gnocchi?

[silverwhisper]

OK, my wife's been using a recipe by mario batali for gnocchi and it's bolloocks as the brits say. anybody have another one?

the mrs and i were at an italian restaurant that featured handmade gnocchi. i got it in a gorgonzola sauce--absolutely incredible. easily the best gnocchi i've ever eaten: pillow-like, light, great flavor...anyway, that's what put me in mind of it.

anyone?

[marmalade]

I don't have a recipe on hand right now, but basically I would do it like this...

Get some russet or gold potatoes (not new/red potatoes). It's even better if they're on the old side (less watery). Boil them in their skins. Don't over-cook them into sogginess.

Peel them and press through a ricer while still hot. Toss the steaming mass a bit to liberate more moisture.

When they're cool enough to touch, add a beaten egg and enough flour to get a workable mass. Try not to over work the dough or the gnocchi will be tougher.

Less moisture = less flour needed = lighter gnocchi.

I've seen some recipes where they just add potato starch. This is supposed to yield the lightest gnocchi. I haven't tried that myself.

Chimaera is the resident gnocchi expert, so he ought to have a good recipe.

[Amso]

I buy the frozen gnocchi from Trader Joes. It makes me happy enough.

[COTSBOE]

I second what Marmalade said. I would also add that it's sometimes beneficial to let the potato-mush sit for a while before mixing it with flour so that it dries out.

[Stephane]

I'd have to get the recipe from my mom. She's in Florida, it'll have to wait for April

[marmalade]

I forgot the salt, as usual.

One recipe I have uses 400 grams potatoes to 100 grams flour. A lot depends on the moisture level of the potatoes, though.

[silverwhisper]

you, sir, are a treasure!

[marmalade]

Things are finally slowing down just a bit at work, so I had time to make gnocchi!

They look pretty tasty, if I may say so myself.

[marmalade]

We had them for lunch today, and they were just a bit on the soft side, but still really good.

This is the first time that I have cooked them fresh, and it's amazing how fast they float. I always froze them before.

[Stephane]

Damn.

I just ate some salad. you had fresh gnocchi?!

I am entirely envious.

[marmalade]

Thanks for the tip!

[marmalade]

By the way, Mr. Potato, have you ever used semolina flour for potato gnocchi? I was thinking that it might absorb more water than white/wheat flour.

On a related subject, the Austrians are very into dumplings, and they have something called Erdapfel Knoedel. It's made by grating potatoes into a bowl of water, removing and drying out the potato shreds, and mixing them with the starch that settles to the bottom of the bowl. Or something like that. The other quick and easy way, which my MIL uses, is to boil and rice the potatoes, and knead in a copious amount of potato starch. These are called Gummi Knoedel because of their textural resemblance to rubber balls. They remind me of gigantic gnocchi.