Pillow-y potatoes

We have a favorite gnocchi place in New York — Max Soha in Harlem. This is quite an exceptional restaurant overall with extremely good pasta at very affordable prices (and not just for Manhattan). They have an excellent black linguine with seafood, and the lamb ragu also comes highly recommended. But the gnocchi at this place is truly phenomenal, beautiful puffy pillows of potato, dressed simply with tomato, basil, and some homemade mozzarella. Delicious. If you’re ever in the neighborhood, do stop by. But take note, it’s cash only.

The first time we made gnocchi was one step short of a smashing success.  That step, of course, was to stop while we were ahead.  This was one of our more ambitious evenings, in which we decided to make regular potato gnocchi, sweet potato gnocchi, and ricotta gnocchi.  The first item was easy to make, quick, and delicious.  Sweet potatoes, however, are much wetter than their less-sweet cousin, and so our gnocchi recipe ended up requiring about four times as much flour–which is about four times as much as the recipe called for!  So after spending an hour kneading spoonful after spoonful of flour into sweet potato mush, all the while terrified that we would still need more flour, we finally quit when our dough had formed into a dense, chewy hockey puck.  Worth mentioning now that the key to good gnocchi is to go easy on the flour.  So, dejected, we postponed the ricotta for another time–which ended up being another spectacular failure.  This time, not enough flour, and our cute little ricotta balls instantly dissolved in the boiling water.

Two years later, revisiting potato gnocchi proved yet again successful.  So until we get a better sweet potato or ricotta gnocchi recipe, we’re sticking to this one.

Gnocchi with Herb-Infused Olive Oil

1 lb Idaho potatoes
1 egg, lightly beaten
up to 1 cup flour
drizzle of herb-infused olive oil*

Peel the potatoes before cooking. Pierce potatoes several times with a fork or knife to release steam as they cook. Microwave the potatoes on high for 15 minutes. Let cool. (It’s possible that microwaving is not the best way to cook potatoes for gnocchi. We found they were a bit dry and very potato-ey. Boiling may be a better choice.)

When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, grate them using the coarse side of a box grater. (Alternatively, a food mill will also work.) The goal is to flake the potatoes so there is enough air between potato flakes for a fluffier gnocchi.

Stir the egg into the potatoes. Add the flour a spoonful at a time, kneading in between each addition until the dough is dry enough to handle. Roll the dough out into one-inch diameter dowels, ensuring even thickness throughout. Cut dowels into half-inch pieces, dimpling/rolling with a fork.

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook gnocchi in batches for two-three minutes at a time, until gnocchi float to the top. Remove and set aside. Drizzle with herb-infused olive oil and serve. And enjoy.

*Heidi calls this “magic sauce“, “as versatile as a little black dress”. It is a garlic-herb infused olive oil, delicious drizzled on top of a plate full of fresh gnocchi.