In this baked Tuscan gnudi (malfatti) recipe, melt-in-your-mouth spinach and ricotta dumplings from Tuscany are cooked in a delicious homemade tomato sauce with mozzarella. However, you can also serve your gnudi with just browend butter and fried sage or tomato sauce without baking.
What are Tuscan gnudi?
Tuscan spinach and ricotta gnudi are a type of gnocchi or dumpling from Tuscany. In parts of Tuscany, like Siena, they also call them malfatti, meaning badly made. Malfatti are also eaten in Lombardy.
Gnudi or malfatti actually started life as the filling for a type of ravioli or tortelli. In fact, the word ‘gnudi’ means naked because the ravioli filling on its own became a traditional dish without the pasta dough. Written reference to these delicious dumplings dates back to the 16th century!
Different ways to serve these Tuscan gnudi.
These melt-in-your-mouth ricotta and spinach dumplings are traditionally eaten with a browned butter or a sage butter sauce or with a simple tomato, garlic and basil sauce.
However, baked Tuscan gnudi (malfatti) are divinely delicious, especially with a homemade tomato sauce and mozzarella! I like them served in all three ways, so I have included the recipe for sage butter gnudi as well! You can choose which way you’d like to serve your Tuscan gnudi.
Making baked Tuscan gnudi (malfatti).
The ingredients for gnudi or malfatti.
- Fresh spinach leaves: You can also use frozen spinach. Just make sure it’s very well drained.
- Good quality sheep or cow’s milk ricotta: also well drained.
- Fresh eggs: This recipe calls for one whole egg and one yolk.
- Plenty of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano or aged Pecorino Toscano: Vegetarians will need to use a vegetarian parmesan as these Italian cheeses are made with animal rennet.
- Soft wheat white flour: I used Italian ’00’ flour which is the finest milled white flour here in Italy. You can also use All Purpose flour.
- Salt.
Many people also add a pinch of nutmeg. If you are preparing baked Tuscan gnudi (malfatti), you will need the ingredients to make a tomato sauce and some mozzarella.
For the tomato sauce.
- Canned chopped tomatoes or peeled whole sauce tomatoes: I like to use a chunky passata which Italians call passata rustica.
- 2-3 peeled garlic cloves:
- Fresh basil leaves:
Chef’s Tip.
Although Tuscan spinach and ricotta gnudi are pretty easy to make, it’s important to get the consistency right. If the ingredients are too ‘wet’, you’ll need more flour and the resulting gnudi may be too heavy and floury.
So, it’s essential that you drain the spinach and ricotta well. Both can actually be squeezed out in a cotton tea towel if necessary.
Step by step instructions.
To make the Tuscan gnudi.
Preparation: Wash the spinach and cook in a little water until completely wilted. Drain the spinach well and chop finely. I squeeze the spinach in a tea towel to ensure all the liquid is out. Drain the ricotta.
Step 1) Put the chopped spinach, drained ricotta, grated cheese, flour, eggs, salt, pepper and nutmeg in a bowl and mix everything together well using a fork. Cover the bowl of gnudi mixture with cling film and leave in the fridge for 1-2 hours.
Step 2) Remove the gnudi mixture from the fridge. Take a flat tablespoon of the mixture and roll it into a ball with your hands. You can wet or flour your hands to stop the mixture sticking to them. Place the ready gnudi on a flour dusted surface. Continue until you have used up all the mixture.
Make the tomato sauce.
Peel the garlic cloves and fry them whole in olive oil until they start to soften. Then add the tomato passata or chopped tomatoes and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Finally add some salt and basil leaves and remove from the heat. Transfer the ready tomato sauce to an oven dish that’s big enough to fit your Tuscan gnudi.
Cook Gnudi and bake to finish.
Step1) Put a pot of salted water on to boil for the gnudi. Once you have poured the tomato sauce into an oven dish, boil the Tuscan gnudi for 2-4 minutes. They usually rise to the surface when ready. Remove with a slotted spoon and place carefully on top of the tomato sauce. Use a tablespoon to cover your gnudi with some of the sauce.
Step 2) Cut the mozzarella into slices and cover the Tuscan gnudi and tomato sauce with the mozzarella. Add a little more fresh basil and some grated Parmigiano. Then, bake in a preheated oven at 180°c (356°F) until the mozzarella has melted (about 10-15 minutes). Serve immediately.
Cook’s Tip: For special occasions, bake your gnudi in tomato sauce with mozzarella in single portion oven dishes and serve one to each guest!
Baked Tuscan gnudi al forno takes a little longer to make than if you are serving the dumplings with butter and sage or just unbaked with tomato sauce. However, you don’t need to bake this dish for very long and you can make the tomato sauce while the gnudi mixture is resting in the fridge.
Can gnudi be made the day before?
Some people cook gnudi or malfatti immediately after making the mixture. However, many recipes recommend refrigerating it for at least 1- 2 hours. This is what I do. Also, some Italians say that gnudi or malfatti need to be used the day they are made. The ones I used in this baked Tuscan gnudi recipe, I had made the day before.
