I’ll start this off by saying I’m sure you all had a lovely Christmas, I definitely did- filled with food & family, and gifts of course. But you’re here to read about the food part of that equation, and so I won’t keep you waiting…

My attempt to make Giulia’s gnocchi was to take place on Christmas Day. I planned on making the gnocchi and the sauce, as well as roast a chicken (a very simple roast chicken, like the one a la Giulia I made a while back). And my attempt was very successful. Not perfect, but very close, and successful.

Gnocchi, if you’re uninitiated to the wonders of it, is pronounced “nioki”, the ‘g’ is silent. And people who pronounce it never fail to crack me up… “I’ll have the guh-notch-y…” Here’s some interesting background on it from Wikipedia:

The word gnocchi means “lumps”, and may derive from nocchio, a knot in the wood, or from nocca (knuckle). It has been a traditional Italian pasta type of probably Middle Eastern origin since Roman times. It was introduced by the Roman Legions during the enormous expansion of the empire into the countries of the European continent. In the past 2000 years each country developed its own specific type of small dumplings, with the ancient Gnocchi as their common ancestor. In Roman times, gnocchi were made from a semolina porridge-like dough mixed with eggs, and are still found in similar forms today, particularly in Sardinia (where they do not contain egg, however, and are known as malloreddus). One variety, gnocchi di pane (literally bread noodles), is made from bread crumbs and is popular in Friuli and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. Another variety from Trentino-Alto Adige/Sudtirol is spinach gnocchi, called strangolapreti. This translates to “choke the priest.” The use of potato is a relatively recent innovation, occurring after the introduction of the potato to Europe in the 16th century.

I love potato gnocchi, and ever since I had first read I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti I’ve been wanting to make this recipe. And it didn’t disappoint. The sauce was incredible. I was only feeding four, but Jay and I have appetites like Ethiopian refugees, so I actually used two 28 oz. cans of whole tomatoes, but not the plain, the ones seasoned with basil. I doubled the salt and sugar but not the wine or the butter. WOW. A super simple sauce, but really tasty. Perfect with the gnocchi. I think it’ll definitely become my go-to sauce recipe. I think the added basil was a great touch. Thank you Giulia (and Marcella Hazan)! And actually, speaking of feeding four, I had plenty of sauce for more, especially since the gnocchi recipe didn’t make as much as I anticipated, or maybe I made mine too large. Woops. But that’s cool, because tonight we’re having homemade margherita pizza with the remainder of the sauce. Yum.

Now for the gnocchi, I used three russet potatoes instead of two, and added a ¼-½ cup of extra flour. Brianne told me when she made hers, she had a problem because she didn’t have a ricer or food mill, and that worried me because I don’t either (and I looked in a bunch of stores and couldn’t find a ricer, so boo to them). I Googled it, and read that using a sieve works too. So I figured if I made the potatoes just a tad softer by boiling them a bit longer, they’d be easier to push through the sieve and therefore less lumpy in the pasta. Also, I peeled them before I boiled them, thinking that without skin they’d get softer. It totally worked. Even without a ricer, the potatoes were so soft and mushy I just pushed them down with a fork and they were the perfect texture. Voila! I cooked them about 55 minutes, which was only 15-20 minutes longer than recommended. The pasta wasn’t too soggy at all, either.

The shape… well, that was a bit harder. Mine came out all kinds of different sizes and shapes, but always with the signature fork-print. Maybe if I’d taken my time, and wasn’t rushed or on a schedule, I could’ve made them more even.  Mine were more like little squares and rectangles. Next time, I would roll them into little balls and then use my thumb and a fork to make the little impressions. But who cares, really. They tasted awesome.

As far as the name of the recipe (see below), you’ll have to read the book to find out why it’s referred to as such. *smiles*

No- Nookie Gnocchi

• 2 russet potatoes
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• pinch freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 heaping cup flour, plus more for dusting
• salt
• freshly grated pepper
• freshly grated parmigiano

Put the potatoes in a pot with enough water to cover, bring to a boil, and cook, partially covered, until they are just tender, about 35-40 minutes. Remove the potatoes to a cutting board and peel with a paring knife as soon as you can stand to touch them, then run them through a potato ricer or food mill, spreading them out on a cutting board to cool completely.

Mix the egg, salt and nutmeg. Form the cooled potatoes into a mound and pour the egg mixture into it. Begin kneading the potato and egg mixture with your hands, adding the flour a little at a time, being careful not to overwork the dough.

When the flour is evenly combined with the potato and the dough is only a little sticky, divide it into 4 pieces.Roll each piece into a long, narrow tube like a garden snake and slice it crosswise into little soft pillows, each ½ inch wide. Rest each pillow on the tip of your thumb and impress it with the tines of a fork lightly dusted with flour, creating a ribbed surface for the sauce to cling to. Keep a bowl of flour nearby to dip the fork into, as it will become tacky- or better yet, keep some extra forks nearby.

Add the gnocchi about 10 at a time to a pot of salted boiling water. When they rise to the top, they’re done. Remove them to a serving bowl with a slotted spoon or spider and continue to cook in batches. Toss with the sauce and serve with grated parmigiano and freshly grated pepper.

Yield: about 6 dozen.

For the sauce:

(Adapted from Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking)

• 1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes
• ½ cup (1 stick) butter
• 1 medium onion, peeled and cut in half
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• ¼ cup red wine
• 1 teaspoon salt

Put all ingredients in a large saucepan over medium heat, bring to a simmer, then lower heat and cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove onion before tossing sauce with the gnocchi.

And to anyone who complains about making sauce, or says they can’t make homemade pasta- BASTA. It is not that difficult at all. If I can do it, you can do it too.