A Very Good Gnocchi Recipe
Perfect foolproof recipe with two sauces to choose from
Welcome to my first Substack newsletter - it feels good to be here. Although I love my musings on Instagram, it can sometimes feel a bit ‘anonymous’ and as a connector I wanted to create a platform where I can truly engage with fellow foodies. So a huge ‘Thank You’ for joining, it really means the world to me. Okay gnocchi!
I have had my fair share of gnocchi disasters and therefore avoiding to make them for years, which is a shame because I love to eat a good plate of gnocchi.
I have tried and tested many recipes all with the unnecessary fuss and mess that goes with a wet gnocchi dough. It was with much relief that my gnocchi drama ended with a Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipe (who else, right?) or rather his METHOD of making gnocchi - simply add the dough to a piping bag and pipe and cut the shapes into the boiling salted water. Pure genius!
I realised that it is not so much the ingredients that make a good gnocchi but rather the method. The key is a piping bag.
You are essentially cooking the gnocchi twice, once in boiling water and when you are ready to eat the gnocchi a quick second cooking in a pan.
Why this recipe is great:
It’s easy & fuss free
Recipe can be made vegan (500g mash & omit eggs add 1 tbsp olive oil) and gluten-free (simply replace with gf flour)
The recipe can be made up to 3 days ahead
The gnocchi can be frozen
The recipe serves 4 generously
Ingredients:
1,4kg potatoes (to give you 600g mash)
3 egg yolks
110g plain flour
1 tsp salt (more for cooking water)
Gorgonzola & Spinach Creamy Sauce
250g single cream
1/2 cup gorgonzola cheese
2 bay leaves
3 garlic cloves, bashed
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
salt & pepper
200g spinach, washed & roughly chopped
toasted walnuts, roughly chopped
lemon zest of1 lemon and juice to taste
tarragon, roughly chopped
Sage Butter
1/4 salted butter
swigs of olive oil
3 sprigs sage leaves
roughly chopped toasted walnuts
finely sliced garlic (3 cloves)
salt & pepper
Method
Preheat the oven to 200c, add the potatoes to a large baking tray, roast until soft - about 1hour. Remove from the oven and leave to cool slightly - we want to make the dough while the potatoes are hot.
When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut in half and quickly scoop out the flesh, add the flesh in tiny portions to the potato ricer and rice in a single layer (onto a large baking tray works well) . PS: if you don’t have a ricer you can use a sieve & a spatula, for a visual see here.
Sprinkle over the flour, evenly, followed by the beaten egg and the salt, fold the potato over itself to incorporate the ingredients, I find a dough scraper works well. Don’t knead the dough, simply mix and incorporate the ingredients well together as quickly as you can. You don’t want to see any flour or egg speckles.
Add the dough to the piping bag. I find stretching the empty bag over a large measuring jug works well (clean & neatly) when adding the dough.
When you are ready to cook the gnocchi, oil a large baking tray and bring a large saucepan with salted water to a soft rolling boil.
Cut the tip of the piping bag about 6cm, this will depend on the bag you are using and the size you want your gnocchi to be. I think start smaller and work your way up with the scissors until you find the size you like.
Press the gnocchi dough and cut according to desired sizes directly into the boiling water, the gnocchi will sink to the bottom but will float as they are ready and cooked.
Remove the gnocchi as they rise with a slotted spoon and add to the lined and oiled baking tray.
Continue until all the dough is cooked.
At this stage you can freeze the gnocchi or keep, wrapped, in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Second Cook: To cook the gnocchi, heat butter or olive oil (or butter and olive oil) in a large saucepan, add a cup or two gnocchi (depending on the size of your pan) and cook until the gnocchi is golden on both sides, set aside and keep warm while you fry the rest of the gnocchi.
If cooking from frozen you can defrost the gnocchi on a plate or tray in the fridge until thawed. If you are in a hurry, gently boil some salted water, add the gnocchi for 1 minute and continue to cook the gnocchi (as above).
To make your sauce:
For the gorgonzola cream, gently heat the cream, bay leaves and garlic for 5 minutes to infuse the cream. Drain and add the cream back into the saucepan add the gorgonzola cheese and stir to melt, now add the spinach and wilt in the saucepan, taste and season to perfection with a hint of over seasoning. Keep warm (never boiling).
For the sage butter, simply heat the butter and olive oil until foamy, add the sliced garlic and cook until fragrant, 3 minutes, add the sage leaves and toasted walnuts, season with salt & pepper - serve immediately.
Enjoy!
x Adré