Potato gnocchi with a herb brown butter sauce in a parmesan bowl

Before I learned how to make gnocchi, I was extremely intimidated by them. I'd order these little potato dumplings occasionally in Italian restaurants. Good gnocchi is light and tender. Bad gnocchi is heavy or mushy, and I've had my share of bad gnocchi! Well, I finally decided to try my hand at making them. They're great with a little tomato sauce, or sautéed in an herb-browned butter sauce.

I think they came out pretty good and the parmesan cups add both a salty counterpoint to the savoury gnocchi as well as making a nice “serving bowl”.

Potato Gnocchi

1 1-pound potato

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 Tbsp green onion, chopped

Parmesan Bowls

1/3-1/2 cup of grated Parmesan

Pam/oil for pan

Herb Brown Butter

2 Tbsp butter

2 thyme sprigs

2 sage leaves

1 clove of garlic

Directions for Gnocchi

1. Boil potatoes until fork tender. Put through a ricer or just mash.
2. Gradually add in flour and egg to potatoes until combined, add salt and pepper.
3. Cut into 8 pieces. Roll each piece into ¼ inch width rolls. Cut into 1 inch pieces. If you want to make them fancy, use the back of a fork and imprint it on the gnocchi pieces.
4. Boil gnocchi pieces for a few minutes or until they pop up to the top. Then toss in browned butter for a few minutes.

Directions for Browned Butter

1. Melt butter in pan until it starts to brown, add in herbs and keep on medium to low heat. Keep careful watch as butter can go from browned to burnt very quickly

Directions for Parmesan Bowls

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Spread cheese into 4 circular sheets on baking sheet
3. Bake for 4-5 minutes or until crisp
4. Carefully scrape circles on top of a small upside down bowl and let it drape over the shape of the bowl until it sets
5. Place gnocchi in parmesan bowls and top with finely chopped green onions and enjoy!