HOMEMADE GNOCCHI WITHOUT POTATOES with BUCKWHEAT FLOUR ALSO GLUTEN FREE
Today we will see together how to make GNOCCHI WITHOUT POTATOES, an easy basic recipe to prepare gnocchi at home in a few minutes that will be soft but not mushy, with a delicate flavor ideal with any type of sauce.
An alternative to classic POTATO GNOCCHI also in a gluten-free version, with an easy-to-knead and non-sticky dough that you can then decide to cut into squares or make ridges with a fork or gnocchi board.
The dough for this variant of classic GNOCCHI is composed of ricotta, buckwheat flour, all-purpose flour, eggs, parmesan, and a pinch of salt and can be adapted for gluten intolerance by using only buckwheat flour, naturally gluten-free.
Preparing the GNOCCHI WITHOUT POTATOES recipe is within everyone’s reach and requires no culinary skills. Simply mix ricotta, both flours (or just buckwheat flour), eggs, and a pinch of salt in a bowl. A quick mix and then, after transferring the dough to a work surface and kneading for a couple of minutes, you can form your RICOTTA GNOCCHI without Potatoes ready to cook.
Gnocchetti without potatoes with ricotta are perfect with any sauce: butter and sage, a simple tomato sauce, basil pesto, today I decided to dress them with ZUCCHINI and CRISPY BACON for a flavorful dish also suitable as a main course.
The secret for a perfect result is to knead quickly to have homemade GNOCCHI without POTATOES that melt in your mouth, and this version has an additional advantage: without potatoes, they keep longer.
Try these RICOTTA and BUCKWHEAT FLOUR GNOCCHI, you will find them delicious and even children will love them.
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Very Economical
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 697.10 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 50.34 (g) of which sugars 1.83 (g)
- Proteins 43.09 (g)
- Fat 37.71 (g) of which saturated 19.55 (g)of which unsaturated 15.18 (g)
- Fibers 5.22 (g)
- Sodium 1,340.54 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 100 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 2 cups g ricotta
- 1 1/2 cups g buckwheat flour (see note at the end for substitutions)
- 1/2 cup g all-purpose flour (see note at the end for GLUTEN FREE)
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup g grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp g fine salt
- 2 zucchini
- 4 oz g bacon (sweet or smoked)
- 1 drizzle extra virgin olive oil
- to taste salt
- grated Parmesan cheese (to add at the end to taste)
Tools
- Bowl
- Gnocchi board
- Pot
- Pan
HOW TO MAKE GNOCCHI WITHOUT POTATOES
Before starting, note that for a completely gluten-free version, you should use exclusively buckwheat flour, replacing the 70 g of all-purpose flour indicated in the ingredients with the same weight of buckwheat flour for a total of 250 g of buckwheat flour.
Put the ricotta in a bowl and slightly soften it with a fork, then add the Parmesan, eggs, and salt and start mixing with a spoon. As soon as the mixture is homogeneous, start incorporating both flours little by little until they are completely combined. If you prefer, you can move to a work surface.
Continue working the dough until it becomes elastic and homogeneous. Form a ball and divide it into 4 with a knife. Take one of the parts and slightly round it with your hands on the work surface to form a cylinder. With a knife, cut pieces about 1/2 inch thick, which will be your gnocchi, trying to make them all the same size.
Before starting, put a pot with plenty of lightly salted water on the stove, you’ll need it to cook the gnocchi and prepare the sauce. Clean the zucchini, remove the ends, and cut them into thin slices. Heat a drizzle of oil in a pan and sauté the peeled garlic. Add the zucchini, a pinch of salt, and cook for about 8-10 minutes, stirring often. Meanwhile, fry the bacon in a pan without seasoning until it becomes lightly golden and crispy. Add the zucchini, which should be cooked by now, and mix to combine.
Meanwhile, the water will have reached a boil, pour in the ricotta gnocchi and cook for about 4 minutes. Generally, when they are cooked, they float. Drain them with a slotted spoon directly into the pan with the sauce. Gently stir to combine (to mix without breaking them, use two spoons together) and serve with a sprinkle of Parmesan.
