Moosewood's Spinach Gnocchi

From Moosewood Restaurant New Classics: A Casserole-style dish that is simple to throw together when you've got everything on hand. I substituted about half a big bag of frozen spinach for the fresh, and it came out gorgeously! You can substitute 3 cups store-bought tomato sauce for the homemade, but it's so much better from scratch and still so quick! Serve alone with tomato sauce, or in a brothy soup.

• Ready In: 55 mins
• Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• Gnocchi

• 10  ounces fresh spinach
• 3  large eggs
• 1  cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 1⁄2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 1⁄4 cups  breadcrumbs
• 2  tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
• 1⁄3 cup scallion, chopped
• 1  garlic clove, minced
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1  pinch ground nutmeg (to taste)

• Quick Tomato Sauce

• 1  teaspoon olive oil
• 1  cup onion, finely chopped
• 2  garlic cloves, minced
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt (to taste)
• 3  cups  canned tomatoes with juice, chopped (28-ounce can)
• 1⁄4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions

1. To make the sauce:
2. Warm the oil in a nonreactive 2-quart saucepan. Add the onions, garlic, and salt and sauté on medium heat for about 7 minutes until golden. Add the tomatoes, their juice, and the pepper and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. To make the gnocchi:
4. Preheat the oven to 400°F Oil a nonreactive baking dish.
5. Rinse the spinach well and remove any large stems. Place the spinach in a large pot with only the water that clings to the leaves. Cover and cook on high heat, stirring once or twice, just long enough to wilt the leaves, about 3 minutes. Set aside to drain.
6. In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Mix in the Parmesan, ricotta, bread crumbs, basil, scallions, garlic, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. When the cooked spinach is cool enough to handle, gently squeeze more water from it and chop it. Stir the chopped spinach into the cheese mixture. The batter will be wet and rather soft. Drop the batter by rounded tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking dish to make about 18 balls. Pour the tomato sauce around the gnocchi to almost cover.
7. Bake for about 25 minutes, until firm and beginning to brown. Serve hot with the tomato sauce ladled on top.