Chef James Martin’s Berkswell cheese gnocchi with butternut squash soup Gnocchi are one of the easiest things to make in a kitchen. Using dry, cooked and riced potatoes with the addition of egg yolks and flour they can be knocked up and cooked in minutes. You can add various cheeses, the classic being Parmesan, but Berkswell or a blue cheese works fantastically with this soup.
If you want to make gnocchi in advance, the best way is to blanch them, then freeze them and use as required. This warming soup is equally delicious if you substitute cauliflower for the butternut squash.
SERVES: 4
FOR THE GNOCCHI
◆ 200g potatoes, peeled, cooked and riced
◆ 4 egg yolks
◆ 60g Italian ‘00’ flour, plus extra for dusting
◆ 30g Berkswell cheese, finely grated
◆ 1 tsp salt
◆ 50ml olive oil
◆ 2 sprigs of rosemary, leaves picked and roughly chopped
FOR THE SOUP
◆ 2 tbsp olive oil
◆ 1 onion, finely diced
◆ 1 butternut squash (about 1kg), peeled, de-seeded and cut into 1cm dice
◆ 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
◆ 500ml chicken stock
◆ Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
TO SERVE
◆ 2 tbsp coriander cress or finely chopped coriander leaves
◆ 2 tbsp olive oil
1. To make the gnocchi, mix the potato, egg yolks, flour, cheese and salt together in a bowl until it just forms a soft dough. Check the seasoning.
2. Divide the mixture in half and then, on a floured surface, roll each piece into a long sausage shape, about 1.25cm in diameter. With a sharp knife, cut each sausage into 2.5cm pieces of gnocchi.
3. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Drop the gnocchi into the water and cook for one to two minutes, or until they float. Remove from the water with a slotted spoon and place on a plate lined with kitchen paper.
4. Heat a frying pan until hot, add the oil, rosemary and the gnocchi and fry for one to two minutes until golden brown and just crispy. Drain on kitchen paper.
5. To make the soup, heat a frying pan until hot, then add the oil, onion and squash and fry for one to two minutes.
6. Add the garlic and cook for a minute, then add the stock and bring to the boil. Simmer for about five or six minutes until the squash is tender.
7. Pour in batches into a food processor and blitz to a fine purée.
8. Pour the soup into a clean saucepan and season with salt and black pepper. Return to the heat to warm through.
9. To serve, ladle the soup into soup plates. Pile some gnocchi in the centre of each plate, scatter over the coriander cress and drizzle with olive oil.
◆ Potato: Baked, Mashed, Roast, Fried – Over 100 Recipes Celebrating Potatoes by James Martin is published by Quadrille, price £23
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