Gnocchi: An Expert (Italian) Video Guide

Gnocchi, like most forms of dumpling, are a common sight in my house - I love all forms of dumpling, in fact I have a whole book dedicated to the things (A World of Dumplings: Filled Dumplings, Pockets & Little Pies from Around the Globe)! Gnocchi can be tricky to perfect though, so I thought I'd shoot some video of the Italians mum creating a batch over in Italia this Christmas. Like most couples we have to alternate between parents at this time of year, and this time around it was our turn to be in Italy with B's mum and dad, Anna & Elio.

These weren't actually for Christmas day, just another lunchtime - but B's mum pretty much always sticks to the the traditional primo/secondo style of Italian dining. The primo is generally something like pasta with sauce or risotto - or indeed gnocchi - and then the secondo some form of meat with vegetables. And if you think my portion of gnocchi below looks large for a 'starter' then you should have seen it before I got her to take some off ...

Preparing the dough. The potatoes have been baked till tender, left to just cool a little, then passed through a potato ricer.

Making the dumplings.

Some of the finished article, ready for the pot.

Poaching some test dumplings - and a little bit of dog (!) Gnocchi are cooked when they rise to the surface of the boiling water.

The finished dish, together with a meat ragu (venison).

The secondo being prepared.

All in all very delicious -  and somehow I managed to return from Christmas no heavier than I left. Wonders will never cease.

P.S. Just in case you speak Italian, and are wondering why you can't understand anything that's said, they are speaking a dialect that's local to the area and although has some similarity to Italian is different enough to make most of it pretty unintelligible.