Tasty Gnocchi Recipe

Last weekend, Indhu and I invited the other full-time students over to our place for a potluck. We spent the entire day cooking and cleaning and barely got everything ready before the guests arrived in the late afternoon. We made Vietnamese spring rolls and potato gnocchi from scratch. Both turned out really well.

Below is the gnocchi recipe we used from The Adelaide Review, May 19-June 1, 2006 issue.

Recipe for potato gnocchi with pumpkin, sage, pine nuts, and caramelized onions:

The gnocchi:

• 750g Bintje or Desiree (i.e. red) potatoes
• 150g plain flour, sifted
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 50g Parmesan, fresh and grated (plus additional to serve)
• Pinch of nutmeg (optional)

To serve:

• 500g butternut pumpkin diced and roasted
• 100g pine nuts, toasted
• Half a small bunch of sage leaves
• 2 brown onions, sliced
• A little parmesan
• Extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. To make the gnocchi, roast the potatoes in the oven set at 190C (375 Fahrenheit) for 50-60 minutes. [Alternative method -- microwave the potatoes to save time and energy]
2. Remove from oven, slice in half and scoop out the potato flesh and mash/grate them while they are still warm.
3. Add the flour, egg, parmesan, and seasoning, working together to form a smooth dough. Be careful not to overwork it or the gnocchi will be tough.
4. Place the dough onto a floured work bench and roll it into long ropes about 2.5 cm in diameter. Best to work with small chunks of dough.
5. Cut the gnocchi into pieces 2.5cm in length.
6. Cook the gnocchi in boiling lightly salted water until they float (approx. 5 minutes). The gnocchi should be cooked in the center and not gluey.
7. Cook them in batches, remove, and place in ice water to cool.
8. Drain thoroughly and toss lightly with some olive oil to prevent sticking.
9. Dice the pumpkin into 2-3cm square pieces, toss with olive oil and roast in 190C oven for 45-50 minutes. Make sure the pumpkin doesn't get too dark. Cover the pumpkin with aluminum foil if it starts to color.
10. Slice the onions and saute with olive oil until nicely caramelized.
11. Add the pumpkin, fresh sage, and black pepper. Then add the gnocchi.
12. Top off the whole thing with toasted pine nuts and grated parmesan.

Dish serves 4.