Great Grandma and Gnocchi

Comfort foods make us happy. Mac and cheese, meatloaf, mashed potatoes….. they're all so good! One of MY favorite comfort foods from my childhood was gnocchi. Let's say it all together: pronounce NYAW-KEE … very good! What is it? It is a delectable pillow of love created from a dough of flour, eggs and potatoes. There are other versions of gnocchi but this one is my absolute favorite and the nearest and dearest to my heart. My great-grandmother from Calabria (the "toes" of the boot of Italy) used to make these almost daily. Cheap and easy and filling needed to be on the bill and these qualified. She died at 98 years old and until then, cooked on a cast iron coal stove where a daily pot of some kind of pasta sauce was making the house smell a bit like heaven. She NEVER learned any English except for the phrase, "it's too hot-ta today!" I never had a problem understanding anything she said to me in my childhood and wished I had kept up speaking Italian. Ah well, maybe someday…..

In any case, my best memories of my little pupita (poo-PEE-ta) were the gnocchi. If food means love, this woman had a heart of gold! They were always perfect and I wish I had been old enough to actually learn and make these WITH her to get the hands on training. But the best I can do is use my memories, remember the taste on my tongue and try to recreate them as best I can. She's been gone about 42 years and I can still see her standing on the front porch in her long black dress (like a typical old Italian woman!) and her apron with her head wrap. She smiled bigger than life and loved everyone. It didn't matter if you didn't understand her … you knew what she was saying. It was always something very kind.

So to my little pupita grandma … this is for you and for the wonderful memories our loved ones leave us as a legacy.

Try these! They are so delicious and such a wonderful Italian staple that are not all that familiar to Americans. They are undoubtedly pasta and are so versatile. They can be boiled, baked or fried. They can be made with potatoes, ricotta cheese or even butternut squash! We'll start with the most familiar to someone with Southern Italian heritage like myself and sooner or later, I'll add recipes for the others! I will add another warning later: don't be frustrated if these are not "perfect" the first couple of times you make them. This dough is different and take a little practice! What I can tell you is that even if they aren't perfect, they're still delicious … I'm smiling even though you can't see it on my face!

Gnocchi

• 2 pounds of starchy potatoes (2 large russets or similar)

• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 
1 cup of unbleached all-purpose flour

• Kosher salt
• Dash of nutmeg

NOTE* You can boil your potatoes BUT the key component is using as little water (and that includes steam) as possible for these to be light and fluffy. I always microwave my potatoes … baking dries them too much and boiling makes them too moist!

Microwave the potatoes on high for approximately 10 minutes or until they are done. Times may vary depending on the wattage of your microwave. (If you can cut the top of the potato and squeeze the ends and it "pops" open to make a jacket as if you were going to put lots of butter and sour cream on it, they are correctly done!)

Cut your potatoes in half the long way and scoop the white part out of the skin. Put small amounts through a ricer (this is the PERFECT consistency to make gnocchi) into a mixing bowl until all of the potato is finished. If you don't have a ricer, put the potato on a cutting board and "squish" them with the tines of a fork. You don't want them mashed…. Scatter about ¾ of a cup of the flour onto your riced potatoes. You may need to add the rest of the flour as you mix so the dough doesn't feel "sticky". This will depend on humidity, water content of the potatoes, etc. Add approximately 1 tsp of kosher salt. This may vary depending on your tastes and how "dry" the potato is. Add a dash of nutmeg … I like freshly grated nutmeg and grate about 5 or 6 times onto the potatoes. (If you don't like this taste, certainly leave it out!) Add your beaten egg and gently start to fold it all together. Mix lightly until all of the ingredients are incorporated but avoid the tendency to "knead" like you are making a regular pasta dough or bread. Divide your gnocchi dough into 8 balls and roll them into ropes about ¾ of an inch wide. Cut the ropes into about ¾ inch slices and dust lightly with flour so they don't stick to one another. I place mine on a lightly flour dusted tea towel until I finish making all of the gnocchi and prepare them to boil. (There is one more step to making the gnocchi authentic but if this is as far as you get, these will turn out perfectly fine! I will add the final step below for those braver folks that would like to try this!)

Bring a large pot of water to boil with a teaspoon of kosher salt added after boiling. Add your gnocchi in batches (about 20 at a time) to the boiling water. They will let YOU know when they're done because they all raise to the top! With a slotted spoon or spider, remove each batch into a colander. Work quickly (I do this by pre-dividing my gnocchi into batches) so that the gnocchi remain warm until they are all boiled.

Gently toss with your favorite tomato sauce, pesto sauce, meat sauce or cream sauce. As with any Italian pasta, the sauce is "condimento" … a condiment, so don't add too much and make sure it is mixed through. I'm on a quest to make sure people don't plop their sauce on top like Americans tend to do to make it look "pretty". Mix it through and enjoy the condiment all over the pasta!

Now, for that final step if you're brave! Hold a fork in your hand, tines facing UP and AWAY from you. Place a gnocchi close to the top of the tines (near your hand) and with a confidence and an assertive (but light) touch, use your thumb and press in and down the length of the fork. The gnocchi should curl into a slight "C" shape, their backs will capture the impression of the tines as tiny ridges (good for catching sauce later). Then continue with the flour dusting part of the recipe. If I want to impress someone, I use this method. If I'm hungry and just need to eat, those gnocchi go directly in the water as soon as I'm finished cutting them!

When you taste the gnocchi, they should be light, not heavy and rubbery. Again, PLEASE, don't be frustrated if they are the first couple of times you make them … until you get the hang of it. After a few times, you will start to know what this dough feels like and they'll turn out nearly perfect every time. Even if they don't, they're not a waste … they're still yummy!

Some causes that they might not have the lightness they need:

• Too much flour added to the gnocchi
• Too much kneading of the dough and you've released too many glutens
• Potatoes were old and TOO dry

This is such a typical Italian primi piatti (first course) but in more rustic settings, it is certainly dinner worthy. You should try these …. I promise you'll be hooked! These are great for Lent as a meatless meal with a marinara sauce. Mix the with a good vodka cream sauce and a chiffonade of basil and parmesean cheese and they are an elegant main course. Add pesto for an entirely different take….. try what you like!


And as always, until next time, ciao…..