Baked semolina gnocchi
Very forgiving, very delicious and very soothing, this semolina gnocchi is a total winner and I’d happily have it for dinner on a cold, windy night, just on its own. It’s also a fantastic side dish for all kinds of mains. Everything is done in advance and you can have it sitting in the fridge, ready to pop into the oven 40 minutes or so before it’s time to eat.
We are jumping around a bit geographically with this dish – it’s a Roman classic, while the chicken and the chocolate salami are Piedmontese staples, but as with most of my cooking, it’s an amalgamation of flavours and memories. As long as the end result is tasty and proper credit is given to the recipe’s origins, that’s okay with me.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs lightly whisked
- 1 cup 180 g semolina
- 2 cups 500 ml full-cream milk
- 1 cup 100 g grated parmesan cheese
- ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- ¼ cup 60 g butter, cut into cubes, plus extra for greasing
- ⅓ cup 80 ml single (pure) cream
Instructions
- Combine the eggs and semolina in a saucepan and whisk well.
- Whisk in the milk, half the parmesan and the nutmeg.
- Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes or until the mixture thickens to a porridge consistency and comes away from the side of the pan.
- Remove from the heat and set aside to cool for about 5 minutes.
- Turn the semolina mixture out onto a work surface and divide it in half.
- Using damp hands, roll each half into a long sausage shape.
- Wrap each log in plastic wrap and place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F).
- Butter a shallow ovenproof dish.
- Unwrap the semolina logs and slice them into 1 cm (½ inch) thick rounds.
- Arrange the rounds in the buttered dish, overlapping them.
- Dot the butter over the gnocchi, drizzle with the cream and sprinkle with the remaining grated parmesan.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until the gnocchi has puffed up a little and the cheese on top is golden and bubbling.
