Homemade Potato Gnocchi

I thought this was a fitting post to announce that my dear husband and I are going to Italy next month! This trip started as a dream that we almost laughed off as impossible, but after looking at our vacation fund and rearranging our schedules, the dream became an unexpected reality! We’ll possibly be in Rome when the new Pope is chosen, take a side trip to Pisa, Florence, and Siena, plus we’ll be there for Holy Week and Easter! Can’t wait to share the experience with all of you.

Besides the awesome religious aspect of our trip, I’m beyond excited for all the great food we’ll get to eat. Although, I gave up coffee and Jason gave up alcohol for Lent. Go figure! We’ve been joking about how on Easter, I’ll be buzzed from espresso and he’ll be buzzed from Italian wine.

Besides pasta and pizza, one of my favorite Italian foods is gnocchi. I’ve always bought it pre-made at the grocery store, but have had it on my try-to-make-at-home list for a long time. Feeling all giddy and inspired by our upcoming trip motivated me to finally give it a try!

If you’ve never had gnocchi, I encourage you to give it a try! (the store bought variety is so easy to make – you just boil it like pasta) Gnocchi is typically a potato based dumpling that’s light, fluffy, and delicious. With only three main ingredients – potato, egg, and flour – it’s a pretty basic dish to make. Don’t get me wrong, there’s some prep work involved in making the dough, but once you get the gnocchi shaped, the cooking process goes pretty quickly.

This Italian favorite can be paired with pesto, marinara, cream sauce, or just some simple butter and herbs. I usually add some Italian sausage, then have some salad or a vegetable on the side to make a delicious hearty meal. Enjoy!

Homemade Potato Gnocchi

Ingredients:
2 large russet potatoes, halved
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup of unbleached all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt and pepper
Pesto sauce (or your sauce of choice)

Yield: 4-6 servings

Directions:
Place the halved potatoes in a pot of boiling salted water. Boil for about 40 minutes or until soft. Remove potatoes one by one with a slotted spoon and quickly peel them. Mash the potatoes with a with a fork or a ricer and ensure there are no lumps. Don’t over mash – they should be light and fluffy. Let them cool for about 10 minutes.

Shape potatoes into a mound with a well in the middle. Pour the egg into the well and sprinkle on 3/4 of the flour and a pinch of salt and pepper. Using a metal cutter, mix the flour, potato, and egg by gently chopping and scraping the ingredients together. Chop, scrape, chop, scrape until the ingredients are roughly combined. The dough should be moist but not sticky. If they are too sticky then sprinkle on the remaining 1/4 of flour.

Lightly flour your work surface and then gently roll the dough several times with a very light touch. You don’t want to over mix the dough. It should feel light and airy. Place the dough on a clean surface and cut about 8 logs.

On a floured surface, gently roll each log so that it’s about 2/3 inch thick. Using the cutter, cut off 1/2 inch or smaller pieces. Mark the gnocchi with a fork by lightly but quickly rolling them down the inside of the fork’s prongs. This reduces the bulk of the gnocchi and makes little grooves to catch the sauce.

Bring some salted water to the boil. Have a non-stick pan ready, on medium heat, with 1 tsp of butter next to the boiling water. Place the gnocchi in batches into the boiling water. Remove them with a slotted spoon as soon as they float to the top and then sauté them in the butter for about 1 minute or until they brown slightly.

Place the browned gnocchi into the waiting bowl of pesto and gently toss to coat. Serve immediately.

Source: Slightly adapted from All Things Nice

Zuppa di Gnocchi e Pesto

I know we’re past soup season, but this recipe is too tasty to set aside till fall! You know that a soup is good when it’s requested by your husband in advance for future times of sickness! This Italian soup is hearty without being heavy and the roasted onion and garlic adds some amazing flavor. When topped with diced tomatoes, it tastes like bruschetta in soup form! YUM!

PS: Happy Birthday to my mom!

