Potato Gnocchi

Even the best cooks are always learning, including me. I went to a Sur La Table cooking class with my friend Andi to learn this gnocchi. The secret to this dish is a tool called a potato ricer. It mashed the cooked potatoes but still keeps them light which is crucial for a light gnocchi. The other tool is a gnocchi board. This is for shaping the gnocchi to add ridges for the gnocchi to hold the sauce later. You could use a fork instead but the gnocchi board is really helpful.

Gnocchi is traditionally served with a brown butter and sage sauce. While this is delicious it felt too heavy for me. Instead I used a pesto sauce with a touch of cream. For the best flavor make your own pesto but premade at the store works well too. 

Ingredients: 
2 pounds russet potatoes
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
2 large eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for simmering
1 cup grated Parmesan, for serving

Directions:

1. Preheat an oven to 400°F.

2. To make gnocchi: Pierce the potatoes all over with a fork. Place the potatoes onto a rimmed baking sheet and bake in the oven until tender, about 1 hour. Set aside until cool enough to handle.

3. Using a kitchen towel and paring knife, carefully peel the potatoes and immediately process potatoes with a potato ricer or a food mill and evenly spread out on a clean flat surface or baking sheet. You’ll want to do this step while the potatoes are still warm. 

4. Using a fine-mesh strainer, dust the potatoes evenly with flour. Drizzle egg and salt over the flour and knead until you have smooth, cohesive dough, about 2 minutes. You don’t want to over work the dough. Gently combine with a bench scrapper and try not to over mix. 

If the dough feels sticky, incorporate up to 1/4 cup more flour. Set gnocchi aside, covered with a kitchen towel, to rest for 20 minutes. (This is a good time to make your pesto or sauce of choice). 

5. Place dough on a lightly floured work surface and cut into quarters with a bench scraper. Roll each portion into a long rope, about 3/4 inch in diameter. Using the bench scraper or a knife, cut the rope into 3/4-inch long pieces. Take each piece and roll down your gnocchi board or back of a fork to add small ridges. Set the finished gnocchi on a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with a kitchen towel as you form the rest.

6. Bring a large pot of water to a gentle boil and season generously with salt.

7. To cook the gnocchi: Add gnocchi, in batches, to the simmering water and cook until they float to the surface, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon or spider, transfer cooked dumplings to the skillet with the pesto sauce, gently stirring to coat. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

9. To serve: Transfer dumplings to warmed shallow pasta bowls or large rimmed serving platter; garnish generously with grated Pecorino and serve immediately.