5 hours ago
7
If I’m going to the effort of making jacket potatoes (and by effort I mean putting them in the oven for an hour), I will almost always pop in a few extra spuds to make gnocchi for a later meal. The difference between shop-bought and homemade gnocchi is vast, especially the vac-packed, long-life kind, which are dense and can be heavy. Freshly made gnocchi, with fluffy baked potatoes, however, are light as air, pillowy and silky. If that sounds intimidating, let me reassure you that this recipe is really forgiving, and much easier than making fresh sheet pasta. I love them served simply, as here, with a slightly nutty sage butter and lots of parmesan. The simple sauce lets those gnocchi sing.
Parmesan and sage jacket potato gnocchi
Prep 10 min
Cook 30 min+
Serves 4
2 leftover cooked baked potatoes, or 2 baking potatoes (about 550g)
2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing
1 large egg
Sea salt and black pepper
100g flour, plus extra for dusting
Nutmeg
40g unsalted butter, cut into cubes
2 big sprigs fresh sage, leaves picked
1 garlic clove, smashed in its skin
30g parmesan, finely grated
½ lemon
If you’re baking the potatoes, heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Prick the potatoes all over with a fork, put in a small tray and rub all over with a little olive oil. Bake for about an hour to an hour and 10 minutes, until the potatoes are tender all the way through. (If you’re using leftover cooked jacket potatoes, put them in a bowl and pop in the microwave to reheat.) When the potatoes are still warm but cool enough to handle, peel off the skins and press the flesh through a potato ricer and into a medium bowl (or mash by hand). You will need 275g mashed potato.
Make a well in the middle, crack in the egg, season well and beat with a fork. Sift in 90g of the flour and finely grate in a few scratchings of nutmeg, then knead, adding the extra flour if the mix feels sticky. You want a smooth dough, but don’t overwork it.
Turn out the gnocchi mix on to a lightly floured surface, divide in two and roll into long sausages. Cut the dough into 2½-3cm-long pieces, then arrange on a floured tray. Press a fork into the tops to give the gnocchi lines and extra surface area, if you wish.
To cook the gnocchi, bring a large pan of salted water to a boil. Put the butter, olive oil, sage and smashed garlic in a large frying pan on a medium heat, and fry until the butter starts to turn lightly golden and nutty and the leaves go crisp. Take off the heat.
Drop the gnocchi into the boiling water and cook until they float to the surface – that’s when you know they are ready. Using a spider or slotted spoon, lift the cooked gnocchi into the butter pan, along with a little of their cooking water, and toss with half the grated parmesan and a squeeze of lemon until they’re all coated in the glossy, buttery sauce (add more of the cooking water as needed).
Serve topped with the extra grated parmesan and more black pepper.
