Gluten-free Gnocchi with Pesto
Gluten-free Gnocchi with Pesto
Gnocchi is one of those comforting dishes that is at once simple, but which also requires a measure of technique easily acquired once you are shown how to make them, and also through the repetition of making them a few times.
My recipe is gluten-free and can easily be scaled up so that you can make a bigger batch and preserve any extra gnocchi by freezing them.*
Ingredients:
8 oz. russet potato, boil with skin on until very soft, cool and peel the skin
3 oz. gluten-free flour blend, such as Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour
(which ever gluten-free brand you use, make sure that it has xanthan gum in the mix)
1 whole egg, lightly whisked
1/2 teaspoon sea salt, or Omnivore Salt
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (to coat after cooking)
Yields: 2 - 3 servings
Serve with pesto, your favorite pasta sauce, or just olive oil and fresh herbs.
(Watch step-by-step video at the end of this post.)
Light dust a clean surface area with a few pinches of the flour.
Rough chop the peeled potato and run it through a rice mill onto the floured surface.
Add in about 1/3 cup of the flour, and mix that into the riced potato.
Repeat with another 1/3 cup, and add in the salt.At this point, you should have a somewhat crumbly dough.
Next, pour the whisked egg over the mixture, and use both hands to form a moist dough, adding in more flour as needed to achieve a texture that is moist, but does not stick to your hands.
Stop when you reach that point, even if you still have some flour left.Shape your gnocchi dough into a round disc about 5 - 6 inches in diameter.
Cut into four even pieces.Dust a little more flour onto your work surface.
Take each portion, and roll that into a thin log, about 9 - 10” long.
Then, cut each log into one-inch pieces across the length of the log.Using the tines of a fork, gently press into each gnocchi to make a simple design.
Bring a large pot of water to full boil with plenty of salt, and gently add in the gnocchi. Allow them to float to the surface, and let them simmer for another 45 seconds or so.
Gently lift them out with a strainer, and quickly run cold water over them.
Then shake the strainer a few times to remove excess water.Transfer gnocchi into a bowl, and drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil to coat.
Then mix with pesto, or any sauce that you like to serve with them.
*If you want to freeze the gnocchi, place the uncooked pieces on a tray and put into the freezer for about an hour until they are solid. Then lightly dust them with flour, and store them in a zip-lock freezer bag.