Published by mel on September 24, 2008 in entree and recipe.
Hot on the heels of the homemade gnocchi post, here’s another method for cooking fresh gnocchi that will make those little potato pasta pillows even more delicious and addicting. Pan fry them until they’re crisp and brown. I would describe the taste as a cross between pasta and a french fry. MMM. There’s nothing better than that!
As with the last batch of gnocchi, I didn’t want to smother them in sauce. I wanted them to really shine. So, I sauteed some kale with basil, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and serrano peppers. The greens were spicy and garlicky and lemony and the perfect compliment to the crisp, starchy gnocchi.
I used a batch of frozen homemade gnocchi for this dish — it went straight from the freezer into the oiled pan and crisped up nicely. You can also use fresh and frozen gnocchi, but I would avoid the shrink-wrapped kind you find in the pasta aisle. You’ll lose all of the creamy potato-ness if you go that route.
This dish came together in under 20 minutes and is delicious and fancy enough for guests. The Lemon and Garlic greens would also be fabulous tossed with pasta and a little olive oil. Just make sure you make a whole bunch — people will be wanting seconds.
Shamless Plug: Head over to Kelly Spitzer’s Flavor a Deux to read her “Foodie Spotlight” all about yours truly. I had a great time working with her on this interview. Thanks Kelly!
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Published by mel on September 15, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.
Have you ever tasted homemade gnocchi? I’m not talking about the stuff that’s shrink-wrapped and powdery in the pasta isle of your grocery store. Not that I’m knocking store-bought gnocchi — it’s perfect for quick weeknight meals and satisfies the potato pasta craving. But there’s nothing like real, homemade gnocchi. They’re much less dense than the pre-packaged kind — soft and pillowy, like a dumpling, but still as sturdy and chewy as you’d expect.
I was first introduced to homemade gnocchi when I was a mere pre-teen punk. My parents were close friends with an Argentinian couple who made them once a month. In Argentina, it’s tradition to make gnocchi on the 29th of each month and serve them with a dollar bill placed under the plate to attract prosperity (more over at Wikipedia). I can’t remember how the gnocchi tasted, but I remember it was good. Delicious, even.
I made an enormous batch this weekend as a special Sunday Supper for Tom’s birthday and served them with lamb and veal ricotta meatballs in a hearty Parmesan and shitake broth (recipe for those later this week). While making gnocchi may not be for the beginner cook, they’re not as difficult as you might think. Just keep a box of pasta in the pantry in case something goes wrong.
The most difficult thing about making gnocchi is that measurements are a rough guideline and you’ll have to go by feel for a lot of this. There are a lot of variables that make giving precise measurements tricky — potato sizes vary, egg sizes vary, altitude affects dough, etc. So, here’s a rough recipe, along with tips and pointers for getting your dough just right. I encourage you to give these a try. Unlike fresh pasta, fresh gnocchi is much more difficult to find at the store and definitely worth the extra effort for homemade.
Update: Forgot to mention that I froze 2/3 of the gnocchi I made since it was a double batch and only 5 people came for dinner. (I always make too much.) To freeze fresh gnocchi, just cover the parchment paper with another sheet of parchment and roll it up like a fruit roll-up or sushi roll. Gently place the rolled parchment into a gallon-sized freezer bag and seal, making sure you push as much air out of the bag as possible. The layers of parchment will prevent them from sticking together or getting freezer burn when they freeze.
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