I have made awesome gnocchi from the Italian cookbooks of Biba Caggiano. I have all her books, and *love* her restaurant in Sacramento. The key is to used baked potatoes. Here is the basic Potato Gnocchi from Trattoria Cooking:
Gnocchi de Patate
4 medium sized russet or Idaho potatoes (about 2 lbs)
1 tbsp salt
1 lg egg yolk, lightly beaten, or a whole beaten egg
1-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
Preheat the oven to 375°.
Wash and dry the potatoes. With a knife, make a long incision in the potatoes lengthwise, about 1/2" deep. Put the potatoes in the oven and bake until they are tender, 45-55 min.
When cool enough to handle, peel the potatoes and puree them through a food mill or a potato ricer, directly into a large bowl. Add the salt, egg yolk, and 1-1/2 cups of the flour. Mix it all together with your hands until the dough begins to stick together
Transfer the mixture to a wooden board and knead lightly, gradually adding the remaining flour if the dough sticks heavily to the board and to your hands. (The making of the dough should take no longer than 4-5 minutes). The dough is ready when it is soft, pliable, and just a bit sticky.
Cut the dough into pieces the size of an orange. Flour your hands lightly. Using both your hands, roll out each piece of dough with a light back-and-forth motion into a roll about the thickness of your thumb. Cut each roll into 1" pieces.
Hold a fork with its tines against your work board,the curved part away from you. Starting from the outside bottom of the curve, press each piece of dough with your index finger firmly upward along the length of the tines. Let the gnocchi fall back onto the surface. Roll out the remaining pieces of
dough. Place the gnocchi on a lightly floured platter or baking sheet.
They can be cooked immediately or be kept in the refrigerator uncovered for several hours or overnight, until ready to cook.
Makes 4 servings.
Katie H.
(9/9/04)
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