Sunday, February 11, 2018

Aurora’s Gnocchi by Guest Author @LJKarst #recipe


Today the writers and cooks at MLK are delighted to welcome guest Leslie Karst! We love her books and can't wait for the new one. Meanwhile, enjoy her gnocchi recipe and add a comment to be entered in the giveaway for DEATH AL FRESCO!

Leslie Karst: The protagonist of my Sally Solari culinary mysteries comes from an Italian-American family who runs an Italian seafood restaurant out on the historic fisherman’s wharf in Santa Cruz, California. I’m not Italian, however, and my cooking expertise leans more to the French end of the spectrum. As a result, I’ve deemed it prudent to conduct research prior to writing many of the food scenes in the books (e.g., when Nonna prepares her Sunday gravy, in Dying for a Taste).

Happily for me, this research is ongoing. So when I was asked by a friend if I wanted to come to his house for a gnocchi-making demo by 90-year old Aurora Leveroni, I readily responded “Si, certo!” (This recipe has yet to appear in any of my books, but is sure to turn up soon.)


yours truly with Aurora and the finished product

The word “gnoccho” (the singular form) most likely derives from either “nocchio” (a knot of wood) or “nocca” (knuckle). These small dumplings have been eaten on the Italian peninsula since at least the days of the Roman Empire, when they were made of semolina and eggs. [See here.] After the potato was brought to Europe from the New World, the Italians incorporated it into their dumplings, creating what we now think of as the traditional potato gnocchi.

Aurora, who grew up in San Francisco, learned this technique from her mother—née Marie Dell-Era—who was born in the Lake Como region of Northern Italy.

We made a recipe for 30 servings, using five pounds of potatoes, but my directions here cut that amount in half. These are the ingredients:

2 ½ lbs. Idaho or Russet potatoes
1 whole egg, lightly beaten
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tbsp. olive oil
2-3 cups unbleached flour


Boil the potatoes with the skins on, until well done. (Waxy varieties such as Yukon Gold should not be used, as they have too much water content.) Do not pierce them or cut them in half, because you want as little water as possible to be absorbed (you could roast the potatoes at 400 degrees till tender instead—in which case you should pierce them first with a fork—but Aurora uses the boiling method and hers came out great).

As soon as the potatoes are done, peel them and put them through a ricer while still hot (or you can grate them over the large holes of a box grater):


Add the egg, salt, baking powder, and olive oil to the riced potatoes, and mix well. Using your hands is best. Then slowly mix in unbleached flour. The amount of flour will vary, depending on the weather, moisture content of the potatoes, type of flour, and other unknowable variables, but you want to keep adding it until the dough stops being sticky and is easy to work.


Transfer the dough to the counter to knead as you would for bread, three to four minutes.

The next step is to cut off pieces of the dough and roll them into long “snakes,” about ½ inch thick. Work from the center out, as you would if rolling out a baguette:


Next, cut the snakes into ½ inch pieces:


You can use the gnocchi as they are now if you like, but Italian gnocchi are typically made with ridges. To shape her gnocchi, Aurora uses the fork method, rolling the uncut, rounded sides of the pieces lightly on the back of a fork to make indentations:


Here’s a close-up of what the gnocchi look like after being shaped:


At this point you can either cook the gnocchi or freeze them for later use. If you’re not going to eat them right away, spread them (not touching) on a lightly-floured cookie sheet, sprinkle a little more flour on top, and put the sheet in the freezer. (See photo at top of this post.) After they are frozen, they can be transferred to zip-lock baggies and kept in the freezer until use.


Cooking the gnocchi is easy. Simply drop the frozen morsels into boiling, heavily salted water. Stir them once so they don’t stick to the bottom, and then wait until they rise to the top, which means they’re done. Drain them, and they’re ready to eat.


Gnocchi are best served with a simple sauce, so as not to overwhelm their delicate flavor. I served the bag that Aurora gave me drizzled with brown butter and topped with crispy sage (fried in the butter) and grated Romano cheese:


Buon appetito!


