Do you prefer your gnocchi to be light and delicate? If so, this recipe is for you. It can take time to make good gnocchi, so be sure to set aside some time to do it well. You will need patience and persistence to ensure that they don't come out too dense or soggy. Gnocchi could be used as a great substitute for cheese in the Tassievore Palak Paneer dish.
Ingredients
900g potato flesh
(Nicola, dutch cream, moonlight)
2 cups plain flour
1 egg, beaten
Method
For the potato flesh I use baked potato run through a moulinex or potato ricer (once cooled) to remove the skins and make a light fluffy mash – but you can also peel and mash by hand.
If you are using boiled, peeled potatoes instead you will either need more flour or leave out the egg to compensate for wetter potato flesh. Put the potato flesh in a bowl and add the flour and beaten egg. Mix together with a spoon until it forms a rough dough then finish off by kneading with your hands until well combined.
The finished dough should be the consistency of play dough. Roll out long sausages of dough about 2-3cm across then slice into small pieces – you can roll and press fork tines across each, but I don’t usually bother.
Bring water to a rolling boil and test one piece (especially if you are using a different type of potato or experimenting with other ingredients). The gnocchi should hold together as a dumpling and will rise to the surface when cooked.
If the test gnocchi is fine, continue to cook in batches (a couple of handfuls at a time) scooping the cooked dumplings off into a colander with a slotted spoon.
If the test gnocchi falls apart you can still salvage the situation by baking the rest in the oven on a buttered/oiled tray.