If you have never tried homemade potato gnocchi before this vegetarian red pesto gnocchi recipe is a great place to start! The delicious red pesto is made with sun dried tomatoes, walnuts, and parmesan.
Any fan of tomato is sure to love this dish. The dried tomato pesto brings out all of the rich and sweet qualities of a tomato. They're somewhat spicy, sour, and sweet flavor creates a creamy sauce when ground with walnuts and parmesan cheese.
Serve this recipe with a quick salad such as this beet greens salad or a mediterranean cucumber salad to round out a fantastic dinner.
Key Ingredients
- Sun Dried Tomatoes
- Walnuts
- Parmesan Cheese
- Olive Oil
- Potato
- Fresh Basil
Instructions
Variations
This recipe works just as well with store bought gnocchi if you are looking for a quicker meal. But I do highly recommend trying to make it from scratch. It is actually very simple, and it's soft dumpling-like texture is insanely delicious.
Similar to basil pesto, traditional Italian red pesto is made with pine nuts instead of walnuts. However, pine nuts can be very expensive so I will often just stick with walnuts to be economical. If you want to splurge on some pine nuts though, they're salty, creamy flavor will make this something truly special.
Top Tip
I prefer the red pesto sauce to be more coarse for this recipe, but if you want a creamier sauce simply just puree the pesto for a few minutes in the blender or food processor instead of pulsing.
Italian Recipes
Looking for some other italian recipes to try? Check these out:
Red Pesto Gnocchi
Nutrition
Ingredients
Gnocchi
- 1 large baking potato, (cut into large pieces)
- 1 egg yolk
- ½ cup all purpose flour, (plus more for dusting)
- ½ teaspoon salt, (plus for more for the boiling water)
Red Pesto
- 1 cup sun dried tomatoes
- ½ cup walnuts, (or pine nuts)
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, (grated)
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt, (or more to taste)
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- fresh basil leaves, (for garnish)
Instructions
Potato Gnocchi
- Start by making the gnocchi. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and add the potato chunks. Cook for about 10 minutes or until a pairing knife can easily be inserted. Remove the potatoes from pot and add to a bowl and let cool for about 10-15 minutes.
- Next, mash the potatoes until smooth using a potato ricer or masher. Then fold in the egg yolk, flour, and salt until a smooth dough is created. Depending on the size of the potato you may need a bit more flour.
- Divide the dough into four balls and roll them into 1" tubes on a lightly floured surface. Then, cut the tubes into 1" pieces.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil, and add the potato gnocchi. Once they float to the surface, about 2-3 minutes, they are done. Remove with a slotted spoon and save the cooking water. Don't crowd the pot, this might need to be done in batches.
Red Pesto
- When the gnocchi is done, add the sun dried tomatoes and walnuts to a blender or food processor and pulse until well ground but slightly coarse. Scoop into a large bowl.
- Add the grated parmesan cheese, olive oil, salt, and black pepper and mix well. This recipe makes more red pesto than you need for a single serving.
Red Pesto Gnocchi
- Bring a large fry pan to medium heat, and add 1 cup of the red pesto and 1 cup of the cooking water from the gnocchi. Stir until a creamy sauce is formed and is boiling. Add the reserved gnocchi and continue to cook until the sauce becomes thick and creamy and coats the gnocchi, about 3-4 minutes. Serve with basil leaves.
Video
Notes
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Food Safety
- Cook meat to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
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