a gnocchi love affair
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Cozy evening in. With elegance. Godfather vibes. Your love affair with gnocchi begins now✨
There’s nothing quite like gnocchi. It’s one of those dishes that’s perfect for bringing the family together while also being the perfect romantic dinner.
Gnocchi-making is deeply personal as well. Using your senses and really connecting with your ingredients. It’s something you have to be able to feel what’s needed while making. It’s not complicated. It only requires confidence AND definitely the right tools.
With that said, the sauces for the gnocchi are all compliments to Joanna Gaines from her Magnolia Table Volume 2 Cookbook. The below homemade gnocchi recipe is modeled after hers but some details are changed with ideas added or expanded upon. Tips included. After experimenting with thoughts from the experts, I do think she truly has the best way of creating gnocchi that is so soft. like pillows in your mouth. melting on your tongue goodness.
Romance is served ~
Homemade Gnocchi
yields 4-6 servings prep: 2 hours cook: under 20 minutes
Tools you will need ~
*soooo worth the investment!
potato ricer (heavy-duty version)
skimmer spoon
steel dough scraper
wooden gnocchi board
INGREDIENTS
3 lbs russet potatoes (you can use any potato type, and I’m always favoring fingerlings over any other, but russets do seem to work the best here. take my word at least to start.)
1/2 cup plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
2 tablespoons of olive oil, butter or your favorite high heat oil (we love Colorado Mills Sunflower Oil)
INSTRUCTIONS
*As a reminder, use these instructions as a template but make this gnocchi your own. Be playful. Use your senses. Gnocchi is all about a love for being in the kitchen. I also recommend creating the perfect ambience to be in the mood for relaxing while making gnocchi. For me, that’s black candles, a glass of wine and music.
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Spread the 1/2 cup of kosher salt on a sheet pan, creating a salt bed. (The salt here is to elevate the potatoes, so they cook evenly on all sides. It also helps dry out water content. The goal for light, fluffy gnocchi is drier potatoes. Remember that as we go along.)
Using a fork, poke each potato around all sides to allow the steam to escape (again, the drier your potatoes, the better). Place the potatoes on your salt bed. Bake until tender when pierced, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
To continue on our path to the driest potatoes possible, as soon as you pull them out of the oven, grab an oven mitt and slice them open in half. Allow the steam to release immediately. Cool these halves for about 5 to 10 minutes, and then you’re ready to start scooping out the insides. If you’re like me and don’t mind burning your fingers a bit, I find it easiest to squeeze the flesh from the skins. Either way works, and you just want to scoop the insides from the flesh and into a bowl.
Now the fun part. This takes strength. It is a workout ha! Ricing the potato insides. You’ll take small pieces of your potato flesh and push them through the ricer. I prefer to push them out on the surface you’re going to be creating the gnocchi dough. Clean countertop that has flour sprinkled across it.
A potato ricer is such a crucial tool here. Ricing the potato flesh allows you to not overwork them. Light, fluffy, melt-in-your-mouth goodness cannot be achieved if you overwork the potato. In our girl Chrissy Teigen’s words, "The secret is to bring the dough together, and then to not overwork the situation (nothing’s worse than someone trying too hard.)”
There are chefs out there who whip up gnocchi like it’s nothing without a ricer, using even just a fork to slightly mash. It’s doable .. but not the easiest or best option. Giada does a great job of not using a ricer.
Now within your riced potato mound, create a small well in the middle. Pour your beaten eggs here.
TIP: I believe this is the crucial step to making the best gnocchi. First, you want to beat your eggs instead of just cracking them here in the well and then mixing. Why? You can end up mixing some of the potato too much around it and I found it becomes overworked. Also, you need eggs. Many recipes out there don’t require eggs, but their purpose in gnocchi just seem to make these pillows so much lighter and fluffier ~ while still holding their shape. Also, I think a minimum of 2 eggs is truly needed. You can get away with just 2 instead of 3 here. This is where it depends how much potato you were able to get when ricing. I think it’s safe to have 2 eggs when working with 3 lbs. of russet potatoes. I’ve heard ratios of 1 lb. of potato + 1 egg + 1/2 cup flour.
Sprinkle a good amount of flour on top along with a sprinkling of salt. Now using your hands, begin to fold the dough in. Slightly mixing but mostly folding. Try to fold the least amount possible while incorporating everything together. You will probably need a couple more sprinklings of flour while doing this. I tend to use the least amount of flour possible and slowly add in ~ again, light fluffy gnocchi can’t be too dense. The goal is to use just enough flour. No more.
You’ll slowly start to form a mound of dough. Pat around the sides a bit to smooth. You’ll use your steel scraper (or just a knife!) to evenly divide your dough into sections.
Now you’re ready to take each of these sections of dough and roll them out. Sprinkle your working surface area with more flour, and then take this piece of doll and roll it out softly. Back-and-forth. You want the dough to become snake-like :) Using your scraper or a knife, cut this rope of dough into 1-2” pieces, so you have an entire line of pillows.
This is my favorite part of the process. Take your wooden gnocchi board and place a pillow of gnocchi slightly sideways across it. Push down. Now you have one side of indentations. You’ll carefully roll the gnocchi off the board and circled together. Technically, your thumbprint inside the gnocchi spiral is actually what grabs the most sauce rather than these indentations. They are just visually so pleasing. And fun. Enjoying the process is what counts.
