Ciao Chow Linda

Gnocchi Alla Romana with Butternut Squash

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Total time: 1 hour

Serves: 6-8 people

Ingredients

• 1 cup butternut squash, diced into small pieces

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• salt, pepper

• 9 oz. semolina (1 1/4 cup)

• 1 1/2 quarts of milk

• 2 eggs

• 1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter

• pinch of salt

• pinch of white pepper

• a few gratings of nutmeg

• 1 cup parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Peel the butternut squash and dice into small pieces.

2. Toss with the olive oil, salt and pepper.

3. (I use herbed salt that I make from fresh herbs.)

4. Roast the squash in a 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes, turning once.

5. Remove squash from oven and set aside.

6. Place the milk and the semolina in a saucepan.

7. Many people tell you to heat the milk first, then add the semolina, but I find it gets lumpy that way, so I start with cold milk and add the semolina directly.

8. Whisk it constantly, adding half the stick of butter (4 tablespoons), the salt, the white pepper and the nutmeg.

9. After about five minutes, it will thicken quite a bit, and you can switch from stirring with the whisk to a wooden spoon.

10. Keep stirring another ten minutes until the mixture is very thick.

11. Remove from the heat and add half the parmesan cheese.

12. Whisk the eggs in a glass measuring cup or bowl.

13. Don’t add the eggs directly into the hot gnocchi mixture or you might wind up with scrambled eggs.

14. Instead, add a small amount – maybe a few tablespoons – of the gnocchi mixture to the eggs, stirring quickly with a whisk to incorporate.

15. Do this a few times until the mixture is thickened and homogenized.

16. Add the egg mixture back to the gnocchi mixture and stir in the reserved squash.

17. Wet a cookie sheet (one with raised edges) with a little water.

18. Spread the gnocchi mixture on the cookie sheet, to an even thickness of about 3/4 inch.

19. Place the cookie sheet in the refrigerator and let it cool for at least four hours or overnight.

20. Take a round cookie cutter, or biscuit cutter, or even the edge of a glass, and cut out circles, about two to three inches in diameter.

21. Grease an oven proof casserole, and place the rounds inside, overlapping slightly.

22. Make a second layer, but don’t completely cover up the first layer around the edges, since you want them to get some browning too.

23. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter and drizzle over the gnocchi, then sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup parmesan cheese.

24. Bake uncovered, at 400 degrees, for about 30 minutes, or until golden brown.