Remember when I made ricotta the other day? Well, after much debate I finally decided how I wanted to use it. With several recipes I found the ricotta was the underdog while other flavors and ingredients stole the show. I didn't want that. I worked hard to make fresh ricotta so when I served it to my family I wanted them to taste fresh ricotta! So I was so excited when I found this recipe in Giada De Laurentiis' Every Day Pasta book. Gnudi translated means nude, which describes the pasta filling without the pasta wrapper. So basically its like eating just the inside part of a ravioli.

I made these little nude balls of deliciousness in about 10 minutes and served them as a light lunch.  This would be a great first course for any meal or you could double the recipe and serve it for dinner. 

Ricotta Gnudi with Sage Butter Sauce

• 2 1/2 cups whole milk ricotta, preferably homemade
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 egg white
• 2 ounces of prosciutto, chopped
• 2 tbsp fresh flatleaf parsley, chopped
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp all purpose flour, plus 1 cup for dredging
• 1/2 stick butter
• handful of fresh sage, chopped

Bring a large pot of salted water to a simmer over high heat. In a large bowl, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, egg, egg white, prosciutto, parsley, nutmeg, salt, and pepper and mix thoroughly. When the water is simmering and ready, stir the flour into the ricotta mixture. (It is important not to add the flour too soon; otherwise they will become dense and gummy, not light.)

Shape the gnudi using two large soup spoons; scoop up a large spoonful of ricotta mixture into one spoon, then onto the other spoon and back again, forming a three-sided oval. Drop the gnudi into the dredging flour. Form another 8 or 9 gnudi at a time, dredge in flour on all sides, and tap off the excess.

Slide the formed gnudi into the simmering water, being careful not to overcrowd the pot. Remove the gnudi using a slotted spoon after they have floated to the top and have cooked for about 4 minutes total.

While the gnudi cook, create another batch of gnudi and dredge them in flour. Continue cooking and forming gnudi, transferring the cooked gnudi to a platter in a single layer, until you have used all the ricotta mixture.

To make the sauce melt the butter in a pan and add a little water to prevent butter from burning. Add sage and once butter is melted remove from heat and set aside.

Divide the gnudi among the serving bowls. Pour the sage butter sauce over the gnudi. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan and serve.

Makes 4 to 6 servings. Enjoy!