The first codified recipe of cheese gnocchi is found in a fourteenth-century manuscript preserved in Bologna.
It has very few ingredients: fresh cheese, egg yolks, and flour. It probably had a much softer consistency and was therefore cooked by taking the dough by the spoonful before throwing it into boiling water. It was seasoned with just grated cheese.
At the time – and until the end of the Renaissance – they were called macaroni, like all pasta.
I use my Aunt Paola’s very easy recipe. She seasons them with a tomato sauce. I prefer them with black truffle, as they serve it in Roccamandolfi in Molise. Or there’s always the classic melted butter with sage and a mountain of Parmesan!

Aunt Paola's ricotta gnocchi

  • Preparation time: 20 minutes
  • Ingredients for 4 servings
  • Difficulty: Easy recipe

  • Ingredients
  • 11 oz (300 grams) of ricotta cheese
  • 7 oz (200 grams) of all-purpose flour (+ more flour for the pastry board)
  • 3 oz (80 grams) of grated parmesan
  • 1 egg
  • Salt to taste
  1. Instructions
  2. Put the ricotta in a colander for at least two hours to drain the whey.
  3. Pour the ricotta into a bowl with the flour, egg, salt, and parmesan cheese. Mix the ingredients well until the mixture is uniform. The dough must be smooth and not sticky.
  4. Dust the pastry board with flour. Divide the dough in half and roll each piece into a 3cm-wide log.
  5. Slice into 2cm-thick pieces and set aside on a lightly floured tray. Leave the gnocchi to rest on a well-floured tray for at least an hour.
  6. Cook the gnocchi in a large pot with salted boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes until firm and floating on the surface. Season them and serve them hot.

Tips to ensure the success of the dish:

  • Ricotta made with cow milk is more neutral in flavor but really watery. As a good Roman, I prefer the type made from sheep milk.
  • The gnocchi must be cooked immediately after being made. Do not keep them in the fridge. A trick is to put them in the freezer and cook them frozen, but be careful to place them in the freezer well arranged on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper to prevent them from sticking to each other.
  •  It’s better to cook them in a large pan so that they remain distant. Cook at a low boil, close to a simmer.
  • For the tomato sauce recipe click here

Mum’ cousins: from left Silvana, Enrico, Paola and Aldo