Four Cheese Truffle Gnocchi

Osteria Santa Spirito Truffle Gnocchi recipe
The famous Osteria Santo Spirito Truffle Gnocchi recipe

If you ever have the chance to visit Firenze, Italy, you must eat at Osteria Santo Spirito, which is famous for their four-cheese truffle gnocchi gratin recipe.

We enjoyed a wonderful meal with our group there in June, which was led by our good friend and Italian native Emanuele Leoni Dickinson. He leads tours to Italy through his Pacngo.net website.

Our lovely group took up the whole inside of the restaurant!

The restaurant has a small dining room that opens up to the town square, where there is additional outdoor seating. Since we were visiting during a heat wave that saw temperatures rising into the mid 90s, we huddled up inside the dining room. There was just enough room for our party of 13 to get some relief from the heat and enjoy some of the best food in Florence.

The dining room at Osteria Santo Spirito.

We started off with a delicious charcuterie board called “The Tasters of the Osteria.” This special dish included various salamis, cheeses, lard of Colonnata, tomato bruschetta, boar sausage, and croutons of liver and fettunta.

The charcuterie board is big enough to share with 4-6 people.

Osteria Santo Spirito’s Truffle Gnocchi

Next up was Osteria Santo Spirito’s truffle gnocchi gratinati, made with four soft cheeses and scented with black truffles. We ordered three for the table, and they came out bubbling and browned straight from the oven. These creamy little pillows of soft gnocchi had the most delicious depth of flavor from the truffle. I’ve never had anything like it!!

Make sure it’s brown and bubbling before taking it out of the oven!

A little bit of research on the restaurant’s Facebook page reveals that Osteria Santo Spirito’s gnocchi truffle oil comes from a bottle of C MAS Collection Truffle Olive Oil. It boasts “aromatic black summer truffle pieces in olive oil.” If anyone knows where we can buy this, please let me know!

A screen shot from a demonstration video of Osteria Santo Spirito’s truffle gnocchi recipe.

I haven’t been able to find this particular brand on Amazon, or anywhere online. However, Dittman’s Truffle Carpaccio is a good substitute, or you can use any good-quality black truffle oil. Just be careful you don’t buy a truffle oil with “truffle flavor” or “truffle aroma.” They are all over the place and are synthetic and chemical tasting.

Photo of Osteria Santo Spirito's four cheese truffle gnocchi recipe
Osteria Santo Spirito’s four cheese truffle gnocchi recipe is divine!

Some other delicious dishes we tried were the spaghetti with clams, and the mussel soup with garlic bread. The mussel soup came out steaming hot, bathed in a tomato-garlic sauce that was just incredible.

Osteria Santo Spiritos Mussels in tomato garlic sauce are not to be missed!

Another must-try dish is the Bistecca alla Fiorentina, a T-bone steak that’s a specialty in Florence. Their mixed meat grill has enough food to easily serve two people.

Of course you can’t go wrong with the pasta, and there are plenty of delicious choices.

Menu items range from a basic spaghetti with garlic oil and chili; chitarra with Datterini tomatoes and basil; and a handmade tortellacci with walnut cream.

The patio at Osteria Santo Spirito offers plenty of shade during the humid hot summer months.

Osteria Santo Spirito is at Via Sant’Agostino, 8, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy. Call +39 055 238 2383 or visit them online.

The key to this four cheese truffle gnocchi gratin recipe is to coat the gnocchi well in the white sauce, and then cook it in a shallow dish under the broiler so it gets nice and bubbly. Feel free to add a little of my garlic-shallot puree to the cream mixture for an added touch.

Osteria Santa Spirito Truffle Gnocchi recipe

Four Cheese Truffle Gnocchi Gratin (Truffle Gnocchi Gratinati)

Recipe by Jason Hill – CookingSessions.com
The key to this four cheese truffle gnocchi gratin recipe, inspired by Osteria Santo Spirito in Florence, is to coat the gnocchi well in the white sauce, and then cook it in a shallow dish under the broiler so it gets nice and bubbly. The black truffle oil adds a decadent touch to this hearty dish.
5 from 3 votes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Servings 6

Ingredients
  

  • 2 pounds gnocchi
  • 2 cups milk or cream
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1/4 lb. Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese finely grated (or a mixture of Gorgonzola, Fontina, Gruyere, Tallegio and Parmesan)
  • 2 teaspoons Truffle Carpaccio or good-quality black truffle oil
  • 1 tablespoon butter cut into small bits
  • 1 tablespoon dried bread crumbs optional

Instructions
 

  • Warm the milk in a saucepan over medium heat. In another saucepan, over medium low heat, stir butter until melted. Add the flour to the butter and stir constantly until it forms a roux, about 3 minutes.
  • Remove roux from heat and add the hot milk, whisking constantly. Season with a dash of kosher salt to taste. Return to the heat over medium and stir until the sauce is smooth and thickens, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and set aside. Stir in truffle oil.
  • Preheat oven to 400 F.
  • Cook the gnocchi in boiling water until done; strain.
  • Butter a large ovenproof baking dish. Add a layer of gnocchi, topped with half the white sauce and half the cheese. Top with the rest of the gnocchi, and add the remaining sauce and cheese.
  • Sprinkle with bread crumbs and bake until golden brown and bubbling, about 30-45 minutes. Start checking for doneness at about 30 minutes.
  • Serve, drizzled with more truffle oil if desired.
Let’s get cooking!Join me @cheftips on Facebook & Instagram

Notes

Tip: You can make your own Truffle Oil by heating 1 cup of good-quality olive oil in a saucepan until warm, and then stirring in 1 shaved truffle. Let steep until cool. Use immediately, or strain the oil and keep in an airtight container.
Keyword gnocchi, Italian food, pasta, truffles
Check out my Cooking Videos!Subscribe to my Chef Tips channel on YouTube!

AboutJason Hill

Hi, I’m Jason Hill, host of YouTube’s “Chef Tips” series. I graduated from culinary school in 1998, and gained my experience working the lines in Southern California. I launched my cooking videos in 2007. I love sharing quick and easy recipes that get people back in the kitchen.