Homemade gnocchi

Prep: 1 hour Cook: 20 minutes Makes: about 125, serving 4 Adapted from Paul Bertolli’s recipe published in Fine Cooking, May 1999. An old-fashioned ricer tool keeps the cooked potatoes very light in texture compared to a masher. If you don’t have a ricer, use a medium mesh metal sieve and push the potatoes through it with a rubber scraper or wooden spoon. 2 medium russet potatoes, about 1 pound total 1 medium egg, lightly beaten 2 1⁄2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream 3⁄4 teaspoon salt Pinch of freshly ground nutmeg 6 ounces (about 1 1⁄3 cups) flour 1 Pierce potatoes with a fork in several places. Microwave on high (100 percent power) until fork-tender, about 6 to 8 minutes. Let cool just enough that you can handle them but they are still warm. 2 Peel the warm potatoes, and push them through a ricer (or a medium-mesh metal sieve) into a bowl. Stir in the egg, cream, salt and nutmeg. 3 Put the flour onto your work surface, and make a well in the center. Add the potato mixture to the well. Use a pastry scraper, or your clean hands, to cut the flour into the potato mixture. Keep working until the dough comes together and is soft, supple and a little elastic. 4 Roll the dough into a large log and then cut into 3 equal sections. Working3 on a floured surface, roll 1 section of the dough out into a long rope about ⁄4 inch in diameter. Use a knife to cut the rope into 1⁄2 inch long nuggets. Dip the tines of a fork in flour; roll each nugget against the tines to score the nugget and create a rough oval. Use your thumb to create a dimple in the oval. Drop the oval onto a floured baking sheet. Repeat to roll and shape all the dough. At this point you can refrigerate the gnocchi for several hours. Or, freeze the gnocchi on the baking sheet until they are solid. Then put them into a plastic freezer bag to freeze up to several weeks. 5 When ready to cook, heat a large pot of well-salted water to the boil over high heat. Drop the refrigerated or still-frozen gnocchi into the water and cook until they float, 2 to 4 minutes. 6 Serve immediately, topped with tomato sauce or melted butter and cheese.

Nutrition information per serving: 298 calories, 5 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 45 mg cholesterol, 55 g carbohydrates, 1 g sugar, 8 g protein, 458 mg sodium, 3 g fiber