Makes: Approximately 4 servings
Assembly Time: 10 minutes with prepared ingredients
Ingredients:
- 1 recipe prepared gnocchi homemade or storebought, cooked and cooled-get my easy homemade recipe here
- 1/2 cup fresh basil pesto sauce homemade or storebought-get my easy homemade recipe here
- 1 8 ounce ball fresh mozzarella cheese, cut in chunks
- 1 cup roasted chopped tomatoes or fresh ripe or sundried tomatoes-get my easy recipe for oven roasted tomatoes here
- 1/2 cup fresh basil, torn or rolled and sliced into ribbons
- Sea or Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
- Olive oil for drizzling
Directions:
Add cooked, cooled gnocchi to a bowl along with a drizzle if olive oil and toss. Add pesto, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, torn basil, a sprinkle of salt and pepper and toss. Taste and adjust seasonings, as needed. Add a little extra pesto and/or olive oil if needed to make the mixture a little saucier.
Serve on its own or with with balsamic marinated grilled meat or portobello mushrooms for a perfect summer meal!
Oven Roasted Tomatoes
Ingredients:
- 4 Roma tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt and a few grinds black pepper
- Drizzle olive oil
Directions:
Splash of balsamic vinegar, optional
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Slice tomatoes into thirds lengthwise so you have 3 flat slices from each, lay on lined baking sheet drizzle with olive and sprinkle with salt and pepper, and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Place tray in oven when ready and roast tomatoes about 30 minutes total. They should look roasted through and caramelized before removing.
Fresh Basil Pesto – Click here for the recipe
Potato Gnocchi
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds (about 4) baking potatoes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 egg white or omit to keep it vegan-(You can add a couple tbsp of water in place of the egg to moisten the potato mixture to help it combine better with the flour if the mixture seems a bit dry)
- 1 to 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, or flour substitute (You may need to add more or less depending on the size of your potatoes.)
- Couple tbsp chopped fresh herbs of choice, optional
Directions:
- Prick potatoes with a fork and bake in 400 degree oven for approximately 1 hour.
- While potatoes are still warm slice in half and scoop flesh into a potato ricer, then press though into a bowl. (Potato Ricers are perfect for this because they create a super light feathery texture with the potato filling without any clumps. If you don’t have a ricer you can use a box grater by peeling each potato half and grating against the holes, just make sure not to allow any clumps of potato pass through or it will break apart portions of your dough.) Add salt, baking powder, egg white (if using) and herbs to the riced potatoes. Add the flour a little at a time and mix with your hands until the mixture forms a rough dough. Do not over-work the dough or it will become too dense. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured piece of wax or parchment paper or use a cutting board. Gently knead the dough for 1 or 2 minutes until smooth, adding a little bit more flour, if necessary, to keep it from sticking.
- Break off a piece of the dough and roll it back and forth into a rope, about the thickness of your finger. Cut the rope into 1-inch pieces. Gently roll each piece down the floured surface while pressing lightly with the tines of a fork. The gnocchi should be slightly curved and marked with ridges. This will allow the gnocchi to hold sauce better when served.
- Boil the gnocchi in batches of boiling salted water. The gnocchi are done in about 1-2 minutes, after they float to the surface. If the gnocchi start to break apart in boiling water, you need more flour. If the gnocchi don’t float after 2 minutes and are hard, you used too much flour.
- Remove cooked gnocchis with a slotted spoon, and repeat until all gnocchis are cooked. If not cooking immediately, place the gnocchi in a single layer on a baking pan dusted with flour. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate up to overnight. After that time the dough will start to oxidize and turn gray. To avoid this place the gnocchi in a single layer in freezer bags until ready to use.
Enjoy this recipe or have questions? Feel free to leave a comment!
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