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A close up of ricotta gnocchi with parmesan sauce on a plate
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5 from 6 votes

Homemade ricotta gnocchi broccoli cream sauce

Easy homemade ricotta gnocchi served with a delicious broccoli cream and parmesan sauce. You won't believe how easy it is to make these ricotta dumpling from scratch and how light and delicious they are.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time45 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 6 - 8 servings
Calories: 557kcal
Author: Emily Wyper

Ingredients

For The Ricotta Gnocchi

  • 1 ¾ - 2 cups flour , plus extra for dusting (250g-300g)
  • 3 large eggs
  • 14 oz ricotta cheese (400g)
  • ¼ cup parmesan cheese , grated (20g)
  • salt and pepper to season

For The Sauce

  • 1 small broccoli
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 ¼ cup heavy (double) cream (300ml)
  • ½ cup parmesan cheese (50g)
  • ½ tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 pinch nutmeg
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

  • Add all the gnocchi ingredients apart from the flour in a large mixing bowl and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until thoroughly combined.
  • Gradually add the flour while stopping to fold it into the ricotta mixture. Keep doing this until a soft dough forms. *See notes
  • Tip: I find the amount of flour needed depends on the creaminess of the ricotta (some can be wetter than others). Keep adding the flour until the dough is soft and easy to handle without sticking to your hands.
  • Dust a work surface with flour and tip the dough out from the bowl. Shape the ricotta gnocchi dough into a rough rectangle log shape and cut it in half. The dough will be quite sticky at the edges you cut so always dust the knife with flour before cutting and then lightly dust the cut edges.
  • Divide each half in half again so you have 4 pieces of dough (photo 6). Carefully roll each piece of dough into a long log around ½ inch to 1 inch thick.
  • Cut each rolled out log into gnocchi (small-medium sized) and set them aside on a flour-dusted chopping board or surface.
  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cut the thick stalk off the broccoli so you only have florets left. Add them to the boiling water for 1 minute then remove with a slotted spoon and set aside (keep the water boiling).
  • Finely chop the garlic and fry it in a little olive oil in a large pan. Roughly chop the broccoli into small-medium pieces and add to the garlic.
  • Fry for 30 seconds to 1 minute then add the cream, nutmeg and salt and pepper. At this point add the gnocchi to the boiling water.
  • Bring the cream to a boil then add the parmesan. Keep the sauce simmering until it started to thicken then remove the gnocchi from the water with a slotted spoon and add to the sauce.
  • Toss to coat in the sauce, season with more salt and pepper and serve.

Notes

  • The amount of flour will depend on how wet the ricotta is an how large your eggs are. Keep adding a little at a time until a dough forms.
  • Always use as less flour as possible and dust your hands to prevent the dough from sticking when rolling.
  • I like to sieve the flour into the ricotta so it is totally lump free.

Nutrition

Calories: 557kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 33g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Cholesterol: 191mg | Sodium: 277mg | Potassium: 510mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1860IU | Vitamin C: 91mg | Calcium: 344mg | Iron: 3.4mg