Pesto Gnocchi
These Pesto Gnocchi are a wonderful comfort food that is simply bursting with flavor. It combines homemade gnocchi with tasty pesto to create a dish everyone will love!
If you’ve never made gnocchi from scratch, this is the recipe you need. And with a quick sauce, this Pesto Gnocchi will tantalize your tastebuds!!
Why you will love this recipe
Pesto Gnocchi made with your very own homemade potatoes gnocchi is so rewarding and tastes like heaven! Making gnocchi at home isn’t that complicated. And paired with a basil pesto, this is the perfect comfort meal for all the family.
Learning how to make gnocchi is satisfying and much easier than you think. This step by step recipe will teach you to make gnocchi as good as any Italian. Here, you will find my family’s recipe with all the secrets for success. Whether you use nut-free pesto or my Authentic Bolognese sauce, homemade gnocchi will be a family favorite!
Basil Pesto Gnocchi is a surefire way to enjoy your first batch of homemade gnocchi. My nut-free pesto with a classic variation can be made in advance, so once all the gnocchi are cooked, all you need to do is stir through the pesto. Of course, if you are short on time, use good quality store-bought basil pesto for quick pesto gnocchi.
Tomorrow, you can try out my tasty tortellini alla panna, which I sometimes like to serve as a first course.Â
For complete ingredient quantities and full instructions, please scroll to the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.
Ingredients
- Potatoes: Choose a floury, starchy potato, not a waxy or a “salad” potato. Look for varieties that are good for mashing, baking, or roasting, so an all-rounder will be good.
- All-purpose plain flour: My family always used all-purpose flour and still does. If you have Italian Tipo 00, that would be very good but not essential.
- Egg: I always prefer free-range eggs, but use whatever you have.
- Salt: Just regular cooking salt is fine, or whatever you have.Â
- Basil pesto: To complete the recipe, use homemade basil pesto made with fresh basil leaves, good olive oil, pine nuts, and Parmesan cheese. Alternatively, use a good quality store-bought pesto.Â
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese – don’t purchase pregrated cheese. Buy a block of cheese and grate it as you need it. I always prefer Parmigiano Reggiano cheese from Italy, but use a local Parmesan cheese if that’s what you have available.
Once you’ve mastered this pesto gnocchi recipe, make my gnocchi carbonara and my Gnocchi alla Sorrentina – they’re both sublime!
Instructions
- Boil the potatoes with skins on until tender, then peel and put through a potato ricer while hot.
- Allow to cool a little, then add flour, egg, and a pinch of salt. Knead lightly to form a dough.
- Take a small portion. Roll it into a long rope and cut it into 1 inch/2.5cm lengths.
- Press each gnocchi against a gnocchi board or tines of a fork with your fingers forming an indentation on one side and ridges on the other side.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add gnocchi. When they rise to the surface, remove with a slotted spoon.Â
- Gently combine with basil pesto and freshly grated Parmesan cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano).
Serve pesto gnocchi while still warm with extra Parmesan cheese.
Substitutions
- Gnocchi – for a super quick, easy pesto gnocchi dinner, cook store-bought gnocchi according to the package instructions, then combine with basil pesto and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
- Basil Pesto – use a different variety of pesto – try sun dried tomato pesto or make pesto with arugula.
- Parmesan cheese – or Parmigiano Reggiano cheese can be substituted with Pecorino Romano or even Asiago if you prefer.
Variations
- Creamy pesto gnocchi: While the gnocchi are boiling, heat 1 cup of heavy cream with the basil pesto over medium heat. Combine gently with the creamy pesto sauce and the cooked and drained gnocchi.
- Chicken pesto gnocchi – stir 1 ½ cups of skinless, shredded rotisserie chicken into the creamy pesto sauce above. Warm through before combining with gnocchi.
- Cheesy baked gnocchi: Prepare pesto gnocchi as directed in the recipe card, then stir in ½ cup of reserved cooking water plus 1 cup grated provolone or mozzarella cheese. Transfer to a baking dish and bake for 15 minutes at 400ºF/200ºC.
Equipment
To make gnocchi, the potatoes must have no lumps. For best results, use a potato ricer or a rotary vegetable mill. Alternatively, you can use a potato masher or a fork to mash the potatoes. Never use a food processor because the potatoes will become gluey.
Traditionally, gnocchi are shaped using a fork or a ribbed gnocchi board.Â
Storage
Generally I will make gnocchi and cook them straightaway. However, I have prepared gnocchi to the point of cooking, then refrigerated gnocchi overnight. In this case, be sure to place gnocchi in a single layer on baking paper lined and floured trays.
While I have never frozen gnocchi, I have read that gnocchi can be frozen directly on the trays in a single layer. Once frozen, the gnocchi can be placed in ziplock bags and frozen for a few weeks. Cook from frozen.
If you have leftover basil pesto gnocchi, store them in a sealed container in the fridge for a day or two and reheat in a microwave oven. Leftover pesto gnocchi won’t freeze well.
Tips for Success
- I learned to make pesto gnocchi from my father’s side. He made the lightest and most delicious gnocchi. When first learning to make gnocchi, adding an egg will help you succeed and hold your dough together. Once you have mastered this recipe, you can gradually reduce the egg to make eggless gnocchi.
