Recipe: Spinach and Ricotta Dumplings (Malfatti)

SPINACH AND RICOTTA DUMPLINGS (MALFATTI)

"Try your hand at easily-made malfatti and you'll be able to boast about making pasta so light it floats. Better yet, these bite-size spinach and ricotta dumplings take barely 15 minutes to make and serve, starting from scratch.

Malfatti, which translates as "badly made," are essentially the same as the filling for spinach ravioli. But instead of being enclosed in sheets of pasta, the spinach-cheese mixture is shaped into finger tip-size rolls, then lightly floured and cooked in water. They are also called gnudi or "nudies" by some people, again referring to ravioli that lacks its outer envelope. Making this pasta is as easy as combining chopped spinach and cheese with an egg. Roll tablespoons of the mixture in flour, toss into simmering water and, when the malfatti rise to the surface, in about three minutes, set them on a plate with warm tomato sauce. Presto: you have home-made dumplings for dinner.

Malfatti are easily confused with gnocchi (nee-yok-ee), another type of diminutive Italian dumpling. Gnocchi can be made from semolina, which is coarsely-ground durum wheat, or using mashed potatoes and regular flour. Either way, they are exceptionally hard to make well. They should be airy and light, but instead are often doughy and tough. Turning out cloud-light malfatti however, is in my experience almost foolproof, even the very first time. In fact, if your children like to get involved with cooking, or if you want to lure them into learning some cooking skills, rolling the malfatti in flour is a perfect experience for them. Kids like to watch them sink into the water, then quickly bob back up. It's almost like magic. And parents should note that helping to malfatti is often a good way to get kids to eat spinach.

When buying marinara sauce, check the label for the fat content. Some prepared sauces contain as much as a whopping nine grams of fat per half-cup serving, others a mere one-half gram."

SPINACH AND RICOTTA DUMPLINGS

1 (10 oz.) package frozen chopped spinach
1 cup fat-free ricotta cheese
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan or Asiago cheese, plus 2 Tbsp. for garnish
Pinch of ground nutmeg, preferably freshly grated
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 large egg
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups prepared marinara or other light tomato sauce

In a medium saucepan, cook spinach according to package directions until just barely tender. Drain in a colander. When spinach is cool enough to handle, press or squeeze out to remove as much moisture as possible. Place spinach in a mixing bowl.

Add cheeses, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Mix until well combined. Mix in egg.

Sprinkle flour over a dinner plate. Using a generous tablespoon of the spinach mixture, gently form into 1 1/2 by 1-inch ovals and place on the flour. Repeat using half the spinach mixture. Roll formed ovals gently to coat them in the flour. One at a time, pick them up and gently shake in your palms to knock off excess flour. Set on another plate. Repeat, forming and flouring the rest. Discard excess flour.

Bring a large pot of water to a simmer. With a slotted spoon, gently place dumplings into the water. Cook until they float to the surface, about 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, gently heat tomato sauce. As the dumplings rise to the top of the water, lift them out and drain on paper towels.

Ladle sauce out to cover the center of four plates. Dividing dumplings equally, set them on the sauce. Garnish with a sprinkling of the remaining cheese and serve.

Makes 4 servings

Per serving: 162 calories, 5 g. total fat (2 g. saturated fat), 21 g. carbohydrate, 10 g. protein, 4 g. dietary fiber, 739 mg. sodium

Source: Dana Jacobi for the American Institute