HOMEMADE GNOCCHI WITH BUTTER AND SAGE

Serves 6

1kg baking potatoes 250–350g ‘00’ flour 2 large eggs

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon salt plenty of grated Parmesan, to serve

for the sauce

110g salted butter 4 tablespoons olive oil 15 sprigs of sage

• Heat the oven to 220°C/gas Mark 7. Prick the potatoes several times with a fork and bake for 1½ hours or until tender. (Alternatively, microwave the potatoes on full power for 5–7 minutes, until soft.) Set on one side until just cool enough to handle.

• Pour 250g of the flour on to a clean work surface and make a well in the centre. Halve the potatoes, scoop out the flesh and pass it through a sieve or ricer on to the heap of flour. Use your hands to create a little hollow in the potato. Crack the eggs into the hollow, add the nutmeg and salt, then mix everything together with your hands to give a smooth, soft dough. If it is too wet, add the rest of the flour little by little until you have a soft dough that will easily hold its shape. Just bring the dough together; if you overwork it, the gnocchi will be tough.

• Divide the dough into 8–10 equal chunks. Use the palms of your hands to roll them into balls, and then into long ropes roughly 2.5cm thick. Cut them into 3cm lengths. It is important that the gnocchi are all evenly sized, if not shaped, so they cook evenly.

• Line a baking tray with a sheet of baking parchment, dust it lightly with flour and lay out the gnocchi on it. Press down on each one with the back of a fork to create little indentations, then turn them over and repeat the process on the other side.