Preparation of Easy Easy Gnocchi WITHOUT Potatoes

• Important Note: Flour and water must have the same weight.

  Method:
  Take a bowl and sift the flour.

  The ideal amount of coarse salt is 2 tsps per liter of water (and therefore per kilo of flour), in this recipe we use 4 cups of flour, so we use 2 tsps of coarse salt.

• Pour the water into a large pot and put it on the fire with 2 tsps of coarse salt. As soon as it starts boiling (that is, as soon as it reaches 212°F), pour all the sifted flour at once into the pot.

• Immediately stir the dough vigorously to mix the flour and water well, without forming lumps. After 3 minutes, when you see that the dough is smooth and homogeneous, remove the pot from the heat.

• Immediately pour all the contents of the pot onto a wooden or marble surface.

• Let the dough cool a bit, then start kneading until it becomes a smooth and homogeneous dough ball (I don’t have strong hands and used the mixer with paddle attachment).

• Wrap the dough ball in a damp cloth and let it rest for about half an hour to develop the gluten and make it softer.
  If you are in a hurry, you can wait just 10 minutes.

  

• After the indicated time, cut the dough with a dough cutter into smaller pieces, form small rolls, then cut them into small chunks. You will see that the dough is wonderful and they don’t stick together, but if you want, to be safe, flour them a bit, but it’s generally not necessary.

• Once all are cut, you can line them with a fork (or, if you have it, with the appropriate tool, the gnocchi board). I didn’t line them because I was in a hurry, but they are still delicious.

• Cook the gnocchi in boiling water with a drizzle of oil, drain them as they float to the surface with a slotted spoon.

• These easy easy gnocchi WITHOUT potatoes can be dressed as you like: alla sorrentina, with butter and sage, with Bolognese ragù (or Neapolitan), with béchamel, with four cheeses, with pesto, cream and mushrooms, etc.
   

  

• I dressed them with sausage sauce, or – if you prefer a simpler and quicker sauce – you can also use my “Fresh Tomato Sauce (Grandma’s Recipe)“.
  To the sauce, you can also add smoked provola and/or parmesan (alla sorrentina), but it’s optional.

  

• These gnocchi are very practical and can be made a few days in advance (stored in the refrigerator) or you can also freeze them raw, then take them from the freezer and drop them directly frozen into the boiling water.