TIP: You can completely skip this step. It really doesn’t have any effect on great gnocchi. You can also push your little gnocchi pillows slightly in with a thumbprint to truly create that pillow-effect. Gordon Ramsay recommends this.
You’ll continue making gnocchi pillows with the rest of your evenly cut dough pieces from the mound. I’d recommend sprinkling a sheet pan with more flour and setting your individual gnocchi pillows on this while you continue.
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat. Line another sheet pan with a clean kitchen towel. Working a few batches to allow the gnocchi not to overcrowd, gently add the gnocchi pillows to the simmering water. When the gnocchi begin to rise, allow them at least 20 more seconds to cook and firm up, but then you’re ready to pull them out with a skimmer spoon and set on the towel. (*Here again, we are reducing the water content in the gnocchi immediately). Let the gnocchi cool for 10 minutes.
TIP: Here is the place where you can freeze the gnocchi to use in the future. Sooo worth taking advantage of here. I personally like to use 9 lbs. of potatoes when I’m making gnocchi, so I have plenty to freeze. Gnocchi seriously turns out amazing from frozen form and can take almost no time to make such an elegant meal. Make sure to lay the gnocchi flat in a plastic freezer bag with spacing between each pillow. When you’re ready to use it, lay it out ahead of time to bring as close to room temp as possible, but you can also just cook the frozen gnocchi on a skillet. Once both sides are browned, return your gnocchi to the skillet and toss with your chosen sauce.
Officially, your gnocchi is now cooked. Some people like to eat it as is, but I personally don’t like the taste of it in this slightly-undercooked form. In a large nonstick skillet, heat a couple tablespoons of oil or butter on medium heat. Transfer as many gnocchi onto the skillet as it will allow while they all still have room to lay flat. Cook, flipping only a couple times, until both sides turn a golden brown, about 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate, and continue to repeat with more added oil and gnocchi. *I like to salt and pepper my gnocchi while it’s on the skillet.
Return the browned gnocchi to the skillet and toss with one of the below sauces! Ooh-la-la
The Sauces
Pesto + Gnocchi
yields about 1 1/2 cups prep: 10 minutes
INGREDIENTS
3 cups packed fresh basil leaves
2 garlic gloves
1/4 cup pine nuts (slightly toasted)
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 oz)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
Slightly toast your pine nuts until golden brown on a skillet.
In a food processor, combine the basil, garlic and pine nuts. Pulse until roughly chopped, 10 to 15 seconds.
With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil until well combined, 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper and mix until just incorporated.
Mix this pesto in with the gnocchi on a skillet. I personally like to grate more Parmesan cheese on top when serving. You can also store this sauce in the fridge for up to 3 days or the freezer for up to a month. Enjoy!
Brown Sage Butter + Gnocchi
yields 1/2 cup prep: 5 minutes cook: under 5 minutes
INGREDIENTS
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
16-20 fresh sage leaves (could also use fresh thyme here)
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Parmesan cheese
INSTRUCTIONS
Heat butter in a skillet until it begins to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the sage leaves and gnocchi to the skillet, tossing frequently for 1 to 2 minutes. Allow the sage leaves to fry but not burn. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve!
TIP: If I’m making the gnocchi at the same time as this sauce, while I’m browning the gnocchi, I fry the sage leaves at the same time to reduce the amount of steps here. Also, I love to add grated Parmesan cheese to all the sauce options here.
Jo’s Marinara Sauce + Gnocchi
yields approximately 5 cups prep: 15 minutes cook: under 40 minutes
INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/3 cup diced red onion (about 1/2 small)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
6 oz can tomato paste
3 bay leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dried oregano
INSTRUCTIONS
*of the 3 sauce options here, this one takes the most time BUT also makes the most amount of sauce. It’s truly my favorite too!
In a large pot or skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced onion and sauté until translucent and browning, 8 to 10 minutes.
Add the garlic, salt and pepper and cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste and 2 cups water. Stir well to combine. Stir in the bay leaves, basil, parsley and oregano. *I was out of fresh herbs except parsley, so I used the above dried herb seasonings instead. Tasted delicious :)
Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thick, 20 to 30 minutes.
Remove and discard the bay leaves. Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.
In a large bowl, toss the gnocchi with about 1/3 of the sauce carefully (I used leftover gnocchi here which tasted just as delicious fresh as it did warmed up. I absolutely love that about gnocchi). Serve with lots of grated Parmesan cheese (approx. 1/4 cup) + a couple, torn fresh basil leaves. Enjoy!
TIP: You can store the extra sauce in the fridge for up to 3 days and the freezer for up to 1 month.
*What also works really great for delicious gnocchi that takes less than 10 minutes ~ store-bought marinara sauce :) toss your frozen gnocchi in your skillet with butter and slowly add in some marinara. Voila! Homemade, elegant deliciousness.
Chrissy Teigen mentions in her Cravings cookbook that ricotta cheese really makes her gnocchi dough fool-proof. Gordon Ramsay is also a big fan of this. He has this delicious recipe that he whips up with leftover russet baked potatoes and ricotta cheese that everyone also needs in their life. Check it out here.
Make sure to also check out our all-potato gnocchi recipe from Eclat Culinary that is topped with roasted mushrooms, a creamy leek foam sauce and crispy shallots. It’s soooo good.
Recipes are adapted from Joanna Gaines’ Magnolia Table Volume 2 Cookbook ~ which everyone should own. She has the end-all-be-all for some delicious recipes, especially her chocolate chip cookies. The content in the cookbook is beautiful and stunning. Her words of advice ring so true and are needed.