Ingredients
- Gnocchi:
- 2 each starchy potatoes
(2 large russets) - 8 each eggs, lightly beaten
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 3 cups pasta flour
- 2 cups ricotta cheese
- 4 cloves roasted garlic
- 4 cups Arrabbiata Sauce (recipe follows)
- Arrabbiata Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 6 ounces pancetta, thinly sliced, diced
- 1 each large onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons dried crushed red pepper flakes
- 5 cups fresh Intergrow tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced
- ˝ cup fresh basil
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Method
Gnocchi:
Fill a large pot with cold salted water.
Cut potatoes in half and place them in the pot. Bring the water to a boil and cook the potatoes until tender throughout.
Remove the potatoes from the water and peel each potato as soon as possible after removing from the water.
Push the potatoes through a ricer, or deconstruct them one at a time on the cutting board using the tines of a fork, don't over-mash and let the potatoes cool.
Form the potatoes into a soft mound and drizzle with the beaten egg, cheese and sprinkle 3/4 of the flour over the mixture.
Scrape underneath and fold, scrape and fold until the mixture is a light crumble.
Very gently knead the dough. You can also add more flour if the dough is too tacky.
Cut the dough it into 8 pieces. Gently roll each 1/8th of dough into a snake-shaped log, roughly the thickness of your pinky.
Use a knife to cut pieces every 3/4-inch. Dust with a bit more flour.
To shape the gnocchi hold a fork in one hand and place gnocchi against the tines of the fork, use your thumb and press in and down the length of the fork.
The gnocchi should curl into a slight "C" shape, set each gnocchi on a lightly floured tray.
Cook the gnocchi in batches by dropping them into the boiling water roughly twenty at a time. When they are done, they will pop back up to the top.
Use a slotted spoon to remove the gnocchi from the water-ten seconds or so after they've surfaced.
Have a large platter ready, coat with sauce and serve.
Arrabbiata Sauce:
Heat a large sauce pan with the olive oil over medium high heat.
Add the pancetta and cook until crisp. Add the onions to the pan. Sauté the onions slowly with the cooked pancetta. Be sure not to brown the onions. This should take about 10 minutes.
Add the garlic to the onions and cook for 30 seconds.
Add the red pepper flakes and tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes over medium low heat.
Finish the sauce with fresh basil and salt and pepper.
Tips on Tomatoes
- A good serrated knife is far superior to a flat-edged knife for slicing tomatoes. If you use a flat-edged knife, be certain it is very sharp or you will squash and bruise the tomato flesh when slicing.
- Do not use an aluminum pot, pan or utensil when cooking tomatoes. The acid in the tomato reacts unfavorably with the aluminum and can pit and discolor the aluminum cookware.
- The high acid content of tomatoes naturally slow down the cooking process of some other foods. For example, beans cooked with tomatoes may take up to twenty percent more cooking time than without.
- Plum tomatoes are best used for sauces. Globe, cherry, and grape tomatoes are best for eating raw, although all varieties are good.
- Herbs that marry well with tomatoes include basil, oregano, marjoram, pepper, dill weed, thyme, garlic, bay leaf, celery seed, sesame seed, tarragon, chives, and parsley. If you happen to be the unfortunate victim of the wrong end of a skunk, tomato juice will neutralize butyl mercaptan, the prime ingredient in the stinky defensive spray.
