Potato Gnocchi with Blue Cheese Sauce

I had been wanting to make my own gnocchi for a long time, but kept putting it off as Philip is really the only person that eats it. I do on occasions, but it wouldn't be the first thing I think of when wanting a meal. Still, I thought it would be great to make my own and yesterday was the day. It started out brilliantly.

Ingredients

1kg all purpose potatoes
30g butter
250 plain flour
2 eggs, beaten

1) Peel the potatoes, chop roughly until very tender. Drain and mash until smooth. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the butterand flour, then beat in the eggs. Leave to cool.

2) Turn the gnocchi mixture out onto a floured surface and divide into four. Roll each into a sausage shape.

3) Cut into short pieces and press each piece with the back of a fork. Cook the gnocchi in batches in a large saucepan of boiling salted water for about 2 minutes or until they rise to the surface. Using a slotted spoon drain the gnocchi and transfer to bowls.

Blue Cheese Sauce

Ingredients

50-75g blue cheese cut into smaller chunks (I used Castello)
150ml cream (light or full fat)

In a non stick pan heat the blue cheese until it melts add cream and simmer until it thickens. Pour sauce over gnocchi .

In theory, it all sounds so simple, except the gnocchi is so sticky that it's just an awful thing to deal with. They were also very big and didn't really hold their shape, it didn't really look the way I had pictured it in my mind. I did think it tasted quite good though especially with the blue cheese sauce. I am not sure how Philip felt about it as I didn't ask and he didn't tell. I didn't get the same enthusiasm from him that I got for the vanilla slice, still, I didn't see any of his meal in the bin, I am hoping he ate it all.

I won't be making my own gnocchi again in a hurry, unless someone can tell me about a less sticky, more consistent method.


We shared a botte of Red Hill Estate Chardonnay, which was very nice.

I took the gnocchi recipe from Ready, Steady, Spaghetti Cooking for kids and with kids. And the blue cheese sauce was just one I looked up on the net.