It's February so that means we're all about the delicious date-night recipes! Pesto gnocchi is a sure winner to impress anyone, I mean, how could anyone resist homemade pasta? Now of course if you can't score a hot date this Valentine's day this works just as well as a stay at home meal for one paired with a good movie. Either way I hope it brings you joy and a full stomach!
Pesto:
20g basil (both stems and leaves)
30g pine nuts
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp water
salt to taste
2 cloves garlic Gnocchi:
potatoes (approximately 400g raw)
flour (approximately 70-100g)
salt
Method: Add garlic, basil and a pinch of salt to a mortar and mash until you have a paste. Add pine nuts and mash until you have a paste where all ingredients are well combined. Add olive oil and water and combine. Season with salt to taste and your pesto is done! Now you can move on to the gnocchi.
Place your potatoes on a tray in the oven and bake at 200C until fork tender, remove from the oven and leave to cool completely.
Peel your potatoes and run them through a potato ricer (alternatively you can push them through a strainer or mash them with a fork until well broken up and fluffed up). Weigh your peeled potatoes, and add 1/3 of that weight in flour. In my case I had 260g riced potatoes and added 87g flour. Add about 1/2 tsp of fine table salt if you have a similar amount of dough to me or adjust according to your amount. Knead/mix gently until it just comes together into a dough. Split your dough in half and roll it out your into two logs about 1.5-2cm in diameter. Slice the log into little chunks about 2.5 cm long. If you want you can roll them over the back of a fork to create those signature ridges that gnocchi has, but that's optional. I prefer them to look like little fluffy pillows myself. Toss them in some flour to prevent from sticking. Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Boil the gnocchi either all at once or in 2-3 batches depending on the size of your pot (you don’t want to overcrowd it) and let them simmer until they start to float. Remove the floating gnocchi with a slotted spoon and add to a bowl along with the pesto. Toss the gnocchi in the pesto and serve with some sundried tomatoes and any nuts/seeds you might want. Enjoy!
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