Jay and I have been on a bit of a homemade pasta kick. We've found pasta to be both easy to make and extremely easy to mess up! There is a only a tiny lack of technique or an extra minute of cooking that makes a good pasta a bad one. A while ago I found a recipe for Parmesan gnocchi in a supermarket magazine and I've been dying to try it. So glad I did. The boys all prefer the regular store bought stuff but Jay and both thought this was a treat. This is a basic recipe, but there are all kinds of possibilities for changing it up with leftovers...ie. swap tomato sauce for a creamy one. Pan fry leftover mushrooms and broccoli in butter and olive oil until golden. Add chopped garlic, fry 1 min. more, add splash chicken broth,creme fraiche, salt and pepper. Yummy! This recipe doesn't seem to make much but never fear it is VERY filling. The most time consuming part of the recipe is baking the potatoes so why not the next time you bake potatoes for dinner bake a few extra and plan gnocchi for dinner the next day!? Or if you have loads of extra time go ahead and make the gnocchi. They will keep uncooked in the fridge for 2 days or in the freezer for a month!
Parmesan Gnocchi
serves 4
rock salt, for roasting
1 kg rooster (or other flourly) potatoes
275g 00 plain flour
pinch nutmeg
30g finely grated Parmesan cheese plus extra to serve
2 eggs, beaten
1) Preheat oven to 180 C. Line roasting tin with 1/2cm layer of rock salt. Prick potatoes all over with a fork and place in salt.
2) Bake for 1 hour 30 minutes or until soft inside. (Varies great depending on size.) Remove potatoes from the tin and discard the salt.
3) Scoop out the potato flesh and discard the skins (or eat them like I do!). Mash potato until completely smooth.
4) Add flour, nutmeg, cheese, and egg then season with salt and pepper.
5) Gently mix to form a soft dough, adding more flour if it feels too sticky. (Try not to overwork it!)
6) Tip dough onto a lightly floured surface and cut into quarters. Roll each piece into a sausage shape 1 cm in diameter.
7) Using a sharp knife, cut each length at an angle into 2.5cm pieces. Approx. 68 gnochci total
8) Using the back of a fork, gently press on each one to create grooves on one side for the sauce to cling to.
9) Dust a large tray with flour and arrange gnocchi on top. Cover with cling film and chill for at least 10 minutes.
10) Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Drop in half gnocchi. Wait for them to float to the surface and then wait one minute. Remove with a slotted spoon and add to the sauce. Repeat with the other half. Server with Parmesan and fresh basil if you have any.
Tomato Sauce
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 Tbsp Olive oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 red chili, deseeded and finely chopped
2x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
pinch sugar
fresh (or dry) basil
1) In a pan, cook the onion in oil until softened.
2) Add the garlic and chili, cook for 1 minute, then add tomatoes, half tin of just boiled water, and sugar. (Add basil now if using dried.)
3) Bring to a boil, then simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in chopped fresh basil just before serving.
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