Gnocchi!

MMMmmmm Gnocchi!

I was luckily introduced to the delicious world of gnocchi by my marvellous marito (husband).  I first tasted it at Anton's, a great pasteria restaurant on East Hastings in Vancouver.  Huge portions of delicious pasta! How could you go wrong? Well I tried gnocchi, and loved it, and now we make gnocchi and we both just eat it up like we've been starving for years.

Out here in Kelowna, we are in the land of... SQUASH!  So we picked up a butternut squash and some ricotta cheese and went to town.  Now, I have just recently read a blog about giving back and being useful bloggers (shout out to L. Koslowski!).  So I think this blog should be helpful and useful too, so below the pics, I will put the recipe if you are so inclined to try making gnocchi! It is so delicious, I dare you to try!

We took some pics of the process, so here they are!

Roast the squash in the oven, peel off the skin, toss it in the food processor, cook it on the stove to get any excess water outta there, then start a' mixin' it!

Once it's all mixed, time to make the pillow-y goodnesses.  Note our fancy gnocchi groove roller thing, my mom brought that back for Jon from Italy, and let me tell you it's much more fun than using a fork to make those grooves.  

Alright Recipe Below!

Tell me how it goes!

3 lbs Butternut Squash

1 1/4 cups (8oz) ricotta cheese

1/2 cup (2 oz) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1tsp salt

1 egg

1 cup (5 oz) whole wheat or spelt flour

1/2 cup (2 oz) all purpose flour (plus extra for rolling)

1/4 cup semolina flour

Cut the squah into large pieces, remove the seeds, place on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for around 40 minutes.  It is done when you can easily pierce it with a fork.  Remove skin from squash while it is still hot.  Puree that sucker in the food processor.  Transfer the squash to a pan and cook it down to eliminate excess water.  Transfer to a mixing bowl, and let it cool.  

Mix salt and egg into the squash, then the ricotta and the parmesan, make sure you don't forget any of the types of flour as there is three different types, (it's easy to forget one, ie. I forgot one - luckily Jon caught it)

BIG TIP

You will find this tip on all the recipe's about making gnocchi, including this one.  The less flour the lighter the gnocchi.  The less flour the better :)

Back to the gnocchi making process....

Transfer a small (about a tennis ball size) amount of dough to a floured work surface and gently knead to incorporate JUST enough flour for a workable hand-rollable consistency.  The dough will be moist but the flour on the outside should allow you to roll it out with your hands into a  1/2 inch ropes.  Cut it with a knife in 1/2 inch pillows.  If you want to put grooves on the gnocchi (To hold the sauce better) you can roll the gnocchi down the back side of a fork.

Put those suckers on a pan and into the freezer to freeze individually.  Pack them into zip lock bags when they are frozen and pull out when you want them.  

WARNING:  

Gnocchi will.... melt, kind of.... It is best to freeze them right away and then toss them into a boiling pot of water and wait for them to float on top and then scoop out and mix with a sauce.

Recommended Sauce.... SAGE AND GARLIC

6 tablespoons butter, 12 fresh sage leaves - chopped, a little pasta water, and grated parm....

YUM!
ps. This recipe was adapted from NorthWest Palate Magazine. THANKS!