not your nonna's gnocchi

I ran across a fun way to use beets, in gnocchi! They look beautiful and taste great too! I have to admit that I don't enjoy the earthiness of beets, but loved this recipe because the parmesan and ricotta balanced the strong flavor. If you love beets, use more than the recipe calls for.

Here is the recipe (makes 4 main-course servings):

3-4 small beets, trimmed
1 pound fresh ricotta cheese
1 large egg
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups flour, divided
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2 tbsp olive oil
fresh rosemary sprigs, or bunch of basil, chopped
Additional Parmesan cheese, shaved
Additional basil leaves, to garnish

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Wrap beets in foil and roast until tender, about 1 hour. Cool 15 minutes. Slip skin off beets; discard skins. Coarsely grate beets. Place grated beets in large bowl. Stir in ricotta, egg, 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Mix in 1 cup flour. (Gnocchi dough can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Lightly dust baking sheet with flour. Place remaining flour in small bowl. Using a tablespoon as aid, scoop dough into small rounds; transfer to bowl with flour, roll to coat. To shape the gnocchi: hold a salad fork in one hand so the tip rests on the work surface at a 45-degree angle. Place a piece of the dough at the top of the tines with your free thumb in the center. In one gentle motion, quickly press and roll the dough along the tines to make groves in one side of the dumpling. The other side will have a small dent from your thumb, perfectly suited for holding a sauce. Transfer gnocchi to prepared baking sheet. (Can be prepared 6 hours ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Melt butter with rosemary or basil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Cook until butter begins to brown, about 3 minutes. Add olive oil, set aside. Working in batches, cook gnocchi in large pot of simmering salted water, 3 1/2 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer gnocchi to skillet with butter, olive oil and rosemary/basil. Heat over medium heat, stirring gently to coat. Transfer to plate; sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese, garnish with basil leaves and serve. (Paraphrased from Bon Appetit magazine, October 2004).

[This post submitted by Marissa]