- Moisture is the enemy of gnocchi. The most important tip when making gnocchi is to keep the potatoes as dry as possible. This may seem difficult when the first step is to boil the potatoes. So, the trick here is to boil unpeeled potatoes. Ensure the potatoes are completely tender but not overcooked and water-logged. Tender potatoes ensure smooth pesto gnocchi.
- Incorporating the flour and egg into the potatoes requires a light hand. This is not bread or pasta which needs to be kneaded. Gnocchi dough is gently pressed together. The dough should be airy inside. Potatoes will become gummy and gluggy if worked too much.
- Potato gnocchi are traditionally shaped by pressing onto a fork or gnocchi board to create ridges on one side and an indentation on the other. It’s to catch all the sauce to have extra good pesto gnocchi! Gather the family, give each a fork, and learn how to shape gnocchi using my video. That’s how we Italian children learned. Gnocchi making was and still is a family affair.
FAQ
A word like “gnocchi” can be tricky, but it’s actually quite simple. Often you’ll hear gnocchi pronounce “nokki” which is incorrect. Instead, think of it like this. The “gn” (while impossible to compare to anything in English) is pronounced “ny” with your tongue beginning flat to the roof of your mouth. The “o” part is a short sound like “oh” as in chocolate. Finally the “cchi” is just like the work “key”. So pronounce “gnocchi” – “ny-oh-key”.
Gnocchi goes well with so many different sauces and are very versatile. Try a traditional Bolognese sauce or a San Marzano tomato sauce. My Gnocchi Carbonara are a good example of how unlimited the possibilities are for pairing with potato gnocchi.Â
To begin with, use the right potatoes. Choose potatoes that are floury rather than waxy. Waxy potatoes have too much moisture. Next, mix the potatoes, flour and egg lightly but until completely combined. Including an egg with the potatoes and flour provides extra security to ensure the gnocchi don’t fall apart. Finally, don’t over cook gnocchi. Remove from the boiling water once they rise to the top for homemade gnocchi or according to package instructions.
Traditionally pesto gnocchi aren’t served as a cold dish. However, there’s no reason why you can serve gnocchi as a cold dish similar to a pasta salad.
Serving suggestions
Pesto Gnocchi can be served as a first course or a main meal. Serve with garlic ciabatta bread and chicken cutlets for a delicious Italian dinner. Followed with a strawberry crostata or baked peaches, this Pesto Gnocchi recipe will be popular with everyone!
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Pesto Gnocchi Recipe
Ingredients
- 2.2 pounds (2 pounds 3 ounces/1 kilogram) potatoes (See note 1)
- 2 cups (250 grams) all purpose plain flour or Tipo 00 flour (See note 2)
- 1 egg beaten
- ¾ cup basil pesto homemade or store bought
- salt to taste
- freshly grated Parmesan cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano) as desired
Instructions
How to make gnocchi dough.
- Place unpeeled potatoes in a large saucepan, cover with water and add a large spoonful of salt. Bring to the boil.
- Boil for 20-30 minutes or until potatoes can be easily piece with a knife.
- Once potatoes are tender, drain and allow to cool a little until you can manage to handle them. They need to be quite warm.
- Peel the potatoes and while still hot pass them through a potato ricer or vegetable mouli onto the work surface.
- Spread out so that the steam evaporates. Potato needs to cool a little so that the egg doesn't cook and the flour and potato don't become gummy. Sprinkle over most of the flour, a pinch of salt and add the egg. With your fingers or a fork stir lightly to combine
- Gently and gradually press the mixture together. It is important to not over knead but thoroughly combine. The dough should be light, not gooey or gummy which is a sign of over kneading and will result in heavy gnocchi.
- Form the dough into a ball.
To shape the gnocchi
- Cut small portion of dough and roll into a long rope about the thickness of your thumb.
- Cut into 1 inch/2.5cm lengths.
- Take each nugget of dough and using your index and middle finger, press the dough onto the tines of the fork ( or a gnocchi board which can be purchased in specialty shops) and roll. Making a concave indentation on one side and ridges on the other side.
- Place gnocchi on a baking tray that has been dusted with flour.
- An optional idea is to line the tray with baking paper and flour the paper as well. This way when you are ready to cook, you just pick up the ends of the paper and slip all the gnocchi into the boiling water.
- Continue making gnocchi until all the dough is used up.
To cook and dress the gnocchi
- Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil.
- Add gnocchi in batches and gnocchi are ready when they rise to the surface which will be about 3-5 minutes. The water may not return to the boil but if the gnocchi float, they are cooked.
- Use a large slotted spoon to lift the gnocchi out. Drain well and place onto a large flat serving plate.
- Add spoonfuls of pesto (try my nut free pesto recipe which also has the classic version) and a handful of freshly grated Parmesan cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano). Gently stir with a silicone spatula. Continue cooking, draining and dressing the gnocchi until they are all done and all the pesto has been used.
- Sprinkle with extra grated Parmesan cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano) and place the platter of gnocchi in the middle of the table for everyone to help themselves.