Leave a comment for a chance to win a hard cover copy of Leslie’s newest Sally Solari mystery, Death al Fresco!
  
About Death al Fresco

It’s early autumn in Santa Cruz and restaurateur Sally Solari, inspired by the eye-popping canvases of Paul Gauguin, the artist for whom her restaurant is named, enrolls in a plein air painting class. But the beauty of the Monterey Bay coastline is shattered during one of their outings when Sally’s dog sniffs out a corpse entangled in a pile of kelp.

The body is identified as Gino, a local fisherman and a regular at Sally’s father’s restaurant, Solari's, until he disappeared after dining there a few nights before. But after witnesses claim he left reeling drunk, fingers begin to point at Sally’s dad for negligently allowing the old man to walk home alone at night. From a long menu of suspects, including a cast of colorful characters who frequent the historic Santa Cruz fisherman’s wharf, Sally must serve up a tall order in order to clear her father’s name.


The daughter of a law professor and a potter, Leslie Karst learned early, during family dinner conversations, the value of both careful analysis and the arts—ideal ingredients for a mystery story. She now writes the Sally Solari Mysteries (Dying for a Taste, A Measure of Murder), a culinary series set in Santa Cruz, California. An ex-lawyer like her sleuth, Leslie also has degrees in English literature and the culinary arts. The next in the series, Death al Fresco, releases March 13th.


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You can visit Leslie on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/lesliekarstauthor/ , and you can go to her author website  to sign for her newsletter—full of recipes and fun Italian facts!—and to purchase all her books.

39 comments:

  1. I love gnocchi! I hope to make these at home, thank you for sharing the recipe. I look forward to reading your series. Have a great week!
    Steelers4Sandi(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  2. I'm not an author but I love doing research & your research "chores" sound wonderful! I love Italian food so I'm looking forward to trying the gnocchi & I love a good culinary mystery so I'm looking forward to reading Death al Fresco. As luck would have it my favorite wine is Reunite Lambrusco Emilia & my favorite place to eat lunch is Olive Garden so I'm all ready to go a step further & get into an Italian sleuth's adventures! lnchudej@yahoo.com

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  3. Such an awesome dish; and I would love to read the book! EMS591@aol.com

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  4. I have enjoyed this series. I’d love to continue.
    suefoster109 at gmail dot com

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  5. Loved Measure of Murder. And great tip about keeping the water out of your potatoes--I don't think I've ever seen that mentioned in a recipe. (All potatoes are not created equal!)

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  6. Thanks for an enticing & easy recipe. Thanks for the chance to win your new book. I am looking forward to reading this series, as I have it on my Wish & Must Read List. doward1952(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  7. I’ve never had gnocchi but the recipe looks good
    sgiden at verizon(.)net

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  8. I tried gnocchi in the past, and I didn't like it a lot, but your recipe is appealing. And, thanks for the opportunity to win the book!
    browninggloria(at) hotmail (dot) com

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  9. Thank you for the chance to win your new book. The gnocchi is similar to the Czech Potato dumplings that I make, except we don't add the olive oil or baking powder but otherwise the same, then rolled and cut and boiled in water. They are served with gravy. dbahn(at)iw(dot)net

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  10. This series looks wonderful and the gnocchi looks delightful! How lucky are you to have been taught by someone who has been making it her entire life! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe and for the chance to win!
    magicgirl2357@yahoo.com

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  11. Welcome, Leslie! I adore gnocchi but have never tried making them. That's going to have to change soon! Thanks for visiting the Kitchen.

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  12. Thanks for the recipe and tips from Miss Aurora. I like gnocchi but this looks pretty labor intensive! I will be looking out for your books.
    patdupuy@yahoo.com

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  13. My husband and I love gnocchi but we buy it frozen and then prepare it. To our limited palettes it tastes good. Have never had it at a restaurant. Looking forward to your newest book. pgenest57(at(dot)com Thank you for this chance.

