Gnudi

[woodburner]

I've not found a thread on these little gems, in eithier the Italy or Cooking forums. If someone could point to a previous thread please do, if not can we proceed here?

thank you

woodburner

[Pontormo]

Google says there's at least 177 references, though this might be best for your purposes.

Since they're often called "ricotta gnocchi" instead, you're bound to find more, including in the pasta cook-off and the thread on Tuscan cooking. Judy Rodgers provides a photo doc of process in The Zuni Cafe Cookbook, though all you'll probably need is Moby's as linked here.

[blueapron]

The Gothamist actually has a recepie for the gnudi from The Spotted Pig on its website. Although they added a little lobster to them. Still looks really really good though. I have been wanting to try to make them myself, but not yet.

http://www.gothamist.com/archives/2005/01/...cotta_gnudi.php

Edited December 13, 2006 by blueapron (log)

[Kevin72]

I made them last month for the Tuscany thread (click here). I think they were much larger in size than the real deal is supposed to be, and then I baked them with tomato sauce after parboiling them. I also probably added too much flour; the dough is so fragile I get nervous!

Drain your ricotta well, get the spinach squeezed very dry and that should go a long way to ensuring a less liquid dough.

[fortedei]

I made them last month for the Tuscany thread (click here).  I think they were much larger in size than the real deal is supposed to be, and then I baked them with tomato sauce after parboiling them.  I also probably added too much flour; the dough is so fragile I get nervous!

Drain your ricotta well, get the spinach squeezed very dry and that should go a long way to ensuring a less liquid dough.

←

As with so many other things Tuscan, Giuliano Bugialli was the first to introduce ravioli nudi to cooks in the US. The Fine Art of Italian Cooking, his first book, has the recipe. Depending on the humidity, use a bit less flour, but otherwise the recipe is perfect. We've been making them for almost 30 years without a hitch.

[divina]

here is my recipe for gnudi.

Important things to look for:

Drain your ricotta well.

Squeeze all the water out of the cooked spinach.

Add as little flour as neccessary, cook one first as a test.. if too soft, add more flour.

they should have a nice coating of flour on the outside.

Make them the size of a walnut. they cook quickly.

You can cook them ahead of time and serve baked with sauce.

classic sauces:

Butter with sage and parmesan

walnut sauce

tomato

baked with bechamel

enjoy!

Edited December 20, 2006 by divina (log)

[Abra]

Divina, when you cook them ahead, you boil them, then chill, and later bake with a sauce? I'm thinking of these for Christmas Eve, but would rather not be rolling them out at the last minute.

[Eden]

I had no idea you could make them in advance! I will have to try that - I adore gnudi

My recipe calls for squeezing the spinach in a linen cloth pretty much till your hands hurt to get as much moisture out as possible.

[Pontormo]

You can also freeze them on floured trays, then store them so they don't touch. Thaw in fridge, then cook. (Someone else says go ahead and dump them in frozen, but I've been reluctant to try.) This is not practical with large quantities, though.

[Abra]

And even if I'm the only person in the world with this question, is it pronounced nyudi, or nudie?

[Pontormo]

There is indeed a pronounced difference between gnudi pictures and nudie pictures.

"G" before either "n" or "l" in Italian operates the same way that the little curly diacritical mark does when placed over "n"'s in Spanish. E.g. "sfoglia" is pronounced "sfoh-ylee-ah"--or "neenyah" for nina with mark over second "n".

* * *

ETA: to avoid posting anything else today, Eden I am answering your post below, here. See what Kevin says to Little Ms. in the Emilia-R thread. He has no problems dumping all in a bag and cooking them frozen. Makes sense since you can do that with potato gnocchi. I have only followed advice from a different source, freezing the gnocchi in containers with space in between them (I rarely have leftovers). It's only to avoid gumming up and sticking in thawing process, but if you don't need to thaw them...

Edited December 21, 2006 by Pontormo (log)

[Eden]

you say nyudi I say gnudi

Pontormo you're saying they can't touch even after they're frozen? So do you wrap them individually in waxed paper to store?

[divina]

GNYU- di

frozen the can then touch... from freezer to boiling water.. don;t thaw.

gets messy.

I just poach them.. then toss in some melted butter and refridgerate...

can re heat in water.. bake or reheat in sauce!

make them a little firmer... but not tough!

Buon appetito.

Ilove them baked..easy to serve too.

I do bechamel.. and wild boar sauce.. or ragu... with parmesan...