Gnocchi with cherry tomato and Italian sausage

"This is the world's easiest, vaguely fancy pasta sauce. At least according to my kids. It's the fresh tomatoes and the fresh potatoes through which I'm going to confess my deep personal relationship with the farm."

Gnocchi with cherry tomato and Italian sausage Credit: Adam Liaw

• serves

  4

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  20 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 800 g Sebago potatoes (about 4), peeled and quartered
• sea salt and black pepper, to taste
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 35 g (⅓ cup) finely grated parmesan
• 300 g (2 cups) plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• shaved parmesan, to serve

Sauce

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 250 g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 4 Italian sausages, casings removed
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• pinch caster sugar
• ½ cup basil leaves

Instructions

1. Place enough water in the base of a steamer to reach a depth of 3 cm. Bring to the boil over high heat. Place the potato in a metal steaming basket, then over the top of the boiling water (making sure the base of the steamer doesn't touch the water). Cover and steam for 15 minutes or until tender. (It's best to steam rather than boil the potato. Boiling can saturate potatoes with water, which will increase the amount of flour required and result in heavier gnocchi.) Transfer to a bowl and use a potato masher to mash until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add the egg and stir with a wooden spoon until combined. Add the parmesan and half the flour and stir until combined. Add the remaining flour, in 2 more batches and stir until well combined and a firm dough forms. (If the dough is too soft, add more flour.) Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth.
3. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions. Roll 1 portion into a 2 cm - diameter log about 30 cm long. Use a lightly floured knife to cut the log into 2 cm pieces. Repeat with the remaining dough portions.
4. Lightly flour your hands and roll each piece of dough into a ball. Use your thumb to roll each ball over a floured fork, placing on the lined tray as you go.
5. Meanwhile, for the sauce, heat the oil in a large non - stick frying pan over medium - high heat. Add cherry tomatoes and cook for 1 minute, then crumble in the sausage meat and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon to break up any lumps, for 5 minutes or until light brown all over. Add the garlic and tomato paste and stir for 30 seconds. Add the balsamic vinegar, sugar and 50 ml water and cook, stirring until thickened. Season to taste, then stir in the basil leaves.
6. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Add one quarter of the gnocchi (dropping them onto the base of pan in a single layer, but don't overcrowd them as they can stick together) and cook for 3 minutes or until they rise to the surface. Use a slotted spoon to drain and transfer to a bowl. Cover with foil to keep warm. Repeat, in 3 more batches with the remaining gnocchi. Add the gnocchi to the sauce and stir gently until well coated. Serve scattered with shaved parmesan.

 

Photography by Adam Liaw.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.