Gnocchified

I'm way overdue for a blog post! I've been working a ton over the last few weeks so I really haven't had much time to cook anything let alone write about it. Tonight though I had the house to myself and out of missing my man and boredom I decided to cook something fairly challenging. Enter Ricotta Gnocchi in Brown Butter Sage Sauce that I tore out of the back of a recent issue of Us Weekly.

This was fun! And it didn't take too much time. The recipe is courtesy of chef Courtney Lapresi, a contestant on Fox's MasterChef. While I've never seen the show, I can tell you that this recipe was a winner!

You will need, for the gnocchi:

8oz of whole milk ricotta cheese
2 large eggs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for topping
1/2 tsp of salt
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for surface

For the sauce:

3oz pancetta, diced small
1/2 stick of unsalted butter
3-4 fresh sage leaves
1/2 cup of frozen peas, thawed
1 tbsp of fresh lemon zest
Salt and ground black pepper

To start, mix all of the ingredients for the gnocchi in a large bowl. Knead until just incorporated into a soft dough. Lapresi warns against kneading too much or you will end up with tough gnocchi. Mine had me concerned that it was too tacky, the opposite problem, but came out fine.

Lay a few pieces of wax paper on your countertop or table and coat with flour. Roll your dough into strips shaped like rectangles, being careful not to make them too thin. Slice them into 1 inch pieces with a floured butter knife.

Heat a large pot of salted water to a boil and add in your gnocchi in small batches after first indenting them with your thumb so that the sauce sticks later. Cook them for 2-3 minutes until they float to the surface, then remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Meanwhile, brown your pancetta over medium high heat, then add in the butter and sage leaves. Let simmer for a few minutes until brown. Next, drop the gnocchi in the sauce. Lightly brown on both sides and toss frequently. Add the peas and lemon zest and cook to heat through. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with Parmesan and top with more sage leaves for garnish.

I'll admit when I first dug in I was nervous to try these but they turned out really well! The flavor was good and the texture not too tough. I would definitely like to make these again and see if they turn out even better next time.