POTATO GNOCCHI

Good Evening to you,

When you travel by aeroplane, train or coach.  Which side do you sit on?

Do you like sitting by the window, or do you prefer a  seat by the aisle?

I just wondered, because I always sit in the window seat.  I'm not sure why, it is just the way it is.  

When we fly, I sit by the window, when we travel by coach, I sit by the window, also when we travel by train. As I said, I'm really not sure why, but since being married, that is the way it has always been. I think maybe it is because George is a 'ladies first' type of man, as he always puts me first when we board a plane, train or coach.

.... and this is exactly what happened, when we holidayed a few years ago in Sorrento, Italy.  We arrived at Naples Airport, and were taken, by coach, to our hotel in Sorrento.  

The Amalfi Coast is one of the prettiest coastlines I have ever seen, but I am being honest, when I tell you, that I did not  enjoy the first part of the coach journey to our hotel. The reason is, I am terrified of heights and I should have known better,  I really should not have sat myself, in the seat by the window.

If you have visited the Amalfi coast, you will know that the roads are very narrow. I appreciate we had a very skilled driver, who drove the same route everyday, but he did seem to be travelling very fast along the road. On top of that, I could see straight down the side of the cliffs to the water below, which made me very nervous. So as you can imagine, it did not take me long before I swopped seats with George. I felt much better looking outwards towards the sea, rather than downwards.

The reason I am telling you this little tale is, during our visit to Sorrento, it was the first time I came across Potato Gnocchi.  It was not like the pre-packed gnocchi which I had tried, which I really did not like. No, the gnocchi in Sorrento were like gorgeous soft little dumplings and absolutely fabulous. So on my return home, I set about learning how to make them.

So, today I am making,

potato gnocchi.  This recipe will be in two parts.  The first part will be made today, and that will be the potato gnocchi and the second part which will be made on Sunday, will be the tomato sauce.  The reason I have decided to split this dish into two parts is, if I included both recipes today, the post would be far too long and I feel sure you would fall asleep before you reached the end.

So it's on with the pinnie and the music I am listening to is,

Barbara Streisand's 1980 album, Guilty. I have to tell you, there is not one song on this album which I do not love, but I will name a few, of which, I just know, if you are a Barbara Streisand fan, you will also know and love each and every song.  I love, 'What Kind of Fool', 'Woman in Love' and 'Guilty'..... and how about 'Memories'. Although 'Memories' is not included on this album, I had to mention it, because it is a fabulous song.

I have recently heard a couple of tracks from Barbara's new duets album and I have to tell you, I like what I hear.

So whilst 'Promises' is playing, I will organise my ingredients.

INGREDIENTS

TO 

MAKE

POTATO GNOCCHI

500g of peeled floury potatoes

150g of plain flour

2 egg yolks

pinch of nutmeg

pinch of salt

pinch of pepper

Peel the potatoes

and cut into small pieces.

Bring a saucepan of salted

water to the boil

and 

add the potatoes.

Cook until tender.

Drain the water

and mash the potatoes

until they are smooth.

Place the mashed potato

into a bowl

and

add

the flour,

the egg yolks,

oops as you can see, 

one egg yolk broke, but I

 still photographed it, as I did not want to 

waste the yolk,

remember this is home cooking.

Add the grated nutmeg

to the bowl

and

sea salt

and

black pepper.

Mix the ingredients,

until everything comes together.

Before rolling out the potato gnocchi,

bring a saucepan of water

to a rolling boil,

ready to receive the potato gnocchi.

Place the mixture

onto a floured board

and if the mixture is a little too sticky,

add a little more flour.

Cut the potato mixture

into four pieces.

I find the smaller pieces easier to handle.

Using your hands, gently roll out each

piece of potato mixture,

so it looks like a sausage.

Have you ever seen a child rolling out

plasticine or play dough.... that is the technique

you need to use.

Next,

cut into 1 inch pieces

and

place into the saucepan of boiling water.

Add, just a few gnocchi at a time.

When the gnocchi rise to the surface

of the water, they are cooked.  

This usually

only takes a couple of minutes.

Remove using a slotted spoon,

making sure you drain any water.

Place the cooked gnocchi onto an oiled

plate.

This prevents the gnocchi sticking to the plate.

Continue in this manner

until all the gnocchi are cooked.

Now, I appreciate the potato gnocchi 

do not look colourful,

but they are tasty 

and

when 

combined with a

deliciously, rich

tomato sauce

and

silky,

smooth

buffalo mozzarella.

You just know you are

in for a 

real

treat.

So you really do not have to wait too long before making this tomato sauce..... only a few days, and I will be back.  (I sound like Arnie from the film Terminator.)

I have also added potato gnocchi to soups.  Just before the soup is ready to serve, I cook the potato gnocchi, then add them to the soup.... a nice alternative to dumplings.

So take care and I will see you on Sunday.

This week I will be joining,

Miz Helen's Country Cottage for Full Plate Thursday

and

Natasha In Oz for Say G'Day Saturday