Zuppa di Gnocchi e Pesto

Ingredients:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 yellow onion, quartered
8 cloves garlic, in skins
1 Tbsp olive oil
Pinch of salt and pepper
2 cartons chicken broth, 32 oz each
1/2 jar pesto sauce (8 oz jar)
1 package gnocchi, 16 oz
2 whole roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F. Place chicken breasts in a roasting pan. Break apart quartered onion and scatter around and on top of chicken breasts. Toss the garlic, skins and all, around the chicken. The garlic will not flavor the chicken at this point. You are merely roasting them and will add them to the broth in a bit. Drizzle olive oil on the chicken. Add some salt and pepper and roast for 35-45 minutes or until the center is white and no longer pink.

Once cooked, allow the chicken to cool so that it can be shredded. Scoop out the roasted onion and garlic to use in the broth. While the chicken is cooling, pour the chicken broth into a food processor or blender along with the onions and roasted garlic (skins removed after roasting of course) and half of the pesto. Pulse until there are no large chunks of garlic left. The roasted garlic will give the soup a velvety feel in your mouth. Definitely don’t skip this step. It’s so worth it!

After shredding the chicken, mix in the rest of the pesto. Stir well and set aside.

In a large pot, bring the broth/garlic/pesto mixture to a boil. Add the gnocchi and cook according to the package directions. In soup bowls, place a pile of chicken in the center. Ladle the hot broth over the chicken and garnish with chopped tomatoes. Enjoy!

Source: Slightly adapted from The Coupon Goddess

Fresh Basil Pesto

My basil plant is still booming, so I took advantage and finally made some fresh basil pesto! This is perfect to use with pasta, on a sandwich or a simple piece of bread, or my favorite – as a healthy pizza sauce! We have homemade pizza every Friday in our house and a basic pesto pizza with mozzarella is one of our top choices. (I’ll have to post my fave pizza dough recipe soon) Whatever you use this pesto for, it’ll surely deliver a fresh and delicious taste. It’ll be hard ever going back to the store bought pesto again!

Fresh Basil Pesto

Ingredients:
2 cups fresh basil
1/3 cup walnuts (or pine nuts)
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
Dash of salt and pepper

Directions:
Pulse the walnuts a few times in a food processor. Add the basil and pulse a few more times to mix together. Add the garlic and pulse a few more times to combine. Slowly add the olive oil and pulse to combine. Add the cheese and pulse to combine, scrape down the sides as needed and add the salt and pepper. Pulse again until completely blended together.

Source: A Beckster Original

Linguine with Pea Pesto

If you love peas, you will LOVE this dish! As a huge fan of traditional basil pesto, this pasta dish delivers an interesting spin on pesto sauce. Very different, but it works! The color is bright and fresh and you can easily add extras to it, like a nice grilled chicken breast on top. Yum! So if you’re feeling adventurous, give this dish a shot and you might be pleasantly surprised!

Linguine with Pea Pesto

Ingredients:
10-ounce package frozen peas, defrosted
1 garlic clove, minced
2 Tbsp walnuts, toasted if desired
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp salt (plus a pinch for salting water)
1/3 cup olive oil
12 oz linguine pasta

Directions:
Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Add peas and cook them for 2 minutes. Drain and either put in an ice bath or let them cool to lukewarm before making pesto.

Set aside 1/2 cup of the cooked peas. Combine the remaining peas, garlic, walnuts, 1/3 cup parmesan, and salt in food processor and whirl for 2-3 minutes, until smooth. At the end, drizzle in the olive oil while processor is running.

Cook the linguine until al dente, per the directions on the box. Set aside 2 cups of the pasta water to thin the sauce later. Drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Over medium heat, toss the pasta, pesto, and extra peas. Add pasta water a little at a time to thin the sauce as needed. Let it cook together for 1 minute so it all combines. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately. Garnish with fresh herbs (optional) and remaining parmesan cheese.

Source: Slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen