Freezing gnochi

The Golfer's Wife said:

I have made up the mixture for gnocchi (or potato dumplings) and I
would like now to make the gnocchi. There will be way too much and I
wonder if I can free-flow freeze them and if so, is there anything
else I especially have to do?

Be grateful for a reply.

The Golfer's Wife

That's fine. They freeze very well, but don't leave them too long.
Some people thaw them before cooking, some don't. I can't say which is
better. Since they are heftier than other pasta, perhaps it is better
to thaw them in the amount you want to use before cooking.

--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

<The Golfer's Wife> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have made up the mixture for gnocchi (or potato dumplings) and I
would like now to make the gnocchi. There will be way too much and I
wonder if I can free-flow freeze them and if so, is there anything
else I especially have to do?

Be grateful for a reply.

The Golfer's Wife

Gnocchi freeze well. Place on a sheet pan, freeze, portion in plastic bags.
They'll be good for about a month, after that they will start to dry out
(freezer burn). Boil from frozen, 2-3 minutes.

On Sat, 14 Jul 2007 06:58:05 GMT, "Paco's Tacos" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

<The Golfer's Wife> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have made up the mixture for gnocchi (or potato dumplings) and I
would like now to make the gnocchi. There will be way too much and I
wonder if I can free-flow freeze them and if so, is there anything
else I especially have to do?

Be grateful for a reply.

The Golfer's Wife

Gnocchi freeze well. Place on a sheet pan, freeze, portion in plastic bags.
They'll be good for about a month, after that they will start to dry out
(freezer burn). Boil from frozen, 2-3 minutes.

Thank you so much for that. We find gnocchi generally fairly bland,
but I guess the sauce is the the answer to this? I made a batch
from simply potato, egg and flour but added grated parmesan cheese to
give te gnocchi a lift. I wonder if cooked grated onion with garlic
might also help. Do you know?

Thanks again.

The Golfer's Wife

The Golfer's Wife said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

The Golfer's Wife

Quoted message said:

Thank you so much for that. We find gnocchi generally fairly bland,
but I guess the sauce is the the answer to this? I made a batch
from simply potato, egg and flour but added grated parmesan cheese to
give te gnocchi a lift. I wonder if cooked grated onion with garlic
might also help. Do you know?

Thanks again.

The Golfer's Wife

It is better not to add things to the gnocchi because they can go gummy.
Stuffed gnocchi are available, and they are gummy. Try piquant
sauces, like Gorgonzola and walnuts, or very bright ragù versus the
sweeter versions. We don't even use egg to keep them lighter and
fluffier. Just potato, salt and flour. They can also be baked with
sauces alla ziti.

If you really don't care for them, why do you make them? Are you aware
of all the other non-potato gnocchi? Like semolina?

--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

<The Golfer's Wife> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Sat, 14 Jul 2007 06:58:05 GMT, "Paco's Tacos" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

<The Golfer's Wife> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have made up the mixture for gnocchi (or potato dumplings) and I
would like now to make the gnocchi. There will be way too much and I
wonder if I can free-flow freeze them and if so, is there anything
else I especially have to do?

Be grateful for a reply.

The Golfer's Wife

Gnocchi freeze well. Place on a sheet pan, freeze, portion in plastic
bags.
They'll be good for about a month, after that they will start to dry out
(freezer burn). Boil from frozen, 2-3 minutes.

Thank you so much for that. We find gnocchi generally fairly bland,
but I guess the sauce is the the answer to this? I made a batch
from simply potato, egg and flour but added grated parmesan cheese to
give te gnocchi a lift. I wonder if cooked grated onion with garlic
might also help. Do you know?

Thanks again.

The Golfer's Wife

I agree with Giusi; adding moist ingredients like onion or garlic will
change the texture of the gnocchi and not in a good way. We add some nutmeg
and some white pepper along with the salt, for flavoring.

Giusi said:

The Golfer's Wife said:

Quoted message said:

>
> The Golfer's Wife

Quoted message said:

Thank you so much for that. We find gnocchi generally fairly bland,
but I guess the sauce is the the answer to this? I made a batch
from simply potato, egg and flour but added grated parmesan cheese to
give te gnocchi a lift. I wonder if cooked grated onion with garlic
might also help. Do you know?

