Today’s post shows you that you CAN teach an old dog new tricks! I made homemade gnocchi for the first time –and it was sooo much fun! I’ve seen chefs make gnocchi on television and I’ve read about it a lot ---so I thought it would be fun to try to make it myself. I’m so happy that I did. You’ll see from the picture that I still need practice making them uniform in size and shape---but I actually can’t wait to teach my children and my new little grandson (when he is old enough to stand in a chair in the kitchen) to make them. These little dumplings that are really a kind of pasta are so versatile! You can serve them alone with just butter or grated cheese, with your favorite tomato sauce or béchamel sauce, pesto or even in soup. Shaping the gnocchi seems a bit tricky at first. I will describe it for you below. Today I am sharing with you a simple chicken and vegetable dish to combine with your gnocchi. This makes a very hearty supper. If you aren’t sure that you want to make gnocchi from scratch---just buy some at the grocery store to use the first time. But I assure you, it is worth making them from scratch. They are much more flavorful and the texture is amazing! Wow, I think I will try to make other pastas----it’s really quite relaxing. Just make sure you have time to spend experimenting. You can even store your homemade gnocchi in the refrigerator with a bit of olive oil tossed with it for up to 48 hours. You can freeze homemade gnocchi as soon as you shape them. Then toss them (still frozen) into boiling, salted water. Have fun!!
Ingredients: for gnocchi
3 large baking potatoes (Idaho or russet)
2 cups flour
1 extra large egg
1 pinch salt
Instructions:
*Clean the baking potatoes but do not peel, remove any brown or black spots
*Boil the whole potatoes until they are soft (30-50 minutes depending on their size)
*Scrape skin off potatoes with a fork when they are done.
*While potatoes are still very hot, pass them through a potato ricer or a food mill. An alternative could be to press the flesh of each potato through a sieve (pressing it through with a large spoon). Then scrape the potato from the outside of the sieve or ricer onto a clean surface, suitable for working the gnocchi dough.
*Lay the prepared potato flesh onto the surface and then sprinkle most of the flour on top.
*Make a well in the center of the potato and flour mixture and place the cracked egg and salt in the well.
*Using a fork—and your hands, mix the egg, salt, flour and potato mixture together and combine it using a kneading motion.
*Knead mixture gently and don’t overwork ----until a ball is formed.
*Add remaining flour or more if needed to make the dough dryer.
*Knead for 3-4 minutes more (too much kneading will cause the gnocchi to be tough).
*Cut a small piece of dough from the ball and roll out to make a dowel shaped rope (approximately ½ inch in diameter).
*Then, with a sharp knife, make cuts down the length of the rope about ½ inch apart.
*Each of these little ½ inch blobs of dough will be the gnocchi. To make the classic shape, follow the following steps.
-hold a fork in your left hand, touching the tines to the counter
-place the blob at the top of the tines of the fork and press into the blob with your thumb
-without releasing pressure, roll the blob down the length of the tines and then release the blob to roll onto the counter (this should be a quick motion).
*When correctly formed the gnocchi have the impression of the fork on the back and they fold over themselves slightly on the front. Cook the gnocchi or freeze.
*Place prepared gnocchi into boiling water with salt and a bit of olive oil placed in it.
*Gnocchi will float when cooked (only takes a couple of minutes).
*Remove the floating gnocchi to an ice bath and then either serve or store in the refrigerator. Serve with your favorite tomato sauce, béchamel sauce, pesto, cheese or butter or the following chicken and vegetable dish.
Ingredients: for Chicken and Vegetables
2 T. Olive oil
Chicken breasts (cubed and cooked with olive oil)
yellow pepper, cut into thin strips
zucchini, very thinly sliced
tomatoes, chopped
lima beans, cooked
spinach, washed
grated Italian cheese,( mozzarella, parmesan,etc.)
½ cup chicken broth, if needed or desired
Kosher salt to taste
Basil if desired
Instructions:
*In a large sauté pan, add all ingredients except for spinach
*Saute on medium heat until vegetable are al dente but not soft
*Add spinach to mixture. Toss mixture to cook.
*Top with cheese and desired seasonings and herbs. Toss to warm these additions.
*Mix in desired amount of gnocchi and toss.
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