Notes
- Choose a floury, starchy potato not a waxy or a “salad” potato. Look for potato varieties that are good for mashing, baking or roasting.
- A little more flour (1/4 cup) may be added if the dough seems too soft.
- Keep potatoes as dry as possible by boiling unpeeled potatoes and then draining well.
- Have potatoes warm but not hot when adding flour and egg
- Use a light hand to incorporate the flour and egg into the potatoes but be sure to combine well.
Nutritional Estimate Per Serving
Nutritional Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. For accurate results, it is recommended that the nutritional information be calculated based on the ingredients and brands you use.
I’m going to try this recipe as I love your other pasta recipes. Could I bake the potatoes instead of boiling them? I’m just afraid of the potatoes getting waterlogged.
Yes, Liliana. I’ve done that and I found the gnocchi were very light. I baked them in their skins. You have to be careful not to take the potato too close to the skin because I find it can be a bit dried out and never really mashes well. Let me know how it goes!
Thank you so much for your reply. I will try making the gnocchi soon and let you know how they turn out. My girlfriend and I tried making them years ago and they kept taking more and more flour. It turned out like a Lucy and Ethel episode. Hopefully better luck this time.
Haha, that’s too funny! Yes, adding too much flour can end badly! Basically I like to think of it as one part flour to four parts potatoes (in weight). You can go a little more than that if you prefer more solid gnocchi. Good luck! Yes, let me know how you go!
My name is Rina, the best potato for gnocchi I use 2 Good size (Baking Potato,, (its a starchy potato), so they don’t absorb water, plus 1eggs, 2c to 3c flour, I’ve added 1 large yam, (just too try something different), more flavor too the dough, my family absolutely loved it!!🥰
One thing I do when the holidays are approaching or a special occasion, I prepare the gnocchi a head of time…I get cookie trays ready, place parchment paper, arrange them single file, when the trays are all done, I put them in the freezer for a full day and the next day you get yourself large zip bags…Fill them up and again store them in the freezer and you’ll always be ahead of yourself
That’s a great suggestion for freezing, Rina. Definitely be sure to freeze in a single layer.
This is so good! Thanks for this easy to follow recipe!
You’re welcome, Jen!
My husband loved this! Great recipe
Thank you Audrey!
Hello dear Marcellina ! So happy to say I add an egg to the dough as well ! And again, this post proves simple is always the best ! Thank you and enjoy your day ! 🙂
I’ll be making this over the weekend! It looks to be the same recipe (and rolling technique) I remember doing as a child with my mom! We would have the entire kitchen table filled with gnocchi!
Hi Beth! That sounds like my childhood memory. I hope you enjoy delicious gnocchi on the weekend!
During lock down I made this for the first time with my daughter over zoom followed the instructions and worked a treat.
I’ve made it using the ragu sauce a great combo
Tony, I’m so glad to hear that. What a fun thing to do during lockdown and great father/daughter bonding! This is my family recipe so it warms my heart that you made gnocchi with your daughter.
If you don’t have a ricer, what other options are there?
Hi Kate, no problem if you don’t have a ricer. Mash the potato with a potato masher or a fork. Be sure to not leave any lumps of potato so that your gnocchi are smooth. Don’t use a food processor or anything like that. I would use a fork to make sure the potato is smooth. Enjoy!
HI, my daughter is allergic to wheat. I know the texture would change but do you know if other types of flour might work (like potato or rice)? Thanks!
Hi Anna, while I have never made gnocchi without wheat flour others have. This is from a site I trust and gives detailed instructions to follow. The key is very dry potatoes. Check this recipe https://www.seriouseats.com/2012/06/how-to-make-gluten-free-potato-gnocchi.html
Auguri and happy cooking. I hope you and you daughter are able to enjoy delicious gnocchi. Let me know how you go xx
I’ve only always made gnocchi the lazy way, which means they’re not pretty! I should really figure this out. Your tutorial should help Marcellina, thank you!
Haha, I know sometimes it seems so tedious shaping all those gnocchi! Let me know how you go.
What a great tutorial, Marcellina! The video is especially helpful, worth a thousand words trying to describe the technique.
By the way, I notice you add egg to the dough, just like I do. I understand some people turn their noses at the idea, but it really makes the dough more manageable and the gnocchi less likely to break apart. And no, I don’t find it makes them tough as some people say.
Thanks you, Frank. Yes, I can’t say I find the egg makes them tough. It’s not a lot of egg when you actually think about it.
Oh my goodness. These gnocchi look perfect. I wish I had a bowl of them in front of me right now. I have not had good luck with freezing gnocchi when they were uncooked. They turned to mush when I put them in boiling water, even at a gentle simmer. BUT, I found that cooking the gnocchi first, then freezing in a single layer and later putting in plastic bags, works much better. And yes, one MUST make the indentations. Aside from the reasons you mentioned, they’re just prettier that way. My mother always used a fork, but I have a little wooden tool that works great.
Thanks for sharing your experience with freezing, Linda. I have never frozen my gnocchi but I know other people have luck freezing their gnocchi. I like your method. How do you reheat them?
Beautiful gnocchi!