To Make Ricotta Gnocchi

Put the ricotta in a bowl and gently mash it with a fork. Once the ricotta breaks, strain it into your flour and mix. Add pecorino cheese and mix everything. Add the egg, whisk it in the ingredients, and use your hands to combine everything to make the dough. Knead the dough with one hand for 10 minutes to form a pliable ball. Transfer it to a chopping board.

Dust your chopping board with flour and proceed with working with the dough in a press-and-fold manner like you knead pizza dough, ensuring you do not overwork or press it too hard. Finish the kneading by rolling the dough on your cutting board over the flour and ricotta bits.

Cover the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge for about 10 minutes to hold its shape and not crumble.

Dust your chopping board with flour, and gently press the dough from the middle to the top with a rolling pin. Turn it, roll it again, and keep pressing gently while adding flour to avoid sticking until the dough turns into a thick flatbread shape.

Take a sharp knife and cut the flattened dough into long strips, ideally 1-inch wide. Sprinkle the chopping board with a little more flour and roll all the dough strips into thin logs about finger thickness. Slice the ropes crosswise into ¾-inch diagonal shapes with a dough scraper. Toss the pieces lightly in flour to prevent sticking or clumping together. Toss the Ricotta Gnocchi in a large tray lined with a baking sheet and place in the fridge.

Heat a cast iron skillet over low heat and add EVOO and crushed garlic, followed by a splash of water. Once the garlic bubbles, add the passata.

Add salt and pepper and cook the sauce on a low flame for at least 10 minutes (20 minutes at most) and set it aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and add 1 tablespoon of sea salt. Drop in the gnocchi and let it cook for a few minutes until it floats on the surface. Once cooked, collect the gnocchi with a strainer.

Put the sauce back on the stove, mix in the cooked ricotta gnocchi, and gently mix everything. Switch off the stove.

Cut Buffalo mozzarella into cubes and mix half of them into the sauce alongside pecorino cheese.

Add basil, stir it again, and top with the remaining Buffalo mozzarella.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C - 356 degrees F.

Put your cast iron skillet in the oven under the grill and bake for 5 to 8 minutes until the cheese melts with a nice crust on the top.

Serve on a plate, and enjoy!