Potato Gnocchi Recipe

My grandmother used to make this cake for Easter. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Gnocchi (Neo-ki) Di Patate (Potato Dumplings)

I got a lot of recipes from my nona (grandmother), but I never watched her make gnocchi. I got this recipe from an old Italian cookbook from Ferrara's in Little Italy, New York, and I'm pretty sure it's the same one she used. My 11-year-old granddaughter is a fussy eater, but she loved this gnocchi. She even had two helpings.

My husband's family is from Sicily, and my mother-in-law wasn't familiar with the same foods that my family was familiar with. He didn't grow up eating gnocchi, cappaletti, ravioli, and other dishes I thought were typical Italian dishes. But even he enjoyed eating this potato gnocchi.

Mangiare Bene!

Ingredients

• 2 pounds or about 5 medium potatoes, peeled and cut in cubes
• 2 large egg yolks, well beaten
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup flour

Cook Time

Instructions

1. Peel potatoes, boil until tender, and drain well. Put through a potato ricer or beat with a mixer until very smooth.
2. Mix in beaten egg yolks, butter, and salt. Add flour gradually and work into a smooth, manageable dough. The mixture should hold its shape and be pliable but not sticky.
3. Bread the dough into sections, flour your hands, and roll between your palms into a 3/4" thick rope into lengths. Set aside on a lightly floured board and cut the gnocchi into 1-inch pieces.
4. The gnocchi could be cooked immediately or frozen for later use. Instructions for freezing and cooking are below.

Photo Guide

Freezing and Cooking

To freeze the gnocchi, place the cut dumplings on a floured cookie sheet keeping them separate, and flash-freeze them until they are frozen. Then place them frozen in a freezer bag and then store them in the freezer, as shown below.

To cook, bring a pot of water to a boil and add about a tablespoon of salt to the water. Place the frozen gnocchi in the water and stir very gently to bring the water to a slower boil. Don't stir again until you see them pop to the top of the water, then remove the popped-up gnocchi with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl with your favorite sauce on the bottom of the bowl. Spoon them out as they pop up and layer them with sauce in between. Just enough sauce to cover them, not drown them.

If you cook them fresh, do it right after you make them and cook the same way, being very gentle with them as they cook.

Freezing the Gnocchi

Notes

Leftover mashed potatoes will not work. Potatoes must be freshly cooked and slightly warm.

The exact amount of flour needed in this dish is difficult to gauge, it depends on the moisture of the potatoes. If you do use a bit more or less, the recipe will still work. I noticed that if I erred on the side of less, the gnocchi was much lighter when eaten. A heavy gnocchi will not be easy to digest.

If you don't like meatballs and tomato sauce, you can serve these with a light butter sauce and a little grating cheese. Still delicious!

Cooking and Serving Gnocchi

© 2019 Rachel L Alba