Fresh gnocchi are the basis of many a filling meal and go well with all manner of sauces, including this week's vegetarian concoction.
It's important that they're made from dry potato flesh, so don't make the mistake of boiling the tatties.
Parmesan gnocchi with wild mushrooms and pumpkin
Serves 4
500g mixed wild mushrooms
500g pumpkin
200ml olive oil
2 garlic cloves
2 shallots
100g butter
200ml double cream
Gnocchi
600g potatoes, Maris Piper or Golden Wonder
75g 00 pasta flour, sifted
50g parmesan, finely grated
30g beaten egg
10g salt
Wash the mushrooms and cut them into bite-sized pieces.
Set the oven to 200C/gas mark 6. To make the gnocchi, bake the potatoes in the oven for about 1 hour until very soft. Once cooked, remove them from the oven and cut them in half. Weigh out 300g of flesh, let the potatoes cool for 2 minutes then push the flesh through a fine sieve into a mixing bowl.
Next, add the sifted flour to the potatoes along with the egg and parmesan, season lightly and bring the mixture together using a fork.
Knead the mixture lightly by hand to form soft dough. Now transfer the mixture to a lightly floured surface, flour your hands and divide the dough into quarters. Roll each quarter into a cylinder approximately 1cm in diameter then cut it into 2.5cm-long pieces, placing them on a tray or a plate as they are cut.
With the prongs facing upwards, press a fork on to one side of each gnocchi, so that it leaves a row of ridges, then ease the gnocchi into crescent shapes (the ridges will help absorb the sauce). Cover and chill the gnocchi until you are ready to cook them.
Set the oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Peel and dice the pumpkin into 2cm cubes. Heat a large pan and add half of the olive oil to it. Add the pumpkin to the pan, season well then colour the cubes lightly on all sides before placing them in the oven for 10 minutes to cook through.
While the pumpkin is cooking, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil.
Heat a separate saute pan. Finely chop the garlic and shallots and add the butter to the pan. Once the butter has melted add the shallots and garlic and cook gently without colouring. Next add the mushrooms, season well then turn up the heat. Once the mushrooms are soft and lightly coloured add the cream, bring it to the boil then set aside and keep warm.
Drop the gnocchi into the boiling salted water and cook until they float, then transfer them from the pan to a side plate and allow them to steam dry. Next heat a large saute pan, add the remaining olive oil and fry the gnocchi to add colour and give them a crisp coating.
Once the gnocchi are coloured add the pumpkin then the mushroom mix. Warm through, check the seasoning and serve.
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