Now that spring is here we are busy doing TONS of yard work. I needed a quick dinner to pull together with my last bit of energy. This is my FAVORITE quick dinner. SUPER QUICK.
I use store bought whole wheat or regular potato gnocchi – although I am sure that this dish would be even more amazing with homemade! It is quite spicy with the red pepper flakes -which I love as well. We eat it with a green salad or roasted vegetables on the side. This recipe was adapted from Everyday Food.
Yield: Serves 4
For the Sauce:
- 4 (thick) or 5 (regular) slices bacon, thinly sliced crosswise
- 3 medium tomatoes, or 6-8 Campari tomatoes, cored and diced medium
- 2 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes, to taste
- coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 batch simple potato gnocchi (recipe below) or 17.6 oz (500g) store-bought whole wheat or regular potato gnocchi (cooked according to package directions)
- fresh parsley or basil, chopped, for garnish
- parmesan, shaved or grated, for garnish
- In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-high until crisp. Drain on paper towels; remove all but 2 teaspoons fat from skillet.
- Add tomatoes, garlic, and red-pepper flakes; season with salt and pepper. Cook until tomatoes begin to break down and sauce is chunky, 6 minutes.
- Add cooked gnocchi and bacon. Toss until gnocchi are heated through and coated with sauce.
- Sprinkle with herbs and Parmesan; serve immediately.
For the Simple Potato Gnocchi:
Prep Time: 50 minutes, Total Time: 2 hours
Yield: Serves 8
- 2 1/2 pounds russet potatoes (about 5 small)
- coarse salt
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- In a large pot, bring potatoes to a boil in salted water; reduce to a rapid simmer and cook until potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife, 35 to 40 minutes.
- Lightly dust two parchment-lined rimmed baking sheets with flour; set aside.
- Drain potatoes and peel while still hot with a paring knife (use a thick, dry kitchen towel or pot holder to hold them). Immediately pass potatoes through a ricer onto a work surface. Let cool completely.
- Sprinkle potatoes with flour and 2 teaspoons salt, then top with egg. With your hands, work flour and egg into a dough.
- Knead dough until smooth but not elastic, dusting with flour if it becomes too sticky, 4 minutes. Do not overwork dough.
- Divide dough into 8 portions. Roll each portion into a rope (1/2 inch thick and 24 inches long). Cut each rope into 1/2-inch pieces.
- Gently roll each dough piece against the back tines of a fork to make ridges, then arrange in a single layer on prepared baking sheets.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. In batches, add a few handfuls gnocchi and cook until most have floated to top, 2 minutes. With a wire-mesh spider or a slotted spoon, transfer gnocchi immediately to a sauce.
Note: Place boiled gnocchi on a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, cover, and let sit, up to 2 hours.
thebrookcook 