Typical Italian food: Ricotta Gnocchi with Nettles

Nettles and Ricotta Gnocchi

If you cannot find Nettles you can use spinach

500 grams / 17.6 ounces Nettles

50 grams / 1.7 ounces Ricotta

1 cup of flour

1 onion

¼ cup butter

1 egg

parmesan 

sage

salt/pepper

nutmeg

From the Nettles take just the leaves, wash and make sure to use gloves because they do pinch.

Then blanch for a few minutes in boiling water, then remove from the water and squeeze the remaining liquid from the Nettles.  Finely chop the nettles. 

Place the butter in a pan with one chopped onion.  Sauté the onions for one minute then add the nettles to the pan.  After a couple of minutes place in a bowl and add the flour, ricotta, and parmesan cheese with the egg, salt, and nutmeg.  Let this mixture rest for a half and hour and then you are ready to make the gnocchi by hand.

Once you have shaped your gnocchi place in a pan of boiling water and cook until they float to the top of the pan.

For the Sauce

1/3 cup unsalted mountain butter

10 fresh sage leaves

Place butter in a large sauté pan and melt, then add the sage and cook for 1 minute just enough to get the scent of the sage in the butter.

Once the gnocchi has been cooked then add to the butter sage sauce and sauté for a few minutes adding some of the pasta water to the butter sage sauce. 

Serve immediately and season with parmesan.