Recipes from Our Volunteers

Ricotta Gnocchi with Spinach and Roasted Tomatoes

FROM EXECUTIVE CHEF JASON SANTOS OF GARGOYLES ON THE SQUARE, BOSTON AND VOLUNTEER FOR SHARE OUR STRENGTH'S OPERATION FRONTLINE MASSACHUSETTS

ricotta gnocchi
“I choose to teach Operation Frontline classes because it's a great way for me to see an immediate reaction from the participants. I truly feel that it changes their lives.”
—Jason Santos, Executive Chef, Gargoyles on the Square, Boston, Operation Frontline volunteer Taste of the Nation committee member.

Yield

Serves 4, 1 cup per serving

Nutrition Information

Calories 390; Total Fat 13g; Sat, Fat 4.5g; Sodium 700 mg; Carbohydrates 53g; Fiber 3g; Protein 16g.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 4 medium plum tomatoes
  • 4 cups fresh spinach
  • 1 large lemon
  • 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 1 teaspoon salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. Bring a large pot of water to boil.
  3. Rinse tomatoes, spinach, and lemon.
  4. Cut tomatoes in half and toss with 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil.
  5. Place tomato halves on a baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes, or until soft.
  6. Cut lemon in half, squeeze juice from both halves into a small bowl.
  7. Beat egg with a fork in a medium mixing bowl.
  8. Add ricotta cheese, flour, and nutmeg to the egg and mix well until dough forms.
  9. Roll ricotta mixture into several thin logs, about a ½-inch wide and 1 foot long.
  10. Cut logs into ½-inch pieces (these are the gnocchi).
  11. Drop gnocchi into boiling water and cook until they float, about 20 seconds.
  12. Remove gnocchi from water.
  13. Peel, rinse and mince garlic.
  14. Heat 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil over medium-high heat in a medium sauté pan.
  15. Sauté garlic until brown, add gnocchi to the pan, and cook until brown on both sides.
  16. Add spinach and tomatoes, and season with salt and fresh lemon juice. Toss and serve.

Chef's Notes

  • Use canned tomatoes when plum tomatoes are not in season.
  • Because ricotta cheese varies in its moisture content, you can add extra flour to the ricotta mixture if it is too moist. Add 1 teaspoon of flour at a time until you achieve a dough-like consistency.

Jason SantosChef Jason Santos likes to have fun.

His presentations are whimsical and inventive and the flavors a seamless combination of Asian, French and traditional American that wow diners at Gargoyles on the Square in Boston.

Santos' name is familiar to foodies. He cut his teeth at Andy Husbands' Tremont 647 (where he also first got involved with Share Our Strength's Operation Frontline) and quickly rose through the ranks before assuming the role of executive chef at Gargoyles on the Square in 2005. In just under three years, his cuisine has transformed the restaurant from neighborhood stalwart to out-of-town destination dining hotspot.

Santos gets around a bit, too. He teaches culinary courses at both Boston University and Cambridge Rindge and Latin's culinary programs. He had the honor of cooking to a sold-out crowd at the James Beard House in 2005, and was invited to the StarChefs Molecular Gastronomy conference in 2007, where he hobnobbed with the likes of Jose Andres, Wylie Dufresne and Grant Achatz.

Each year Santos donates his time and talent to Operation Frontline where he teaches low-income families how to make healthy meals on tight budgets, and serves on the restaurant committee for Share Our Strength's Taste of the Nation, volunteering his boundless inventiveness to help make sure no child in America grows up hungry.

If you liked this, please help us spread the word by sharing it with others.