The Local Italian - Nonna's Gnocci gets a West Coast Twist

Passport & Plate - The Local Italian

Canada | Friday, March 14, 2014 | 5 photos

Ingredients
Gnocchi:

1 Russet Potato
1/3 egg - beaten
salt, white pepper, nutmeg - to taste
flour - as needed

Granny Smith Apple and Blue Cheese Béchamel:

1 T butter
1 T flour
3/4 cups milk

few large spinach leaves - sliced thin
2-3 T blue cheese
1/2 granny smith apple
salt, white pepper, nutmeg - to taste

 

How to prepare this recipe
Gnocchi:

Simmer potato in skin until tender. Peel and rice (or grate). Add egg while potato is still a bit warm. Then add the seasonings and the flour. Mix and knead it until a dough forms. Add flour a little bit at a time as to not add too much. Roll dough into a long snake shape and slice off 1” pieces. Shape your gnocchi pillows however you wish then drop gnocchi into boiling water until they float. Usually 2-3 minutes. Remove, drain, and toss in olive oil. Pan fry in hot pan to brown sides before serving.


Sauce:

Make roux with butter and flour. Slowly incorporate milk on low heat. Once sauce is nappier add the apples, blue cheese and apple. Season. Incorporate all ingredients and then drizzle over pan fried gnocci.

 

The story behind this recipe
I chose this recipe because it was one of my proudest moments in culinary school. The school was started by an Italian and a French man. Both chefs were very proud of their heritage cuisines and taught us with great passion and fervor. When Italy week arrived everyone was excited. We were not only excited for the amazing food we were going to create – but we were excited for the stories that we knew were coming from Chef Tony. Italy week taught me to not only love simple and rustic recipes, but also made me yearn for and want to emulate the Italians ideals and cultures surrounding food and family. At the end of every week we would have a menu development using the ingredients and techniques we used in the preceding week. I decided I wanted to make a gnocchi dish and highlight some local ingredients that I know and love. I wanted to give this comfort food a twist so I decided on tart granny smith apples and tangy blue cheese as the flavor profile. I also added some local spinach for color and to add some extra iron as it is a vegetarian dish. On menu development day it is impossible for all the chefs to taste everyone’s dish and they generally would only have one bite and move on to the next. Chef Tony was the first instructor to taste my gnocchi. He stayed for at least three bites and sat and told me how the gnocchi was a perfect pillow texture and how much love his Nonna put into her gnocchi and how he could tell how much love I put into mine. A few minutes later one of the other instructors came to taste my dish - he left then came back a few minutes later to have another bite. He loved the sauce and asked me how I made it. To make a dish that received such high praise from my chefs was truly an honor and to win this contest and be sent to Italy to further my Italian cooking skills would truly honor my chefs and myself.