Thanks again.

The Golfer's Wife

It is better not to add things to the gnocchi because they can go gummy.
Stuffed gnocchi are available, and they are gummy. Try piquant
sauces, like Gorgonzola and walnuts, or very bright ragù versus the
sweeter versions. We don't even use egg to keep them lighter and
fluffier. Just potato, salt and flour. They can also be baked with
sauces alla ziti.

If you really don't care for them, why do you make them?

I wasn't aware that I said I didn't like them. I said sometimes
gnocchi can be bland and may need something to add interest or flavour
- perhaps an interesting sauce?

Quoted message said:

Are you aware
of all the other non-potato gnocchi? Like semolina?

Yes I am. I don't like semolina gnocchi. And I know one can make
them with ricotta and spinach and they are very nice but I haven't
tried to do this myself.

Do you know if the basic potato dumpling style gnocchi I make has to
be cooked before freezing, or can I simply cook it after thawing out?

Thanks for this.

Cheers

The Golfer's Wife

<The Golfer's Wife> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Sat, 14 Jul 2007 06:58:05 GMT, "Paco's Tacos" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

<The Golfer's Wife> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have made up the mixture for gnocchi (or potato dumplings) and I
would like now to make the gnocchi. There will be way too much and I
wonder if I can free-flow freeze them and if so, is there anything
else I especially have to do?

Be grateful for a reply.

The Golfer's Wife

Gnocchi freeze well. Place on a sheet pan, freeze, portion in plastic
bags.
They'll be good for about a month, after that they will start to dry out
(freezer burn). Boil from frozen, 2-3 minutes.

Thank you so much for that. We find gnocchi generally fairly bland,
but I guess the sauce is the the answer to this? I made a batch
from simply potato, egg and flour but added grated parmesan cheese to
give te gnocchi a lift. I wonder if cooked grated onion with garlic
might also help. Do you know?

Thanks again.

The Golfer's Wife

If you want to bump up the flavour & texture, try frying the gnocchi after
it is cooked. This is one of the few things that I think a non-stick pan is
perfectly suited to.

Over fairly high heat, add some oil (I use olive but you have to be careful
not to let it get too hot and start degrading - peanut oil would be a good
oil for a first attempt as it's more forgiving temperature-wise) and then,
using a slotted spoon, drain each scoop and add to the frypan. CAUTION: If
you don't drain sufficiently you will get some serious oil splatter. With
practice, you can get a real rhythm going, doing small batches at a time,
getting them crisp and golden brown on the outide.

When all gnocchi is done, drain the oil (or not), and put the sauce in and
heat it up. Then add the gnocchi back in and stir to coat.

A number of friends have said they didn't care for gnocchi until they tried
it this way. Add parmesan once plated.

Cheers,

Pete
Ormiston, Qld, Australia

The Golfer's Wife said:

Giusi said:

The Golfer's Wife said:

>> The Golfer's Wife
Thank you so much for that. We find gnocchi generally fairly bland,
but I guess the sauce is the the answer to this? I made a batch
from simply potato, egg and flour but added grated parmesan cheese to
give te gnocchi a lift. I wonder if cooked grated onion with garlic
might also help. Do you know?

Thanks again.

The Golfer's Wife

It is better not to add things to the gnocchi because they can go gummy.
Stuffed gnocchi are available, and they are gummy. Try piquant
sauces, like Gorgonzola and walnuts, or very bright ragù versus the
sweeter versions. We don't even use egg to keep them lighter and
fluffier. Just potato, salt and flour. They can also be baked with
sauces alla ziti.

If you really don't care for them, why do you make them?

I wasn't aware that I said I didn't like them. I said sometimes
gnocchi can be bland and may need something to add interest or flavour
- perhaps an interesting sauce?

Quoted message said:

Are you aware
of all the other non-potato gnocchi? Like semolina?

Yes I am. I don't like semolina gnocchi. And I know one can make
them with ricotta and spinach and they are very nice but I haven't
tried to do this myself.

