Soft, doughy gnocchi is a real Italian classic. Making your own is easier than you think – our simple gnocchi recipe shows you how to transform Desiree potatoes into moreish mini dumplings served in a gorgeous sage-infused butter.
Preheat the oven to gas 7, 220°C, fan 200°C. Prick 1kg of Desiree potatoes all over with a fork. Arrange in an oven tray and cook for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes or until cooked through. Remove from the oven, halve and scoop the flesh into a bowl.
Put the cooked potato though a ricer to mash it finely. If you don’t have a ricer, a sieve will do the trick – just make sure the mash is very smooth.
While the mash is still warm, stir in 4 large egg yolks, ½ grated nutmeg and a good pinch of salt. Add 100g plain flour and mix well to form a dough. Tip the dough onto a floured surface, slice a piece off and roll into a 2cm thick long log.
Cut the log into 2cm pieces and roll each piece over the back of a fork. Put the gnocchi onto a floured tray. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, melt 125g butter along with 1 tbsp olive oil. Pick the leaves from 25g sage. When the butter is foaming, toss in the sage leaves and cook for 1-2 minutes or until the leaves crisp up. Using a slotted spoon, remove them from the butter and set aside. Keep the butter on a low heat.
Add a pinch of salt to the pan of water. Once boiling, carefully drop in half the gnocchi. When they begin to rise to the surface, scoop them up with a slotted spoon and add them to the melted butter. Don't worry about introducing pasta water as this will help the butter sauce emulsify. Repeat with the remaining gnocchi.
When all the gnocchi is in the pan, increase the heat to medium and toss the gnocchi well to coat. Grate 40g of Parmesan. Add half to the pan, along with the sage leaves. If you need a little more sauce, simply add a small ladle of pasta water to loosen.
Spoon the gnocchi into 4 bowls and top with the remaining Parmesan.
We've made a handy shopping list so you can get everything you need to make this comforting dinner. Don't forget to screenshot before you go shopping!
Désirée potatoes4 large egg yolks1/2 grated nutmegsalt100g plain flour125g butter1 tbsp olive oil25g sage740g parmesan
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