotta gnocchi

It’s almost ridiculously easy to make homemade gnocchi out of ricotta cheese!

All you have to do is put all 3 ingredients into a bowl. If there is any excess water in the ricotta tub, drain it first so that the finished dough is firm enough to roll and cut.

Stir the ingredients together with a wooden spoon or spatula until the flour is ‘just’ mixed in. At this point the dough may still be very sticky, which is fine.

Now flour a clean work surface (and your hands!) really well. Empty the dough onto the surface and pat it into a soft dough. You may need to sprinkle it with more flour in order to do this, but don’t overdo it.

Cut the dough into 4 to 6 pieces with a knife.

Gently roll out/shape each piece into a sausage shape (around 2 cm thick).

Now cut the dough into roughly equal sized gnocchi shapes (around 2-3 cm long). You can cut straight lines, or at a slight angle – it’s up to you!

The finished gnocchi will look a bit like this (rustic is fine!). If you need to dust with a bit more flour if the edges are still a bit sticky, that’s fine.

Now you’ll want to cook them straight away or, alternatively, freeze them for later (instructions below).

How to cook and eat ricotta gnocchi

There are a few ways to cook ricotta gnocchi, so take your pick! Since gnocchi made this way with ricotta cheese are so fluffy, light and delicious, they can easily be the star of the show.

If you like, just cook your gnocchi by your preferred method as described below, then toss with garlic, olive oil and parmesan cheese.

Here’s what you need to know about cooking the gnocchi.

• Boil: This is the most common method. Use a slotted spoon to very gently place the gnocchi into a pot of salted boiling water. Once they float to the surface, they’re done! This usually takes just 2-3 minutes, or slightly longer if you’re cooking from frozen. Then, just scoop them out and gently toss through a simple sauce. Try pesto, Italian marinara sauce, stir through some of this tasty sausage bolognese, or go with the amazing eggplant sauce in this pasta alla norma recipe.
• Pan-fry: To get crispy gnocchi (delicious!), pan-fry them on a medium high heat in a bit of olive oil or butter. If pan-frying such as in this cherry tomato gnocchi recipe, don’t flip them too often and allow one side to brown and crisp up before turning carefully (since homemade ricotta gnocchi are more delicate than store-bought gnocchi).
• Bake/Roast: Ricotta gnocchi are delicious baked on a sheet pan with roasted vegetables and meat (if you like). Take a look at this gnocchi with sausages, peppers and tomatoes – it’s so much more delicious with homemade ricotta gnocchi!

They are also good served by themselves as a side dish with anything you like, or try:

• vegetables such as these Mediterranean roast vegetables or Greek baked eggplant. Add meat, if you like.
• meat with a sauce such as Greek chicken with yogurt sauce, or feta chicken.

Lastly, you can scatter them over a soup just before serving. Try easy tomato soup (stove top or instant pot), pumpkin red lentil soup or Greek lentil soup.