ITALIAN ROPE SAUSAGE RECIPE RECIPES

Steps:

• Peel two pounds of potatoes and cut in half. Bring to a boil in a pot of salted water and cook until softened all the way through when pricked with a fork.
• Drain potatoes and allow to cool until you are able to handle.
• Squeeze the cooked potato chunks through a ricer to make completely smooth potato mash.
• Mound the potatoes and form a deep well in the center.
• Whisk together egg, ricotta, and salt in a small bowl and then pour into the well in the potatoes.
• Use your hands to mix the potato and egg mixture together until combined.
• Scoop up the potato mixture and dump 1 cup of flour onto the work surface. Place the potato mixture on top of the flour.
• Use your hands again to work the flour into the potatoes, just enough to form a smooth and soft dough. The mixture should be soft and not overly sticky. Work the dough just enough that it is not longer sticky and feels just a bit pliable.
• Shape the dough into a ball and cut into 8 equal pieces.
• On a floured surface, roll out each piece of dough into a rope until it is about the thickness of your finger.
• Cut the rope into even pieces about ¾” wide.
• Press a fork against each piece to indent and wrap the piece of dough in half, fork indents on the outside, to form the gnocchi.
• Continue rolling, cutting, and shaping the gnocchi for all the pieces.
• Spread gnocchi in a single layer on a parchment lined baking sheet and place in the freezer or cook immediately in a pot of salted, boiling water.
• Cook gnocchi a handful at a time. They will float to the top of the water when they are done cooking (about 2-3 minutes). Lift from the boiling water to drain.
• Toss cooked gnocchi with butter, salt, and chopped herbs.
• Storage: Freeze uncooked gnocchi in a single layer overnight, then transfer to an airtight container and keep frozen up to 1 month. Add frozen gnocchi directly to boiling water to cook.
• Salt the water when you cook the potatoes and when you cook the gnocchi. I also added salt to the gnocchi dough. This adds some necessary seasoning to the dough.
• The ricotta is optional, but it makes the dough just a bit more pliable and easier to roll, cut, and shape. You can measure or just add a big spoonful. I could not taste any difference between the gnocchi made with ricotta, but I did prefer working with the dough with ricotta.
• Once you make gnocchi a couple times, you become accustomed to the feel of the dough. You can adjust how much flour you are working in to the potato mixture for a pliable dough that is nice to work with. Too much flour can make a more pasta-y dough. Use just enough flour to work with the dough for nice pillow-y gnocchi.
• Use a ricer. Mashing the potatoes with a potato masher will no doubt leave behind some lumps and even the smallest of lumps really makes it difficult to press and shape the gnocchi pieces. Highly recommend using a ricer - makes a world of difference.
• Freeze or cook the gnocchi as soon as you form it. The potato starts to discolor (turn greyish) if it sits out long. This doesn’t change the flavor, it just isn’t as aesthetically pleasing.