This pillowy soft, homemade Potato Gnocchi recipe is surprisingly easy to make, and it's fun for the whole family. Top it with creamy Sun-dried Tomato Sauce or Easy Tomato Sauce for a meal everyone will love.
What are gnocchi?
Gnocchi is a simple "pasta" made from potatoes, and it is one of my favorite things to make. I learned how to make it from an old Italian couple that I worked with many years ago. This is the classic version, but we also love Sweet Potato Gnocchi.
How to pronounce gnocchi
When I first made gnocchi for Jackie, she adored it, but she always giggles at the way I pronounce the word. Jackie, my ever so beautiful documentarian (with a very endearing nerdy side) likes to pronounce it "NYOHK-KEE" with a certain Italian flair. I, on the other hand, Americanize my pronunciation: "NAW-KEE". However you choose to say it, this stuff is good.
Ingredients
- Potatoes: medium sized Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes work best
- Flour: we recommend AP flour for this recipe
- 1 Egg plus 1 Egg Yolk
- Garlic Powder
- Salt
- Pepper
see recipe card for quantities.
Why we love this recipe
Making homemade gnocchi may seem intimidating, but it is really quite simple. It is also a great project for the whole family. The dough is very easy to make, and the rolling and shaping of the pasta is simple enough that the kids can do it. You can spend some time making a large batch, and then freeze enough to make many, many meals. We love gnocchi every which way, but for this recipe, we created a rich, creamy sauce sweetened with sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil.
SERVE IT WITH: a fresh Arugula Salad and some homemade Focaccia.
Sauces for gnocchi
Instructions
For the Potato Gnocchi:
- Have large pot of salted water on stove heating to a boil.
- Peel and cut potatoes into 1" pieces
- Cook until fork tender
- Drain and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes
- Run potatoes through a ricer or mix with beater until resembling mashed potatoes
- Allow to cool until cool to the touch (can be refrigerated)
- Add 1 ½ cups flour to start. Add egg, egg yolk, garlic powder and salt and pepper to taste.
- Mix until dough forms
- Convert dough to counter dusted with flour and knead dough until smooth and not sticky (you may have to add flour).
- Cut off small portions and roll out to form ½ inch rope.
- Cut into ½" pieces
- Continue until all dough is cut
Form the gnocchi:
- Using a fork, take each piece of dough and roll the dough down the fork while pressing in with your finger to "hollow the inside".
- Continue until all dough is rolled.
- At this point arrange all gnocchi on a baking sheets.
- (You can freeze at this point and when frozen, transfer to ziplock bags and store for up to 6 months in the freezer)
Cook the gnocchi:
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Add gnocchi about a cup at a time.
- Allow to cook until they float to the top
- Remove with slotted spoon and place in large bowl
- Continue until you have cooked all the pasta
FAQ
We like russet potatoes best. Yukon Gold potatoes also work.
Good quality AP flour is the best flour to use for this recipe.
Once added to boiling water, it only takes a few minutes. Just watch for them to float to the top to let you know that they are cooked!
Storage
- Freeze UNCOOKED GNOCCHI: arrange gnocchi on a baking sheets. Cover with plastic wrap. When frozen, transfer them to airtight containers and freeze for up to 6 months.
- Refrigerate COOKED GNOCCHI: store in an airtight container in refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Reheat in a sauté pan or in the microwave.
Potato Gnocchi recipe
This pillowy soft, homemade Potato Gnocchi recipe is surprisingly easy to make, and it's fun for the whole family.
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
Ingredients
For the Gnocchi:
- 4 medium potatoes
- 1 ½ - 2 cups flour
- 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- Salt
- Pepper
For the sauce:
- 4 tbsp butter
- 4 tbsp flour
- 1- 1 ½ cup milk
- ½ c grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ¼ c diced sundried tomatoes
- 8-10 basil leaves
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
For the Gnocchi:
- Have large pot of salted water on stove heating to a boil.
- Peel and cut potatoes into 1" pieces
- Cook until fork tender
- Drain and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes
- Run potatoes through a ricer or mix with beater until resembling mashed potatoes
- Allow to cool until cool to the touch (can be refrigerated)
- Add 1 ½ cups flour to start. Add egg, egg yolk, garlic powder and salt and pepper to taste.
- Mix until dough forms
- Convert dough to counter dusted with flour and knead dough until smooth and not sticky (you may have to add flour).
- Cut off small portions and roll out to form ½ inch rope.
- Cut into ½" pieces
- Continue until all dough is cut
To form the gnocchi:
- Using a fork, take each piece of dough and roll the dough down the fork while pressing in with your finger to "hollow the inside".
- Continue until all dough is rolled.
- At this point arrange all gnocchi on a baking sheets.
- (You can freeze at this point and when frozen, transfer to ziplock bags and store for up to 6 months in the freezer)
To make the sauce:
- In a large sauté pan, melt the butter and mix in flour and cook over medium heat for 3 mins, stirring often.
- Whisk in milk until flour and butter mixture is combined.
- Turn heat to medium-low and allow to thicken, whisking often.
- Once sauce reaches desired thickness turn off heat
- Add Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and sun-dried tomatoes and mix
- Add salt and pepper
- Dice fresh basil leaves and add to sauce and mix.
To Prepare the Dish:
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil
- Add gnocchi about a cup at a time.
- Allow to cook until they float to the top
- Remove with slotted spoon and place in large bowl
- Continue until you have cooked all the pasta
- To serve, simply spoon sauce onto the bottom of plate and add about 1 ½ cups cooked pasta on top of sauce and garnish with Parmesan cheese and serve
- Prep Time: 45 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Category: Entrée
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1.5 C
- Calories: 432
- Sugar: 5.2 g
- Sodium: 1159.2 mg
- Fat: 13.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 65.2 g
- Protein: 13.9 g
- Cholesterol: 68.4 mg
Keywords: gnocchi, potato, pasta, homemade, vegetarian, tomato, sun-dried, alfredo, sauce
Whitney M says
You must know that this recipe is superb! It even tastes awesome the next day. Making gnocchi is a mess but well worth it. Have you ever pan-fried it after boiling it? If not you should try it 🙂 Anyway, this recipe is perfect as is, but I had mushrooms on hand and added those as well!