My first attempt at gnocchi! Im planning a dinner for Lukas's mom's birthday/house warming and had no idea what to make. One of my favorite restaurants in Belltown makes this AMAZING Black Truffle Cream Gnocchi that I love. So I figured..why not! BUT I wanted to make sure I could actually make it before the big dinner night. haha I didn't want an epic fail and have it all fall apart. So I tried and succeeded.
I was really nervous because every article, recipe and comments I read said that it is super tricky to make. BUT it's really not. It is just time consuming but WELL worth it. These are like little pillows of HEAVEN in your mouth.
The picture below shows the Gnocchi I made with a creamy pesto sauce that I just threw together to try with the gnocchi. It was ok..but got a little boring after you eat so much hehe...regardless the gnocchi turned out GREAT!!! <3
GNOCCHI:
2 large russet potatoes
2 eggs
1 cup flour
salt (to taste)
Fill a large pot with cold water. Salt the water, then cut potatoes in half and place them in the pot. Bring the water to a boil and cook the potatoes until tender throughout, this takes roughly 40-50 minutes.
Remove the potatoes from the water one at a time with a slotted spoon. Place each potato piece on a large cutting board and peel it before moving on to the next potato. Also, peel each potato as soon as possible after removing from the water (without burning yourself) - I've found a paring knife comes in handy here. Be mindful that you want to work relatively quickly so you can mash the potatoes when they are hot. To do this you can either push the potatoes through a ricer, or do what I do, deconstruct them one at a time on the cutting board using the tines of a fork - mash isn't quite the right term here. I run the fork down the sides of the peeled potato creating a nice, fluffy potato base to work with (see photo). Don't over-mash - you are simply after an even consistency with no noticable lumps.
Let the potatoes cool spread out across the cutting board - ten or fifteen minutes. Long enough that the egg won't cook when it is incorporated into the potatoes. When you are ready, pull the potatoes into a soft mound - drizzle with the beaten egg and sprinkle 3/4 cup of the flour across the top. I've found that a metal spatula or large pastry scraper are both great utensils to use to incorporate the flour and eggs into the potatoes with the egg incorporated throughout - you can see the hint of yellow from the yolk. Scrape underneath and fold, scrape and fold until the mixture is a light crumble. Very gently, with a feathery touch knead the dough. This is also the point you can add more flour (a sprinkle at a time) if the dough is too tacky. I usually end up using most of the remaining 1/4 cup flour, but it all depends on the potatoes, the flour, the time of year, the weather, and whether the gnocchi gods are smiling on you. The dough should be moist but not sticky. It should feel almost billowy. Cut it into 8 pieces. Now gently roll each 1/8th of dough into a snake-shaped log, roughly the thickness of your thumb. Use a knife to cut pieces every 3/4-inch (see photo). Dust with a bit more flour.
Drop about 10-15 at time into boiling water and cook until they float to the top...about 2 minutes. Remove and add to a yummy sauce!
(recipe from 101cookbooks.com)
Gnocchi with Creamy Pesto Sauce
