Gnocchi is not something I ordinarily like from the supermarket, as I think the texture can be a bit strange – especially when you’re expecting it to be like pasta. These little dumplings are made from a potato and flour combination, so are a lot squishier and dense.
However, they are insanely easy to make, and to those who love the dish, will seem quite impressive! The measurements below are from a vegan student cookbook – I usually just use however many potatoes I have and add the flour until the texture feels right, which seems to work!
Ingredients:
- 625g floury potatoes, e.g. Maris Piper, scrubbed
- 125g plain flour
- salt and pepper
Method:
- Boil the potatoes until soft, which will take about 20mins. You can cut them up beforehand if the potatoes are large.
- Drain the potatoes and leave until they are cool enough to mash.
- Mash the potatoes, season, and then mix in the flour. Knead until it forms a dough – it might be quite sticky which is ok.
- Divide the gnocchi to make it easier to cut. Roll each section into an inch thick sausage. Then cut into small slices, about 1.5cm wide.
- Shape into ovals, and then press with the prongs of a fork to create ridges.
- Boil a pan of salted water, and then drop the gnocchi in. They take around 1-2mins to cook, and will float to the top of the water when done.
- Use a slatted spoon to remove from the water.
- To serve, pop them in a bowl, and add your sauce of choice. I really love them with classic pesto (student life!).
- An alternative way to cook them would be to pan fry the gnocci for 8-10mins (until golden) in a bit of oil.
There you go, a nice stodgy alternative to pasta, and super easy to make! The dough can been kept in the fridge, well sealed, for a few days, and perhaps even frozen!
Harriet
Costs: from Tesco, about £2.67 – for a whole bag of potatoes and flour, which will last for much longer than just this gnocchi recipe!
The Night-Time Scribbler 