Do you know if the basic potato dumpling style gnocchi I make has to
be cooked before freezing, or can I simply cook it after thawing out?

Thanks for this.

Cheers

The Golfer's Wife

Don't cook them first.

Like other pastas, gnocchi are supposed to be the blander part of an
assemblage. They're really eaten a lot where I live.. Umbria is famous
for them. Sometimes they're good, sometimes they're not. Our local
ones are meant to be very light and they are not scored but are just
little cuts off a rope rolled with the hands.

Try flavorful cheese sauces and see how you like that.

--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

On Sun, 15 Jul 2007 21:40:56 +1000, "Peter"
<aussieslothNOSPAMMERSatyahoo.com.au> wrote:

A little snip here!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Gnocchi freeze well. Place on a sheet pan, freeze, portion in plastic
bags.
They'll be good for about a month, after that they will start to dry out
(freezer burn). Boil from frozen, 2-3 minutes.

Thank you so much for that. We find gnocchi generally fairly bland,
but I guess the sauce is the the answer to this? I made a batch
from simply potato, egg and flour but added grated parmesan cheese to
give te gnocchi a lift. I wonder if cooked grated onion with garlic
might also help. Do you know?

Thanks again.

The Golfer's Wife

If you want to bump up the flavour & texture, try frying the gnocchi after
it is cooked. This is one of the few things that I think a non-stick pan is
perfectly suited to.

Over fairly high heat, add some oil (I use olive but you have to be careful
not to let it get too hot and start degrading - peanut oil would be a good
oil for a first attempt as it's more forgiving temperature-wise) and then,
using a slotted spoon, drain each scoop and add to the frypan. CAUTION: If
you don't drain sufficiently you will get some serious oil splatter. With
practice, you can get a real rhythm going, doing small batches at a time,
getting them crisp and golden brown on the outide.

When all gnocchi is done, drain the oil (or not), and put the sauce in and
heat it up. Then add the gnocchi back in and stir to coat.

A number of friends have said they didn't care for gnocchi until they tried
it this way. Add parmesan once plated.

Cheers,

Pete
Ormiston, Qld, Australia

Thank you Pete for your hints. I have used this potato/egg/flour
mixture in a number of ways now - as potato dumplings to go with
Hungarian and Czech goulash, as potato dumplings cooked in the last 15
minutes or so of a beef stew that has lots of yummy gravy. And as
gnocchi.

I have also sliced off the roll 2 cm pieces of mixture and fried them
in a little butter and oil. I haven't tried doing this with cooked
pieces (gnocchi or otherwise). I will try that. It sounds good. I
use peanut oil quite often when I don't want the oil to burn or
degrade. Perhaps the trick is to cook the gnocchi, remove and drain
onto paper towels, and then fry in hot oil or butter or a mixture of
both.

I have tried a number of experiments with the potatoes. But this is
the best I have come up with: boil about 500g (1lb or thereabouts) of
good yellow-type mashing potatoes (I use Agria) for about 18 minutes
or so - until a skewer will go through. Drain and dry in the pan
over the element turned off for a couple of minutes.

I then push the potatoes through a ricer. I bought mine in Queensland
as it happens! When it is cool, I place it in a bowl, cover with
cling-wrap and put in the refrigerator overnight.

(Some recipes say you can deal with the potatoes warm, and some say
refrigerate. I like the latter.) Next day I add to the potatoes 1
egg and enough flour to make a firm mixture. The flour measurements
are frequently not enough, and I think there is a "feel" about this
mixture that the cook gets to know. I worked at it a couple of
times. (The first time the gnocchi disastrously dissolved immediately
in the boiling water!)

The mixture seems to take a lot more flour than you think it will. I
then add whatever I think will enhance the flavour. But here I am
quite at sea. I added about half to 3/4 cup of grated parmesan to
the last batch - and it improved the flavour. Can I add cooked
finely chopped onion and garlic I wonder? And what else? As a
cook I think finely chopped herbs of some sort would be ok also.

I need some help with additives here.

Thanks for your input

Cheers

The Golfer's Wife