We are big on homemade pasta in this house, being half Italian and all. The Italian half was inspired to make some gnocchi just the weekend gone which in turn inspired the non Italian half, me, to make the gluten, rice and egg free equivalent. Not that I even like gnocchi as it's heavy and full of tats which aren't fried, but just the idea was so novel, one couldn't resist. And also, I couldn't pass up the opportunity for a direct comparison of normal vs my own fill-in-the-blanks free pasta! Short recipe to follow after the pictures, if required. I should really consult the Larousse to see if it tells a gnocchi story...hope to report back.
Anyway, looks wise, it was pretty easy to tell which were free friendly and which weren't: it's difficult to roll up dough which does not want to stick to itself but a little gentle primping by each of the fingersmiths within us should do it. Try not to pack it too hard together as it would lose all it's lusted for fluffiness. Which mine did, but the Italian half still gave it a thumbs up... I'm beginning to sense a bit of positive bias here, but hey I'm not complaining.
Bon appetito!
Normal gnocchi:
Free friendly ones
Recipe:
Weigh then boil /roast 1kg waxy potatoes whole (this is important if boiling as not to release too much starch from the tats) until tender. Remove skins and mash; I put mine into the kitchen aid and used the beater as if mixing a cake. Tilt it out and make a well. Add 300gm GF flour, and mix in 1 tablespoon xanthum gum and 1 tablespoon cornflour dissolved in 50ml water. Mix until well combined and form into small balls and try to roll these out into a very fat spaghetti, I would say the diameter of a 20p coin. Cut into 1cm pieces and roll each on the ridges of a fork to create....ridges. If it refuses to cooperate, break off dough the size of your thumb, cup them into your hands (hands at perpendicular angles) and form them into elongated balls. Cook or freeze! Remember to cook for a further ten seconds after the lil pillows float to the top.
