- 1 pound ricotta (must be prepared one to two days in advance)
- ½ cup dried bread crumbs, or as needed
- Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon Scotch whisky
- Salt
- ½ cup sweet butter
- 4 sage leaves, freshly chopped
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Mix the ricotta, bread crumbs, lemon zest, egg, and Scotch together in a bowl. Add more bread crumbs, if necessary—the mixture should be fairly firm, but light and moist. Shape into 8 ovals about 3 inches long and 1 inch thick. Let rest for 10 minutes.
- Bring 3 inches of lightly salted water to a rolling boil in a large, deep-sided frying pan. Gently lower the gnocchi into the boiling water with a slotted spoon. Gently roll each over with a wooden spoon to cook evenly. After about 5 minutes, when the gnocchi float, they are done. Drain on paper towels.
- Meanwhile, melt the butter and stir in the sage leaves, keeping the heat very low.
- Arrange 2 gnocchi on each of 4 first-course plates. Spoon equal amounts of the sage butter over the tops and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.