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  14. Have never tried gnocchi but reminds me of dumplings I make..will try them first chance I get.....terrysaunders29@hotmail.com

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  15. I've never tried gnocchi before and I'm anxious to try it your recipe now. Looks delicious. Your research sounds very tasty. I'm going to have to look for your series, I love foodie cozy mysteries. Thanks for the chance to win.
    scarletbegonia5858(at)gmail(dot)com

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  16. Yes, it is indeed rather labor intensive, so the thing to do is have a gnocchi-making party with a bunch of friends! And then you can all sit down with a glass of wine afterwards and eat the fruits (or in this case, tubers) of your labor!

    Thanks to all for visiting the Mystery Lovers' Kitchen today and leaving your comments!

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  17. I've made homemade gnoochi. We love it! lkleback at hotmail.com

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  18. This looks like a easy enough recipe to follow. I can't wait to try it.

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  19. You and Aurora have wonderful matching hair!
    I like the simplicity of the "sauce".
    libbydodd at comcast dot net

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  20. Those look yummy although I think I'd rather just have someone else do the making and I could do the eating lol barbie17(at)gmail(dot)com

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  21. I've never eaten gnocchi, but it sure looks delicious! I'm going to have to give making it a try. I bet my family would love it! Shipley1990(at)gmail(dot)com

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  22. The recipe sounds wonderful. Would love to win a book to read. I love these type books. Thank you so much for the opportunity to win.

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  23. thanks for the chance. maceoindo(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  24. Gnocchi is my ultimate comfort food...and this is a great recipe! I love the addition of pictures. Thanks for the recipe and the giveaway! aut1063(at)gmail(dot)com

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  25. I have not tried gnocci before. Sounds good! Leslie Karst is a new author for me! Thank you for the chance!

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  26. I love that this recipe has been handed down to family & friends. I've never made gnocchi before. I'll need to give it a try.
    turtle6422(at)gmail(dot)com

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  27. I've not eaten gnocci--but I think it's time for me to try it. Thanks for the recipe.
    suefarrell.farrell@gmail.com

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  28. I'm not much of a pasta person, but I love gnocci. Looks like a great recipe to try, handmade has to be the best. Looking forward to reading the newest book in the series.
    diannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com

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  29. This looks delicious, although I'm not sure I would have the patience to make it myself! mbradeen@yahoo.com

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  30. My papa would't have gnocchi in the house , he was born in rice country,so I'd go up the next block to my papa's sister in law and eat there.Three of my four sons all make gnocchi but I don't think they put baking powder in theirs.Gnocchi is my grandsons favorite while the rest of the family love malfattis. I've enjoyed the first two books and can hardly wait for this one and thanks for the chance to win a book. RUTH NIXON ruthenixon(at)sbcglobal(dot)net

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  31. The gnocchi looks delicious! I’d love to win.

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  32. The book looks great--ty for the recipe! legallyblonde1961@yahoo.com

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  33. This is a new series for me! Thanks for the chance to win this book!

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  34. Book looks so good! Thanks for a chance at the giveaway!

    faithdcreech at gmail dot com

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  35. Congratulations on the release. This book sounds wonderful. I WILL be making the gnocchi very soon. Thank you for the recipe but mostly for your great series!
    Cynthia B

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  36. I love this series! Also thanks for the gnocchi recipe. I have some gluten free ones and am never sure what kind of sauce to pair with them - so thanks for the idea of a browned butter one! Thanks for a chance to win a book! ljbonkoski@yahoo.com

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  37. Thanks for sharing this gnocchi recipe.I love how you plated the gnocchi,they look delicious! I like that it can be frozen.I already found a recipe,I would use it in.
    From cookinglight.com ,Chicken & Butternut gnocchi (It has Chicken thighs,butternut squash & gnocchi. )
    Congrats on the upcoming release of your new book!
    Aurora looks incredible,she definitely does not look 90!
    myndirene (at) Yahoo (dot) com

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  38. This would be a new series for me and would love to check it out.

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