Another combination I recommend is a tasty cheese sauce made by melting Raschera, or Toma, or another melting cheese in a bain-marie with half its weight in fresh liquid cream. Enjoy your lunch!
STORAGE
Gnocchi without potatoes can be frozen as soon as they are made and not yet cooked. Simply place them on a tray well spaced apart in the freezer, and once they have hardened, you can transfer them to freezer bags. Once cooked and seasoned, it is recommended to eat them immediately.
TIPS for making GNOCCHI WITHOUT POTATOES
BUCKWHEAT FLOUR: I used buckwheat because I preferred to give these ricotta gnocchi without potatoes a more rustic taste that vaguely reminds me of the PIZZOCCHERI from VALTELLINA. If you prefer a milder flavor, you can skip it and replace it with an equal amount of all-purpose flour: in this case, the total amount of all-purpose flour to use in the recipe after substitution will be 250 g.
RICOTTA: For the gnocchi without potatoes recipe, buy cow’s milk ricotta. Before using it, transfer it to a fine-mesh strainer placed over a bowl to let it lose excess water, otherwise, it could ruin the dough.
PARMESAN: do not omit this ingredient because in addition to giving a good taste to the gnocchi, it helps achieve the right consistency of the dough.
GLUTEN-FREE GNOCCHI WITHOUT POTATOES
If you want to make gluten-free RICOTTA GNOCCHI due to intolerance, use only BUCKWHEAT FLOUR, replacing the all-purpose flour indicated in the recipe (70 g) with an equal amount of buckwheat flour: the total amount of BUCKWHEAT FLOUR to use will be 250 g.
VARIANTS OF GNOCCHI WITHOUT POTATOES
Even though the term gnocchi immediately reminds us of classic POTATO GNOCCHI, there are many variants that do not use potatoes in the dough, starting with ROMAN GNOCCHI, which are made with semolina and water and baked with butter, grated cheese, and nutmeg.
Many regional recipes use stale bread, which are poor recipes that come from tradition and a past where wasting leftovers was not conceivable: this is how the famous SPECK CANEDERLI from Trentino were probably born, which include old bread in the dough along with other ingredients such as milk, speck, grated cheese, and eggs.
Many other gnocchi variants include the use of flours and vegetables, such as SPÄTZLE, green dumplings with spinach in the dough and many others.
WHAT SAUCE FOR GNOCCHI WITHOUT POTATOES
The delicate and almost neutral taste of Gnocchi with Potatoes pairs well with many sauces, from a simple tomato sauce to WALNUT SAUCE, or GENOVESE BASIL PESTO, to richer and more elaborate sauces. If you love stronger flavors, try enjoying them with a cheese sauce like GNOCCHI alla BAVA, or SORRENTINA with mozzarella and tomato sauce. A good Neapolitan ragù or a sausage ragù are equally valid ideas.
WHERE GNOCCHI WITHOUT POTATOES ORIGINATE
The world is divided between those who love very soft gnocchi and those who love them more consistent. For those in the second category, it is better to rely on the grandmother’s recipe for gnocchi without potatoes, very common in Southern Italy. Their peculiarity lies precisely in their consistency, which is to remain pleasantly full-bodied (not hard) and firm to the bite. Besides being a traditional recipe, making gnocchi without potatoes is also an excellent solution if you don’t have potatoes at home or if you don’t have the time (or desire) to boil them. Simple and fast, with very few ingredients, but a guaranteed success.
The world is divided between those who love very soft gnocchi and those who love them more consistent. For those in the second category, it is better to rely on the grandmother’s recipe for gnocchi without potatoes, very common in Southern Italy. Their peculiarity lies precisely in their consistency, which is to remain pleasantly full-bodied (not hard) and firm to the bite. Besides being a traditional recipe, making gnocchi without potatoes is also an excellent solution if you don’t have potatoes at home or if you don’t have the time (or desire) to boil them. Simple and fast, with very few ingredients, but a guaranteed success.
