Spinach, Pea, Courgette and Herb Dumplings with Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

• Serves 6
• Dumplings:
• 250g (about 8 ounces) grated courgette (zucchini)
• 100g (3 ½ ounces) frozen peas
• 300g (10 ½ ounces) young spinach leaves, chopped
• 2 tablespoons mixed chopped herbs (I used mint and chives)
• 500g (about a 1lb) soft goat cheese or ricotta
• 75g (2.5 ounces) grated pecorino (or parmesan)
• 2 large eggs
• 125g (4.4 ounces) all-purpose flour
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 56 g (4 tablespoons) butter, finely sliced
• A little neutral oil for hands to form balls
• Sauce:
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 x 400 g (14 ounce) good quality tinned tomatoes (preferably Italian)
• 6 sundried tomatoes, packed in oil, chopped
• 1 tablespoon tomato purée

Instructions

1. Place the soft cheese in a sieve and drain for at least 15 minutes to remove as much excess water as possible.
2. Place the frozen peas and the courgette in a large colander or sieve suspended over a large bowl. Bring a pan of salted water to a boil and blanch the spinach for one or two minutes until it has collapsed. Pour the spinach and the water it was blanched in over the vegetables in the colander, then leave the vegetables to drain. When the vegetables are cool enough to touch, squeeze out the excess water and dry on paper towel. Roughly chop vegetables, either by hand or in a food processor and place in a large bowl. Add the drained cheese, pecorino, eggs, flour, salt and freshly ground pepper. Mix well and adjust the seasoning, to taste.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly dust with flour. Lightly oil your hands and take a small amount of the mixture and fashion into balls, a little smaller than a golf ball. (Oiling your hands keeps the dough from sticking to your fingers.) They balls do not have to be perfectly round. Lay the balls out on the tray then refrigerator for 30 minutes while you make the sauce.
4. Make the tomato sauce:
5. Sauté the onions in olive oil until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic, stir for about two minutes then add the tomato paste and continue cooking another two minutes or so or until the paste darkens in colour. Stir in the canned tomatoes and the chopped sundried tomatoes and leave to gently simmer on low heat for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the sauce from heat. Puree in a blender or with an immersion wand. Set aside.
7. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil, reduce the heat to maintain a simmer and gently drop in the dumplings, a few at a time until they float to the surface. Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper.
8. Once the dumplings are cooked, melt the butter in a wide skillet and add the dumplings. Gently cook, basting with the melted butter until hot and glistening and lightly brown in places.
9. Reheat the sauce, spoon into the base of a warm serving dish, place the dumplings on top of the sauce. Grate over some extra pecorino and serve.