Parmesan Gnocchi with Creamy Tomato, Mascarpone and Spinach Sauce

 A recipe PERFECT for these freezing winter months, and good hearty dish that will impress anyone once you've told them you made it from scratch! Serves 4.

Ingredients

For the Gnocchi:

 50g Parmesan, Grated

1kg Starchy Potatoes (eg Desiree)

350g 00 Flour, plus extra

For the Sauce:

400g Tin of Chopped Tomatoes

120g Mascarpone

20g Full Fat Cream Cheese

1tbsp Olive Oil

2 Garlic Cloves, Chopped

200g Baby Spinach

Handful of Basil Leaves

Pinch Oregano

Grated/Shaved Parmesan, to serve

Butter, to pan fry the gnocchi

Method

1. Boil the potatoes with the skins ON until soft when a knife is put in it, can be 10-30 minutes depending on the size and type of potato. Once boiled, peel them and mash thoroughly - making sure there is no lumps. This is most efficiently done with a potato ricer. Leave to cool by spreading out on a kitchen worktop.

2. Meanwhile the potatoes are boiling and cooling, make the sauce. Start by heating the oil in a medium saucepan, and frying the garlic until golden. Next, (and do it quickly to avoid splattering oil) pour the tomatoes in, turn down the heat, and let simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients, season, and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring regularly. 

3. Back to the gnocchi, and the flour and parmesan bit by bit, working it into a cohesive dough. This might take a while, so be patient and keep working it in. Flour your worktop, and make long sausage shapes out of the dough, about 1"-1.5" thickness. Line them up, and cut squares, or 'pillows' out of them, and place aside separately on floured worktop. 

4. To get the true, italian gnocchi, you need to shape it to get those great ridges on them. You can do this either with the back of a fork, or a gnocchi board, as in the picture. With either of them, flatten the pillow against the ridges or prongs, and pick up one and curl it around. I know these aren't the clearest of instructions, but in the end it just takes practise. Again, place the shaped gnocchi separate from each other on a floured surface. 

5. Start heating the sauce, and fill a large saucepan with water, and heat it until boiling. Turn down the heat, and with a sieve, lower the gnocchi into the water. It will float up when its ready, so take out the finished ones with a slotted spoon, and place into a bowl. Heat up some butter in a frying pan, and pan fry a serving at a time of gnocchi until very lightly browned, place into a bowl, and top with sauce. 

Enjoy :)

Jam Doughnuts

It's the holiday season, so I decided to add a suitable recipe. Contrary to popular belief, these can be made without a deep fat fryer, all you need is a deep pan, a candy thermometer, and 2 bottles of vegetable oil, and hey presto you have a deep fryer. These taste incredible, though make 20, so feel free to halve the quantities. 

 

 Ingredients

500g Strong White Bread Flour

50g Caster Sugar

40g Unsalted Butter, Very Soft

14g Dry Instant Yeast

10g Salt

2 Large Eggs, at Room Temperature, Beaten

150ml Lukewarm Milk

130ml Lukewarm Water

1 Jar Strawberry Jam

Caster Sugar, For Rolling

2 Large Bottles Vegetable Oil, For Frying

Essential Equipment

Slotted Spoon

Fillable Squeezy Bottle or Piping Bag

If you don't have a deep fat fryer:

Deep Saucepan

Sugar Thermometer/Probe

Method

1. Put the flour, sugar, butter, yeast, salt, eggs, milk, and 100ml of the water into a large mixing bowl, and with your hands, combine to form a firm but not hard or dry dough. 

2.Slowly add the rest of the water, working it into the dough, then gently work the dough for 4 minutes in the bowl - or use the dough hook on a free-standing mixer at a low speed. The dough should be soft and start to get a bit stretchy but not sticky.

3. If using an electric mixer with a dough hook, put it on a medium low speed for 10 minutes, otherwise turn the dough on lightly floured work surface and knead for 10 minutes to make a very smooth and quite elastic dough. Clean and lightly oil the mixing bowl and place the dough into it, and cover with a damp tea towel. Leave to rise at room temperature for an hour.

4. Once risen, whilst the dough is still in the bowl, give it a light punch, or 'knock back', turn onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 20 equal balls. Place them onto lightly floured trays, slightly spaced out, and leave to rise for another hour.

5. Toward the end of the rising time, heat the oil in a deep fryer or deep saucepan to 180C. Once risen, if the doughnuts have slightly flattened, roll them into balls before carefully dropping a few at a time into the oil. Leave to go golden brown on one side before turning. It will only take around 3-5 to brown, so pay attention to them.

6. As soon as one is done, take it out with a slotted spoon to remove excess oil, and immediately roll in caster sugar. Leave to cool completely.

7. Whilst waiting for them to cool, sieve the jam to remove seeds and lumps, and place into a squeezy bottle or piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle. Once cooled, make a deep cut using a small knife in each of the doughnuts and fill with jam.

Enjoy :)