POTATO ON A STICK RECIPES

Steps:

• 1. Use potatoes of a fairly even size, as you’re going to cook them whole. Cook in a large pan of boiling salted water for 20 to 25 minutes, or until tender.
  2. Drain and leave until cool enough to handle, then remove the skins.
  3. Mash the potatoes using a potato ricer or masher on to a large clean board.
  4. Sprinkle over the flour, finely grate over half the nutmeg, season well with sea salt and black pepper, then scrunch and push the mixture together with clean hands. Depending on the potatoes, you may need to add a little more flour – use your common sense.
  5. Knead on a flour-dusted surface for a few minutes until pliable, then divide into 4 equal pieces and roll each into a sausage about 2cm thick.
  6. Slice into 3cm lengths – this is your basic gnocchi. Now you can gently roll each piece down a butter pat, the back of a fork or a fine grater to add grooves, which will help your sauce to stick, or simply roll into balls.
  7. Nonna Teresa cooked her gnocchi 2 portions at a time, as it’s so quick, and it also means they’re less likely to break up. Cook in a pan of boiling salted water for 2 to 3 minutes – as soon as they come up to the surface they’re ready.
  8. Remove with a slotted spoon and toss with melted butter and finely grated Parmesan, my Hero tomato sauce (or leftover sauce from a stew, which you can see in the picture), then finely grate over a little Parmesan, to serve. I also like to add a little dollop of pesto – homemade or jarred, it’s up to you.

Steps:

• If you’ve got potatoes not mash, cook them in boiling water until tender. Drain well and press through a potato ricer or mash. Weigh out 250g and cool.
• Sieve the flour and baking powder onto cooled mash. Whisk eggs and milk together and add to the potato mix with the chives. Whisk the batter until smooth.
• Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Add ½ tsp sunflower oil and a dot of butter. When the fat is hot, start to cook the pancakes. Add 1 tbsp of batter for each pancake and cook 4 at a time. Cook for about 1 min until the underside is golden brown and small bubbles appear.
• Flip the pancakes and cook until golden. Remove from the pan and keep warm while you cook the remaining pancakes in the same way, adding a tiny bit of oil and butter to the pan as and when needed. Serve the pancakes in stacks with creamy scrambled egg and crisp rashers of streaky bacon.