Gnocchi with Asparagus, Butter, and Parmesan
As we are spending a lot of time in our homes lately, I am trying recipes I would never have attempted before. Gnocchi is one of them. I find that most times when I order this dish out, the gnocchi is doughy and heavy. I don’t care for that gummy texture, so I usually avoid it. That being said, I’ve been home for weeks and I wanted to experiment so I tried this recipe. Not only is it easy to do, surprisingly, but the result is soft little pillows that are delicious with this brown butter sauce. The dough is delicate, but also comes together very easily. The only issue is that you need a potato ricer to get the right texture from the potatoes. I use one when I make mashed potatoes, so this wasn’t an issue here, but you may need to invest in one. Scroll to the bottom of the page to see our YouTube videos on making Gnocchi.
Tips:
You can prepare the gnocchi 2-3 hours ahead of time. Just toss more flour on the baking sheets until you are ready to use them.
If you want to prepare the gnocchi more than 3 hours ahead of time you will need to freeze them. Arrange the gnocchi in a single layer on the baking sheet and place the entire sheet in the freezer until they are frozen solid. Once frozen you can store them in freezer bags. To cook frozen gnocchi, add another minute to the cooking time and cook in small batches since the frozen pasta will lower the water temperature.
To keep this dish easier, I skipped using a fork, giving them that traditional ridged shape. If you want to be fancier give it a try.
Gnocchi are so delicate the sauce should also be delicate, which is why you often see it with a butter sauce, but you can serve it with whatever you like.
Gnocchi with Asparagus, Butter, and Parmesan
Originally from Bon Appétit
Makes 4 servings
PREP 90 minutes
COOK 2 minutes
INGREDIENTS
2½ pounds russet potatoes (about 4 large), scrubbed
1¼ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more
1 egg, beaten to blend
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
1 bunch of asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1” pieces
2 ounces Parmesan, finely grated, plus more for serving
24 sage leaves
Freshly ground black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
Cook potatoes in a large pot of boiling water over medium-high heat until tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, 40–45 minutes; drain. As soon as potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel and pass through a potato ricer into a large bowl (if left to cool before ricing, potatoes will become gummy). Let cool.
Sprinkle 1¼ cups flour and 2 tsp. salt over potatoes and, using your hands, make a well in the center. Pour egg into the well and stir in with a wooden spoon. Turn out dough onto a floured surface and gently knead, dusting with more flour as needed, until smooth but not elastic (be careful not to overwork), about 2 minutes. Divide dough into 8 pieces. Roll each piece into a 24"-long rope about ½" thick. Cut into ½" pieces, dust with flour, and arrange in a single layer on a lightly floured rimmed baking sheet.
Boil a large pot of salted water. Add the asparagus and cook for 1 minute, just to get the rawness out. Immediately remove the asparagus to a boil of ice water. Once cooled, drain the asparagus onto paper towel to dry. Do not pour out the boiling water. You will use this to cook the gnocchi!
In a large sauté pan over a medium heat melt the butter. Add the sage. Once the butter stops foaming you will start to see solids start to brown on the bottom on the pan. Using a rubber scraper, stir the solids, watching that they don’t burn, but rather brown nicely. Turn off the heat once you get to this stage.
Working in batches, cook gnocchi in large pot of boiling salted water until they float to the surface, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, gently place on top of butter mixture as you go. Try to keep the gnocchi in a single layer. Make this in batches if you need to.
Once all gnocchi are cooked, add ½ cup cooking liquid, the Parmesan and the asparagus and gently toss everything together, adding more cooking liquid as needed, until the cheese is melted and a creamy sauce forms.
Serve gnocchi topped with pepper and Parmesan.