ROMAN GNOCCHI

Roman gnocchi are a typical first course of Lazio. It is very easy to prepare them, you don’t need particular manual skills to obtain these semolina disks. Once the gnocchi are made, just add some cheese and leave them au gratin in the oven, until a delicious crunchy crust is created.

This recipe is ideal for a family lunch and will also be greatly appreciated by the little ones.

INGREDIENTS:

250 g. Semolina flour.
1 L Milk.
100 g. Grated Parmesan cheese or Pecorino Romano .
30 g. Butter.
2 or 4 Egg yolks.
0.15 g. grated nutmeg.
7 g. Salt.

TO GRATINE:

30 g of butter.
Grated Parmiggiano reggiano cheese or Pecorino Romano .

PREPARATION:

Roman gnocchi are prepared in a few simple steps. Place the milk in a large saucepan and heat it together with the butter, salt and nutmeg ①.

When it comes to the first boil, reduce the heat and add the semolina and mix for a few minutes ②, with a whisk to avoid the formation of lumps, until it thickens and you have obtained a homogeneous mixture ③.

When the mixture begins to detach on the bottom, remove the pan from the heat and let it cool for 10 minutes, and then add the egg yolks ④ (you can put 2 or 4 egg yolks if you prefer), the grated Parmesan cheese several stages ⑤, and mix until blended ⑥.

Transfer the still hot mixture to a work surface ⑦, roll it out with a wet rolling pin ⑧,or with the help of a baking paper, which you place the dough on top, to ensure that it does not stick so as to obtain a surface 1/2” thick ⑨, and let it cool for 30 minutes.

When the dough has cooled, it will be easier to work with ⑩.

With a circular cookie cutter, or a 4-5 cm / 2″ glass, cut out the gnocchi ⑪ which you will place, little by little, inside a well-buttered baking dish ⑫. They should overlap slightly ⑬.

Brush the gnocchi with warm butter ⑭, or freeze a stick of butter and grate it over the gnocchi, and sprinkle with the grated Parmesan cheese ⑮(if you want to give a different tone to the flavour, you can put some sage leaves on top of the parmesan). Bake in the preheated oven at 180°C – 356°F for 15 – 20 minutes, and then cook au gratin for another 5 minutes with the grill, at maximum power ⑯.

Take the Roman gnocchi out of the oven and serve piping hot.

If you want to keep the leftover dough, or freeze it, roll it up like a sausage in plastic wrap and then, when you need to use it, cut the discs of the desired thickness, and repeat the same steps.

Or you can prepare them in an aluminum foil pan and freeze it.