Baking Potatoes
It’s important to clean your potatoes. Scrub, wash and remove all dirt before cooking. Rinse and scrub potatoes with cool water
Dry potatoes with a paper towel. Using a fork, prick wholes on all sides of the potatoes.
Pricking wholes will allow the potato to vent steam during the baking process
and not allow the potato to brake apart or explode unexpectedly.
Time to Bake - Wrap cleaned potato in paper towel. Lay a paper towel on a flat surface.
Lay the potato on the top corner and roll the potato in the towel forming a pouch.
Tuck in bottom to complete package. Place potatoes into microwave.
Bake as indicated by your manufacturer for baking potatoes. (average is 5 to 6 minutes)
(NOTE: You can bake potatoes in many different ways. Oven, Toaster oven or microwave.
The quickest is the microwave and does a nice job baking potatoes to make gnocchi.)
Remove the baked potato from the microwave. Unwrap from paper towel and allow to cool for 15 minutes. (you do not want to handle hot potatoes as they can burn your skin). After they have cooled and can be easily handled. Cut the potatoes in half longwise
Use a spoon and scoop out the potato from the skin. The next step is to make your potatoes as light and airy as possible.
Using a ricer – a ricer will make light and airy potatoes. Place the potato in the top of the ricer
Squeeze down on the handle to get a small rice like consistency
(you can also use a fork and shred the potatoes or use a mixer by breaking up the potato
and running the mixer on low for a couple of minutes.)
Place the light airy potato in a large bowl and set aside.
Making gnocchi dough - Using a standup style mixer with a paddle attachment, place your dry ingredients into the mixer bowl
Flour, Parmesan Cheese, Nutmeg and Sea Salt and run the mixer for one minute to combine dry ingredients.
Stop the mixer and add your potatoes. Now here is the important part, run your mixer on low to combine ingredients 4 to 5 minutes without stopping until the dough forms. The mix will look dry at first and will not combine very well. This is to be expected.
Once you run the mixer long enough 4 to 5 minutes the dough will come together. Take your time.
Place a small of flour on a flat surface. Place dough on flour and kneed a few time to form a ball. Cover with a towel and set aside for 15 minutes till needed.
Preparing The Asparagus - Rinse the asparagus with cool water then pat dry with paper towel. The woody root needs to be snapped off. Take the end of the asparagus between your thumb and forefinger in both hands. Bend until it breaks. Continue until all of the asparagus are done. Using a large knife cut the asparagus into 1 inch bite size pieces.
Chop ½ small red onion. Mince 2 cloves of garlic
Place a large saute pan on the stove and add 1 ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil, a pinch of red pepper flakes and heat to medium low.
Place red onion in heated oil. Sauce for 4 minutes until soft then add minced garlic and cook 1 minute more.
Place cut asparagus into pan and stir to combine. Add a pinch of no salt seasoning . A pinch of ground black pepper. Cover with lid and cook on low for 10 minutes.
Add plum tomatoes to the cooked asparagus and a half can of water to the pan. Add ¼ tsp of sea salt to the tomatoes in the pan
¼ tsp no salt seasoning and using a wooden spoon lightly stir the tomatoes in the pan. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add a ¼ tsp of dried basil and dried oregano, ½ tsp of dried parsley then stir to combine. Add 1 Tbsp brown sugar – stir and simmer for 10 minutes more.
Place a small of flour on a flat surface and kneed the dough ball for a minute to start. Shape into an oblong roll.
Cut into four even pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a rope (about 3/4 in. diameter and 18 in long)
Do the same for remaining pieces. Line all 4 dough ropes together and cut ropes into one inch pieces.
Using an gnocchi paddle or the back side of a fork Slide each gnocchi gently over the paddle or the fork to grove each piece separately.
Place a pot with 6 quarts of water on the stove. Bring to a boil. Place gnocchi into boiling water
(NOTE: Be careful. Do not drop the gnocchi into the pot. Slide them in gently so that you do not get burned.)
Bring the water back to a boil and stir gently. Gnocchi will be done when the first ones float to the top of the pot.
Remove all of the them at this point. Using a wire mesh scoop or spoon. Remove the gnocchi and place them
directly into the sauce. Allow a small amount of the pasta water to go into the sauce with the gnocchi.
Gently stir to cover the gnocchi with the sauce. Simmer for 3 to 4 minutes to combine sauce and gnocchi.
Serve with your favorite red wine and enjoy…
