It is very difficult to give exact quantites for the flour. The best way is to test the result. Have some boiling water at the ready, add the amount of flour as recommended in the recipe, and cook one dumpling. If it breaks apart easily add more flour to the mix.
Making quenelles is a bit of a tricky business and may require little practice.
| Ricotta and aubergine gnocchi with a sicilian style sauce |
| This is a gourgeous dish and came from an Australian magazine (I'm sorry i can't remember which Chef!). It so
impressed me visually that i couldn't wait to get it on my menu. It proved very popular. There is just one thing to note. If you are using the soft ricotta that you will find in most supermarkets use the recipe as it is. If you are using the very firm ricotta often found only in Italian deli's or Italian food suppliers half the amount of flour in the recipe. |
Step 1 - make the gnocci filling |
rating=2, |
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For the gnocchi 750g (1lb 9oz) ricotta cheese 6 egg yolks 200g (8oz) plain flour 150g (5oz) grated parmesan cheese 1 handful flat leaf parsley 1 handful fresh basil leaf 75g (3oz)toasted pine nuts 100g (4oz) sultanas 1 knob of butter 1 small onion 2 cloves of garlic 1 glass of white wine Salt and black pepper 
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Place all of the ingredients up to and including the sultanas into a large bowl but don't yet mix them together.
Heat the butter in a small pan and saute the chopped onion and crushed garlic. When they are just starting to brown
add the white wine and simmer the mixture until most of the wine has evaporated away. Take the onions off the
heat and add them to the mixture in the bowl. Mix everything together and leave it in the fridge for at least 2
hours. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Using two large spoons form the ricotta mix into large 'quenelles' plunge them into the boiling water and allow them to simmer for about 40 seconds. Fish them out quickly and place them on a tray to cool. Do this in small batches of two or three and allow three per person. If don't want quenelles one could roll or mould them into sausage shapes. The idea is just to have a shape to roll the sauteed aubergine around. The ricotta gnocchi is much easier to work with when chilled so prepare them well in advance and fridge them for at least a couple of hours. |
| Step 2 - roll the gnocci | |
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To finish you will need: 3 to 4 aubergines olive oil Salt and black pepper 
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Cut the aubergines into quite thick slices, brush them with olive oil and them griddle them both sides until golden
brown. If you have a lined griddle plate try to create a criss cross pattern on the aubergines by turning them 90
degrees half way through cooking them. The pattern will make the final dish much more attractive. Season them
with salt and black pepper as you cook. When you have finished wrap each gnocchi with a slice of aubergine. They can be reheated as they are by baking them lightly for 15 minutes in a medium to hot oven. Serve on the sicilian style sauce with a small rocket salad in the centre. |
| Step 3 - make the sauce | |
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Sicilian tomato sauce Knob of butter 1 small onion 1 teaspoon garlic 500ml (1 pint) tomato sauce or passata 10 chopped olives 2 dessertspoons capers Handful sultanas A dash of balsamic vinegar |
Pan fry the chopped onions and crushed garlic in the butter until soft and starting to brown. Whizz up the tomato sauce (or you can use PASSATA) and add this to the pan. Add the remaining ingredients and slow simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper. |
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