Some I served with sage butter for guests the same day as making them. The others I boiled and baked the following day. Just as yummy! So if you need too, you can prepare the raw gnudi the day before and keep them sealed in the fridge until you are ready to cook them.
Three recipes in one.
You can use this recipe to cook Tuscan gnudi (malfatti) three ways.
First way: Make the gnudi, cook them in boiling water and serve with some sage butter (melted butter with sage leaves cooked in it until crispy).
Second way: Follow all the recipe instructions and serve your baked Tuscan gnudi al forno in a homemade tomato sauce with melted mozzarella!
Third way: Instead of baking the Tuscan gnudi with tomato sauce, just serve as is immediately or reheat in the microwave when ready to eat.
If you make extra gnudi you can do like I did and eat them different ways!
Let me know what you think.
If you make this Tuscan gnudi with tomato sauce baked or unbaked or just serve your dumplings with sage butter, I’d love to hear how they turn out. Please write a comment here on the blog, email me or post a comment on the Pasta Project Facebook page.
Your feedback is really appreciated!
Buon Appetito!
Other Gnudi recipes on The Pasta Project
Ricotta Gnudi with black truffles.
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Baked Tuscan gnudi with homemade tomato sauce and mozzarella.
In this baked Tuscan gnudi (malfatti) recipe, melt-in-your-mouth spinach and ricotta dumplings from Tuscany are baked in a delicious homemade tomato sauce with mozzarella. However, you can also serve your gnudi with just melted butter and fried sage or unbaked with tomato sauce.
Ingredients
- 14 ounces fresh ricotta sheep or cow’s milk ricotta -well drained
- 14 ounces fresh spinach leaves
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 3.5 ounces Parmigiano Reggiano grated or hard cheese without rennet for vegetarians
- 2 ounces All purpose flour or Italian 00 flour
- 1 pinch nutmeg grated
- salt to boil gnudi and taste
- black pepper to taste
For tomato sauce and mozzarella
- 14 ounces tomato passata or canned chopped tomatoes I use Cirio rustica. It’s chunkier.
- 2-3 garlic cloves peeled
- 6-8 basil leaves
- 14 ounces fresh mozzarella
For sage butter
- 6-8 sage leaves
- 3.5 ounces butter
Instructions
Make the gnudi (malfatti)
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Wash your spinach and boil in a little water until wilted, then drain and leave to cool a bit, wring out well in a tea towel and chop finely.
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Drain the ricotta of any liquid and put it in a bowl with the spinach, ⅔ of the grated Parmigiano, the egg, the egg yolk and the flour, after passing it through a sieve. Grate a little nutmeg into the mixture. Add salt and pepper as required.
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Mix everything carefully with a fork. You can also use your hands but you don’t want to knead this dough, just make sure all the ingredients are well incorporated. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave it to rest for at least 1- 2 hours in the fridge.
Make the tomato sauce if baking your gnudi
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Peel the garlic. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan. Add the garlic, once it starts to soften add the tomato passata. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, add some basil leaves and remove the garlic cloves when the sauce is ready.
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Drain the mozzarella and cut into thin slices.
Finish the gnudi
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Place some baking paper on a tray and sprinkle with flour. Take about a flat tablespoon full of gnudi mixture and form into a ball. You can use wet or floured hands to make the balls. I use an ice-cream/melon scope or a tablespoon to get the same quantity of gnudi mixture for each ball. Place the gnudi on the tray and roll a little to cover each ball slightly in flour.
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Put a pot of water onto boil. Cook the gnudi in the boiling water for 2-4 minutes, when they come to the surface, allow a few seconds and then remove with a slotted spoon. The time it takes your gnudi to rise to the surface will depend on how big they are.
If serving with sage butter
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If you are serving with sage butter while the water is boiling and the gnudi are cooking, melt the butter in a skillet or frying pan. Add the sage leaves to the butter and cook until they start to crisp. Both the butter and the sage need to be a little brown but not burnt. Plate the cooked gnudi and pour over the sage butter. Add some grated parmesan and black pepper if required.
If baking your gnudi
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If you are making baked Tuscan gnudi, put the tomato sauce into an oven dish. Place the cooked gnudi in the sauce. Use a tablespoon to cover the gnudi with some sauce.
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Add the pieces of mozzarella. Sprinkle with grated Parmigiano and bake in a preheated oven at 180 ° (356°F) until the mozzarella has melted and the top has just started to brown. 10-15 minutes. Serve immediately!
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Notes
Don’t knead the gnudi mixture with your hands too much or it can get too dense. It’s better to use a fork.
Leaving the gnudi mixture in the fridge for at least an hour helps it to set and the gnudi will hold together better
Boiling the gnudi in batches will prevent crowding and the gnudi getting spoiled.
Baked Tuscan gnudi work really well when baked in individual single portion oven dishes.
Nutrition
Calories: 693kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 49gFat: 44gSaturated Fat: 26gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 235mgSodium: 1342mgPotassium: 987mgFiber: 4gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 10883IUVitamin C: 38mgCalcium: 1147mgIron: 6mg
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