It’s easy and fun to make light, tender homemade potato gnocchi. Toss with walnut-parsley pesto or your favorite sauce!
This is my go-to potato gnocchi recipe, the one I make over and over again.
The gnocchi turn out light and fluffy, as any respectable potato dumpling should be.
They’ll be delicious with your favorite tomato or garlic butter sauce, but I love them coated with this beautiful wintergreen pesto sauce made with toasted walnuts and parsley.
How to make gnocchi
The process of making gnocchi is really fun, especially if you have willing kitchen helpers.
My kids loved getting their hands on the dough when they were wee ones — and they’re still pretty good at it!
The secret to the cloud-like texture of these gnocchi is to bake the potatoes rather than boiling them.
You get lighter gnocchi because the spuds don’t absorb too much water.
The starchy potato merges gracefully with the flour and egg, making a pliable, easy-to-handle dough.
If you don’t have a wooden gnocchi board, you can just use a fork to make the distinctive grooves in each dumpling.
However, you will miss out on the pleasure of feeling just like an Italian mama!
Homemade Potato Gnocchi with Walnut-Parsley Pesto
How to make homemade potato gnocchi - it's not as hard as you think!
Ingredients
- 3 large baking potatoes, about 2 pounds total
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 – 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese
- Walnut-Parsley Pesto:
- 1/2 cup toasted walnuts
- 1 1/4 cups Italian parsley leaves, thicker stems trimmed
- 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 small garlic clove
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- To make the gnocchi, heat the oven to 400 degrees. Poke the potatoes a few times with a fork and place directly on the oven rack. Bake about 1 hour, or until tender when pierced. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, remove the skins and push them through a food mill or ricer into a large bowl.
- Add the salt, egg yolks and 2 cups flour and mix together. Turn the mixture out onto a floured surface and knead, adding more flour if needed, until a soft (but not sticky), smooth dough forms.
- Divide the dough into portions the size of the palm of your hand, and roll each into a rope about 1/2-inch thick. Cut into 1-inch lengths. Roll each wad of dough firmly over a gnocchi board or the concave side of a fork. Arrange the gnocchi on a floured baking sheet as you go.
- Bring a large stockpot of salted water to a boil; drop the gnocchi in batches into the water and boil until they bob to the surface, about 3 minutes. Scoop out 1/4 cup of the cooking water and reserve.
- To serve, stir a about a tablespoon of reserved cooking water into the pesto sauce until it's smooth. Toss the gnocchi gently with the sauce in a serving bowl, and top with grated parmesan.
For the pesto:
- Put the walnuts in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add the parsley, cheese, olive oil, salt and garlic.
- Process until the pesto is smooth.
Notes
To be sure you always have a late-night gnocchi stash on hand, make a batch of gnocchi ahead and freeze them: lay them out on a tray and place in the freezer. When they're frozen solid, transfer the gnocchi to zippered bags.
Hi there! I’m Karen, a mother of two and a professionally trained cook certified in holistic nutrition.
As the recipe developer, photographer and publisher of Familystyle Food, I share recipes and tips for making easy seasonal meals that are healthy and flavorful. Learn more about me here.
Check out the full recipe index.
Have a question or feedback on a recipe?
Join the conversation and leave a comment below, or send me an email — I love hearing from you!
Bellini Valli says
The first time I ever had gnocchi I was a teenager at an Italian restaurant in Wasaga Beach. This past fall the entire old town burnt down…not that it was really a town but with arcades and amusements. A piece of history gone I suppose, but, I will always remember the gnocchi!!
Susan from Food Blogga says
I love everything about making gnocchi from mixing the dough, to forming the pasta, to eating and eating and eating more of them. Did I mention I love eating them? 😉 Yours look perfect, Karen. Hope 2008 has been good to you so far!
Jenny says
Those gnocci look so yummy. I’ve never made them from scratch, but I bet they are wonderful. Sounds like you and your family had a wonderful time together over the holidays. What better way to spend time together than in the kitchen! Hope we get to meet at a great cook-off in 2008!
Karen says
Wow, Bellini, what a story.
Somehow those gnocchi will seem even better.
Susan,it is fun making gnocchi, isn’t it?
When we made these, everyone wanted a turn getting their hands in.
All the best to you in 2008!
Jenny, we had a great time and the gnocchi are defintely worth trying.
I’m working on those chicken recipes next! Cheers!
Ronnie (http://aroundthetable.typepad.com) says
The gnocchi looks perfect and the family fun is to be admired. Congrats on maintaining your food and family traditions
Emiline says
You are always an inspirations, Karen. These gnocchi look great!
I’ve tried making some out of butternut squash, but the “dough” is always too wet, so I end up adding a lot of flour.
Hope you had a good holiday. That’s wonderful that you get to spend so much time with family.
L says
I am so sad that we are now home and not making gnocchi together this weekend. Should I order the paddle from Amazon?
Lisa says
Oh, well those look just scrumptious. I keep promising myself to try my hand at gnocchi again (there was a failed attempt a million years ago); maybe your recipe will get me to, er, pull the trigger.
Karen says
Ronnie, we’re really fortunate to have the best people in the world for family. It’s what everything is all about.
Hi Emiline – I hope you had a great holiday season, too!
I’ve made sweet potato gnocchi, and they don’t turn out as light. It must have some to do with the higher moisture content in the sweet potatoes and/or squash.
Hey, you. We made trout for dinner tonight, and we hardly ever do, in the spirit of the F/F kitchen.
I’m sending you a gnocchi board!
Yes, Lisa, do pull the trigger.
It really is fun once you get “rolling” along. Enjoy….
Lore says
If there is something that I don’t get enough of those are gnocchi. Thank you so much Karen for sharing your variation!
Squishy says
Just curious, what is a Roto Rooster? I never thought of baking potatoes before for Gnocchi, thanks for the tip 🙂
Karen says
Lore, you’re very welcome. Thanks for visiting.
Squishy, Roto Rooter is a plumbing franchise here in the States – they come and snake out our nasty drain clogs. Nice, huh?
Schach Community says
You Gnocchis look so delicious, I d love to try them ones. Can you give me the exact recipe?
Laura | Tutti Dolci says
I love gnocchi and your pesto looks incredible!
Liza says
This looks so good! Let’s make some!
XO
Janice DeThomas says
This recipe sounds so delicious and easy. I can’t wait to make them. YUM!
Karen says
I hope you’ll love them as much as I do!