Malfatti

• 30 minutes to prepare •  10 minutes to cook  • Serves 4

Malfatti

One recipe, two names: malfatti (badly made) in Siena, gnudi (naked) in Florence.
Malfatti, because their characteristic is to be irregular, different, home made and a bit lumpy. Gnudi because they are ultimately the filling for ravioli, without the external dress of home-made pasta!
The result is still guaranteed, whether you want to call them.

These little gnocchi of spinach and ricotta are indeed just perfect.
All dimpled and vivid green, they are a delicious alternative to the endless riffs on pasta, are far from demanding to make, and, sneaking spinach into your kids, they're certainly not challenging to eat.

Here are ingredients for a 4-serving recipe (25 malfatti):

150 g flour 00
200 g ricotta cheese
500 g fresh spinach
50 g butter
80 g grated Parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic
sage leaves
nutmeg powder
2 eggs
salt and pepper

1. Wash and clean spinach
2. Drain ricotta cheese in a colander
3. Boil spinach in salted hot water for 10 minutes. Then, drain it in a colander and squeeze all the water out with a spoon
4. Melt 20 g of butter in a pan, braise the clove of garlic until golden. Then, remove it and add spinach leaves. Braise them for 15 minutes, until soft. Add a pinch of salt
5. Place sauteed spinach in a bowl together with the ricotta cheese, 50 g of Parmesan cheese, the eggs, a teaspoon of nutmeg powder, a pinch of salt, the flour and mix well with an electric mixer
6. Prepare malfatti: take a small handful of the spinach mixture and place in your palm creating an oblong shape. Continue to use up all the mixture in the same manner making more malfatti, rolling the finished ones in flour, and then placing on a baking sheet
7. Boil malfatti in salted water, until they float
8. Meanwhile, melt the rest of the butter in a pan and add the sage's leaves
9. Remove the malfatti from the water and transfer them in the butter pan. Mix, and serve them with freshly ground pepper and some more Parmesan cheese on top

Nutrition Facts are detailed in the table below. Data is provided per serving.