Pan-Fried Mascarpone Gnocchi With Basil Pesto Recipe
We're working our way through British chef and "lightening up" empress Lorraine Pascale's new book, Everyday Easy. Just because it's light and simple doesn't mean it can't be flavor-packed and beautiful. Just look at these stunning gnocchi!
I first had gnocchi in an Italian restaurant near my house, and I had to find out all about it: where it was from, how it was made, and its variations. The owners told me that they used mashed potatoes and other ingredients to make the teeny pillows of heaven. I really wanted to put them in this book, but I needed a quicker method, so I threw tradition to the wind and made up my own version with flour and mascarpone, drawing on British dumplings for inspiration. These are great to make in bulk and freeze raw. These gnocchi are very versatile, so you can also try experimenting with other sauces, such as the all'arrabiata from Everyday Easy.
- 1 ounce Parmesan cheese
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 1-ounce packets fresh basil
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 ounces toasted pine nuts
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 ounces Parmesan cheese
- small handful of fresh thyme sprigs
- 12 ounces mascarpone
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 medium eggs
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Olive oil
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 bag wild arugula
- 1 ounce toasted pine nuts
- 1 lemon
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Grate the 1 ounce of Parmesan finely and place it in a blender or food processor.
- Peel the garlic, tear the leaves from the basil, and add both to the Parmesan along with the ¼ cup olive oil and 2 ounces of toasted pine nuts.
- Blitz the ingredients to a paste and set aside.
- Grate the 4 ounces of Parmesan finely and put it in a medium bowl. Pluck the thyme leaves from the sprigs and add them (or the tablespoon of dried oregano) to the Parmesan along with the mascarpone, flour, eggs, salt and pepper.
- Mix all ingredients in the bowl to make a soft dough. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead the dough to form a smooth ball.
- Divide the dough into three sections and roll each into a log about two feet long. Cut each of these into ¾-inch pieces, about 30 from each log (90 in total). Halfway through this process, place two large frying pans on the stove on medium to high heat, with a drizzle of oil and a pat of butter in each.
- Divide the gnocchi between the two pans and turn the heat to low. Leave the gnocchi to cook on one side for about a minute, then turn them over with a fish slicer. Cook for 4 minutes more, continuing to turn them every so often until they are crisp and golden all over and warmed through. If the gnocchi do not all fit in the pans at once, you can cook them in batches, placing the cooked ones into a large bowl and covering them with aluminum foil to keep warm. Cook the remainder of the gnocchi in additional batches, adding more oil and butter as necessary.
- Toss the cooked gnocchi with the pesto and arugula until evenly coated. Divide them among four plates.
- Scatter pine nuts over each serving. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and a grind of pepper to each, then serve.
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