It is common knowledge that Italian cuisine offers countless delicious specialties that please the vast majority of diners. The best-known are pasta, pizza, risotto, polenta and sausages, seafood, or other sweet delicacies. There is something for everyone!
However, Italian cuisine also has a succulent dish: gnocchi. This delight has become increasingly popular, so we will refer to them in this post.
What is gnocchi?
These small foods are a kind of soft and spongy pasta made of flour and potato and do not present any difficulty in preparing.
Although the original version is made with potatoes, preparing gnocchi with many other mashed foods is possible. For example, sweet potato, spinach, pumpkin, banana, cassava, and cauliflower. You can adapt your recipes to seasonal products and prepare lighter versions than the potato ones.
Even though the texture varies a little depending on the vegetables used, they will bring a whole new flavor to the dish. Simply mash and cook them like classic gnocchi, then add the sauce!
How to make homemade gnocchi
Making your homemade gnocchi is very easy since you don’t need a specific appliance or special skill (like for pizza). You just need to have some time to shape them one by one by hand, using a fork or a gnocchi board.
Below is a very easy recipe to make them at home once you have all the ingredients:
- First, cook 1 kg (2 pounds) of potatoes and then mash them to make a puree.
- Next, add half 250 g (just over 1 cup) of flour, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Mix well to form a soft dough.
- On a floured work surface, separate the dough into long strips half an inch in diameter.
- Then, cut small pieces 1 inch long.
- Each piece must be shaped by hand and well-floured.
- Press lightly on it with the fork or on the gnocchi board to make the grooves.
- It’s time to cook in a large volume of salted water.
- Gnocchi will be ready when they rise to the surface!
Accompaniments for Gnocchi
Whether it’s for variety, because you have extra, or simply to discover new flavors, there are many choices to accompany your gnocchi, from cheese sauces to sautéed vegetables to dips. The combinations are changed to add even more flavor to this delight.
Of course, the first choice is the sauce. This is the classic recipe to serve gnocchi: Add the sauce you like best, as you would with pasta. There is a diversity of sauces. You can have different pleasures with the numerous sauce recipes available. Most are easy to make and perfect for finishing your gnocchi dish. Everything is possible!
You can try, for instance:
- Pesto sauce.
- Carbonara sauce.
- Bolognese sauce.
- Four cheese sauce.
- Simple tomato sauce.
However, you can use plenty of foods and recipes to accompany gnocchi. In olivieri.ca/gnocchi-recipes/, you can find many recipes of meals with diverse and exotic ingredients as accompaniments for you to try.
Furthermore, your gnocchi can also be served with:
- Vegetables in gratins
- Stuffed meat.
- Pasta au gratin.
- Tartiflette.
- Salmon, among others.
Other alternatives to accompany gnocchi are simple recipes that can be served either for lunch or dinner. Some of them are:
- Pan-fried mushrooms with coriander are the perfect accompaniment to the potato gnocchi.
- Eggplant tomatoes, mozzarella. This a delicious side dish that you will certainly enjoy with the gnocchi!
- Endive au gratin with cow cheese. These endives can be a good meal to serve with gnocchi. It is so appetizing when endives are well cooked to serve them with small homemade gnocchi. That’s too good! Mushroom crumble with Parmesan cheese is another good idea to accompany the gnocchi. With a little sauce of your choice, it’s the perfect dish.
- Gnocchi with ricotta cheese. They can be served as a side dish or as the basis for a complete meal. If a little fresh cream accompanies them, it is a very delicious choice.
- Butternut gnocchi. A very delightful combination with a strong but very pleasant taste.
- Parmesan gnocchi.
- Pea Gnocchi with Goat Faisselle, Yogurt, and Mint Sauce. For those who fancy pea gnocchi with goat cheese faisselle, yogurt sauce, and mint.
Featured Image by Emma Pitti from Pixabay
