Danny Corbett, The Point Group Executive Chef, shares his adored Gnocchi al Gorgonzola recipe for you to try this winter.

Savour the comforting flavours and delicate texture of homemade gnocchi with this recipe from The Dolphin Hotel. Whether you’re an experienced cook or a novice in the kitchen, this recipe will guide you through the art of crafting these Italian dumplings with precision and care.

“It took me a long to get gnocchi right. If it went wrong it was usually because I’d used the wrong potatoes and they just got too wet for the mix, so a nice dry floury potato is perfect. With gnocchi you can pre-cook and place in the fridge for later you just need to make sure they have a good amount of olive oil on them so they don’t stick.” – Danny Corbett, The Point Group Executive Chef

Ingredients

• Gnocchi
  3 large potatoes – Desiree or royal blues are best
  1 egg
  100g 00 pasta flour
  10g finely grated parmesan
  Sauce
  200ml cream
  100g Gorgonzola cheese
  1tbsp confit garlic or finely grated clove of garlic
  Table salt

Method

1. Turn your oven on to 180 degrees Celsius. On a baking tray sprinkle some salt on the base
   and place your whole potatoes unpeeled on top and bake for around 1 to 1.5 hours until they
   are roasted nicely.
2. Cut open the potatoes and scoop out the flesh while still hot. I do this in a tea towel with a fork
   so I don’t burn my hands. (Don’t throw out the skins they make an amazing snack and can be
   frozen and used later where I cover them in olive oil and bake them in the oven to get some sexy
   crispy potato chips!)
3. If you have a potato ricer use this to mash your potatoes if you don’t, very carefully mash
   them making sure not to make them all gluey and starchy.
4. Add the flour, egg and parmesan and fold the potato. The best way to do this is to fold the mix
   in half, over multiple times until all is combined don’t beat the mix or mash down as this will
   make the potato really starchy and very hard to handle.
5. Turn the potato mix out onto the bench with a little flour sprinkled on it to help the gnocchi mix
   not stick to the bench. Cut in half and begin to make a thin sausage-like shape of each half of
   the mix. Gently roll on the bench until a smooth cylinder is formed.
6. You can now with a knife cut the gnocchi mix into the desired length. I typically prefer larger
   gnocchi around an inch in length (2.5 cm) but you can cut them smaller, they will just cook a lot
   quicker in the water.
7. To cook them place a pot of water on to a simmer and season with a good pinch of salt.
8. Gently drop them into the simmering water. You’ll know when they are cooked as they float
   to the surface and that’s when you can carefully scoop them out with a slotted spoon.
9. The gnocchi are going to take 1 ½ to 2 minutes to cook so now’s the time to start your sauce.
10. In a pan with gentle heat add a small splash of olive oil and add your garlic. Once the
    aroma of the garlic is noticeable pour in your cream and bring to a gentle simmer. Flake off
    small chunks of the Gorgonzola cheese and whisk this into the sauce. Check the seasoning
    as Gorgonzola is typically salty so may not need much. This is also the time you can add
    more of the blue cheese if you like it much stronger in flavour but it should be a nice subtle
    flavour and not too overpowering.
11. The gnocchi should be ready and floating to the surface. Add to the sauce and simmer for a
    further 30 seconds to ensure the gnocchi is coated in the cream.
12. The gnocchi should be firm to the touch but melt in the mouth. Serve straight away.

Looking for dessert? Try Osteria Coogee’s famous Tiramisu recipe.