Ratatouille with Basil & Ricotta Gnocchi
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 40
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 4 - 6
- Category: Cheese & Dairy
Description
The perfect for meat free monday and is the perfect belly-filling vegetable meal.
Ingredients
Ratatouille
1 red pepper
3 Tbsp (45 ml) olive oil, plus extra for serving
salt to coat the pepper
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 aubergine (brinjal), cut into 3 cm cubes and sprinkled with a bit of salt
6 courgettes (baby marrows), cut into 3 cm slices
4 large ripe tomatoes, seeds removed and chopped
1 x 410 g can diced tomatoes
1 Tbsp (15 ml) red wine vinegar
6 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
½ tsp (2.5 ml) dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1 tsp (5 ml) sugar
1 handful of fresh basil, shredded
salt and pepper to taste
Basil and ricotta gnocchi
250 g ricotta cheese
4/5 C (200 ml) cake flour, plus extra for dusting
3/5 C (150 ml) self-raising flour
50 g Parmesan cheese, finely grated, plus extra for serving
4 large egg yolks
zest of 1 lemon
½ C (125 ml) finely chopped fresh basil
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 220 °C.
Rub the red pepper with some olive oil and salt and place onto a baking tray. Roast for about 15 minutes until blistered. Remove the skin and seeds and cut into cubes.
In a large pot, heat the olive oil and sauté the onion until soft and golden. Remove the onion and keep to one side.
Add a little more oil, if necessary, to the same pot and fry the aubergine and courgettes until lightly golden. Add the sautéed onion, the fresh tomatoes and blistered red pepper and fry for 5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, except the basil. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are tender but not mushy and the flavours in the sauce have developed. Add the basil and season to taste.
While the ratatouille is simmering, crack on with the gnocchi. Place all the ingredients into a large bowl and mix together to form a soft dough. On a floured surface and with floured hands, knead for 3–5 minutes until smooth. Roll the dough into a 3 cm-thick sausage shape and cut into 2 cm pieces. Press each piece gently with the back of a fork. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and add the gnocchi when ready to serve the ratatouille. Cook for about 2 minutes – they will rise to the surface when they are cooked – and remove with a slotted spoon.
Arrange the gnocchi on serving plates and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Spoon the ratatouille over the gnocchi and serve with grated Parmesan cheese.
