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Have you ever tasted gnocchi so good that it melts in your mouth? Light, pillowy morsels that are tender and airy make the best gnocchi. We recently had this experience at a restaurant near our house and wanted to recreate the meal. Ultimately, our goal was to recreate the perfect Homemade Gnocchi, which is in fact what we accomplished.
For those of you that aren’t familiar with gnocchi, it’s more of a dumpling than pasta. Gnocchi is made from potatoes that have been riced and mixed with flour and eggs. They also have these little ridges (or cavities) that are very helpful at holding sauce. Once mixed with a homemade or store-bought sauce, you’ll have a gourmet meal!
The first recipe I want to share with you is for Homemade Gnocchi. The gnocchi really does melt in your mouth. It’s very light and fluffy and pairs with the homemade sauces (I’ll share those recipes next) really well. It’s less time consuming than you think, and much faster than making actual Homemade Pasta. If you like to stuff your face (like we do at home), this recipe will serve 2-3. If you are the opposite, this recipe should easily serve 4-6, depending on portion size. If you have self-control, please let me know your secrets!
The recipe can be found here.
Start by washing and peeling the potatoes. Then, slice the potatoes into quarters or small chunks and place in a large pot. Cover the potatoes with water and bring the pot of water to a boil. Continue to boil for about 20 minutes or so, until the potatoes are tender and can be easily pierced with a fork. Drain the water from the pot and set the potatoes aside to cool for about 20 minutes.
Scoop the potatoes (working in batches) into a potato ricer. Rice the potatoes into a large mixing bowl.
Add salt, pepper, and flour, and gently toss to combine. Form a well in the center of the mixture. Crack and egg in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Pour the whisked egg into the center of the well and use your hands to start mixing from the inside and working out, until just combined.
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead by hand until completely blended. You also don’t want the dough to be too sticky to the floured surface will help with this step.
Divide the dough into 4-6 equal parts. I prefer to divide the dough into more parts than less because I find it easier to work with. Roll each piece of dough into a long rope. You want the ropes to be about ½-inch thick. I think it’s easiest to do this on the counter vs hold in your hands because the dough will tend to separate, and your rope will break so keeping it on the counter will help to prevent this from happening.
Cut the dough into 1-inch pieces and try to keep the pieces separated if possible. They will start to stick together so you can lightly dust them with flour as well, if needed.
At this point, I’m usually ready to boil my gnocchi. However, you can make your gnocchi a little fancy by adding ridges to each piece. These are the ridges or cavities I mentioned earlier. A fork works well to do this if you don’t have the gnocchi paddle. Roll each piece over the back of a fork or down the paddle and set aside. Complete with the rest of the gnocchi. It does have a lovely look and adds to the appearance of the dish, but it is quite time consuming.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Add the gnocchi, in batches, to the boiling water. It will sink to the bottom but will rise to the top after about 1 minute. Let the gnocchi continue to boil once it reaches the surface for about 2-3 minutes. Then, use a slotted spoon to remove the gnocchi to a bowl or pan. Continue until all gnocchi has been cooked.
At this point, the gnocchi are done. You can prepare a homemade sauce or use something store-bought. I do have 2 homemade sauce recipes to share with you below. Both are absolutely delicious!
The recipe for the Homemade Gnocchi can be found here.
The first sauce recipe is for Spicy Marinara. This is a traditional red sauce that’s spiced up a bit. I love the taste of garlic in a sauce, so I tend to amp up the garlic and go heavier on the heat. It’s all about preference though so add the amount of heat that fits your taste. You do want to be able to enjoy the meal after all! I also appreciate that there are chunks of tomato in the sauce, so you get a little more substance than just liquid.
The recipe can be found here.
Start by heating olive oil in a large skillet or pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add the fire roasted tomatoes, tomato sauce, and water. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer.
Add the heavy cream, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. The red pepper flakes are what gives the dish it’s heat. Adding ½ tsp will give you a mild amount of heat but adding 1 tsp will be quite spicy. Stir to combine all the ingredients. Then, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 4-5 minutes.
Add the gnocchi and toss to coat. Continue to heat for another 2-3 minutes to ensure the gnocchi is heated through.
Serve warm with grated parmesan and fresh chopped basil on top. Enjoy!
The recipe can be found here.
The second sauce recipe is for a Pesto Cream Sauce. I could drink this sauce. I do love pesto so that probably helps, but it’s creamy, herby, and pairs well with the gnocchi. It feels like a summery dish. If you want less sauce, you can probably get away with cutting the recipe in half, but I like to have a little something extra to dip bread in or use for leftovers.
The recipe can be found here.
Start by adding the heavy cream, salt, and pepper to a large skillet or pot. Bring to a simmer then reduce the heat to low.
Add the pesto and whisk to combine.
Once the pesto is combined, add the gnocchi, and stir to coat. Continue to heat for about 2-3 minutes to ensure the gnocchi and sauce are heated through.
Serve warm with grated parmesan cheese Yum!
The recipe can be found here.
Now that I’ve been talking about gnocchi for so long, I’m pretty hungry and have a craving for some…you guessed it…gnocchi. Please excuse me while I go make some of my own!
Happy Cooking!
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