Kumara Gnocchi with Parmesan Cream Sauce

I love cheese, in pretty much every single one of its forms. I think it’s pretty freaking cool that the few ingredients that cheese are made from can be turned into such a wide variety of cheeses that all serve a different purpose. From parmesan - that gives food that classic Italian flavour - or mozzarella - that is fairly mild but will beat any other cheese to the post when you’re looking for the ultimate stringy pizza.

When Dairyworks sent me a few products to try, two products stood out and were the perfect fit in a couple of dishes that I wanted to try out. Over on Nzgirl I show you how to make a delicious, gooey croque monsiuer using the Dairyworks 3 Ch3eeze Mix; and in this video I show you how to make kumara gnocchi from scratch (it’s 100% easier than you think!) coated in a rich cream sauce flavoured with garlic, meaty pancetta, thyme and Dairyworks Parmesan cheese. I’m in LOVE with this recipe - and my flatmate gives it the tick of approval!

If you don’t have pancetta or are unable to find it, bacon works perfectly as well! Same with the kale - if you aren’t a fan, or are unable to source any kale, spinach or silverbeet works great.

Note: this gnocchi recipe makes a double batch so I cook what I need and then freeze the remainder on a tray and transfer to a ziplock bag for easy cooking another night! The handiest thing when you want a delish dinner with no effort.

Ingredients (serves 2-3)

750g peeled kumara, cut into even sized chunks
¾ cup plain flour
1 egg
S&P
1tbsp butter + 1tbsp olive oil
½ onion, peeled and sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
5 slices pancetta
¼ cup white wine
1 cup single cream
2 kale stalks, thinly sliced
3 sprigs fresh thyme, stalks removed (just the leaves)

2tbsp finely grated Dairyworks Parmesan + extra to serve

Method

In a medium pot, boil the kumara until tender. Once cooked through, drain and spread over a tray to cool completely. Once cool, mash fully.
Transfer the mashed kumara into a bowl, then combine with the flour & egg, and season. Use a fork initially to begin to combine the ingredients, then use your hands to lightly knead until the dough forms.
Transfer onto a floured bench, and cut the dough in half. Start rolling into a sausage shape, then cut in half once more. Roll into two lengths which are even in thickeness, then use a knife to cut into same sized pieces. Set onto a floured tray and repeat.
To make the sauce, soften the onion and garlic in the butter and oil over a medium heat. Once softened, tear the pancetta into pieces and add to the onion and garlic mixture.
Cook until the pancetta is golden and crispy, then add the white wine to the pan to deglaze. Once the wine has nearly completely evaporated, add the cream. Simmer for 3-5 minutes to reduce, then add the kale and thyme. Cook for a further 3-5 minutes, then remove from the heat. Add the parmesan and set aside.
To cook the gnocchi, bring a medium sized pot of salted water to the boil. Once boiling, add the gnocchi in batches (you will only need half of the gnocchi made from the full batch, see note above for what to do with remainder). After 4 minutes, or when the gnocchi float to the surface, remove from the water and add into the sauce.
Gently fold the gnocchi into the sauce, and serve with an extra sprinkle of parmesan and thyme.

Thanks to Dairyworks for making this post possible.