Gnocchi with Pesto

Do you like gnocchi?  If you've never had gnocchi, they are basically little pillows of potato pasta goodness.  They are delicious and comforting, especially with pesto!  For the meal pictured above, I served the gnocchi tossed in pesto, over a bed of roasted vegetables (kale, tomatoes, and mushrooms).  You could also serve gnocchi as a side dish, or with traditional tomato sauce.


Gnocchi is one of those foods that seems like it would be difficult to make.  And probably if you were to make gnocchi in the completely traditional way, it would be difficult!  But, if you don't worry about making them with their traditional ridges, they are not that hard to make at all.  You cook the potatoes in the microwave, peel the potatoes, and then mix them with egg and flour to form a dough.  Roll the dough  into ropes, and cut into little chunks.  Cook in boiling water for 2 minutes and serve!


Gnocchi with Pesto

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 pounds russet potatoes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• pesto, for serving

DIRECTIONS:

1)  Pierce each potato a few times with a fork.  Cook in the microwave until done, about 15 minutes on high power (if your microwave has a potato setting, that usually works well for me).

2)  Wait about 5 minutes for the potatoes to cool a bit.  Then, peel the potatoes.

3) Put the peeled potatoes in the bowl of a mixer.  Add the salt and egg and mix until combined.

4)  Add flour and mix until combined.  At this point you should have a dough that is slightly sticky, but that you would be able to roll into a rope.  If the dough is too sticky, add more flour, a tablespoon at a time, until the dough is the right consistency.

5)  Fill a pot with water and bring the water to a boil.  

6)  Meanwhile, divide the dough into 4-5 sections and roll each section into a rope that is about 3/4 inch thick.

7)  Cut the ropes into chunks about 3/4 inch wide, or to desired size.  Place the gnocchi on a baking sheet for easy transport.

8)  You will cook the gnocchi in batches (about 4 batches total) in the boiling water, so that they don't crowd too much in your pot.  Cook each batch for 2 minutes, until the gnocchi are cooked through and floating.  Use a slotted spoon to remove the gnocchi to a strainer set over a bowl (to catch the dripping water).

9)  Toss the gnocchi with desired amount of pesto and serve with roasted vegetables.  (Or serve with your favorite pasta sauce!)

(recipe for gnocchi adapted from Smitten Kitchen)