No. 2956

Gnocquis, Roman Style

Gnocquis a la Romaine

Range a pound of sifted flour in a ring, form a hollow in the center and in it put salt, two ounces of butter, four ounces of mashed potatoes passed through a fine sieve, and a little hot water. Make a firm paste and divide it into small pieces to form three-fourths of an inch diameter balls; press them on a grater, throw into boiling water for fifteen minutes, then drain and serve in a soup tureen in layers alternated with parmesan cheese; pour over hazel-nut butter (No. 567) and some gravy (No. 404) reduced with espagnole sauce (No. 414) and tomato puree (No. 730).

← No. 2955 Gnocquis Macaroni, Rice & Farinaceous No. 2957 Lazagnettes, Philadelphia Style →

For the Modern Kitchen

Ranhofer's formula inverts the modern ratio: this is a flour dough enriched with a little potato, not a potato dumpling bound with flour. Expect something firmer and chewier than the gnocchi sold today, and adjust the cooking accordingly.

Boil them briefly, not for a quarter hourWatch the boiling time -- Ranhofer says fifteen minutes. That is a long boil by modern habit, though this is a firmer, flour-led dough than today's potato gnocchi and will stand more cooking than they would. Use well-salted simmering water, start testing once they rise, and cut one open to check the centre rather than trusting the clock.
The dough is flour-ledOne pound of flour to four ounces of sieved potato gives roughly a 4:1 ratio, the reverse of contemporary potato gnocchi. If you want the light modern texture you are making a different dish; made as written it should be rolled thin-skinned and small, and served with plenty of sauce.
"A little hot water"No quantity is given because it depends on the potato's moisture, and the butter and potato already contribute liquid. Add water a spoonful at a time until the dough just comes together into a firm, non-sticky paste, and stop as soon as it coheres.
Pressing on a graterThis is the old way of ridging gnocchi: roll each ball down the coarse face of a box grater with the thumb so it curls and takes grooves. A gnocchi board or the back of fork tines does the same job. The ridges exist to hold the sauce.
Hazel-nut butter contains no hazelnutsRanhofer's No. 567 is beurre noisette — butter cooked until the milk solids brown and it smells of nuts. Take it off the heat while it is still golden-brown; it goes from noisette to burnt in seconds.
The sauces, in a modern kitchenGravy (No. 404), espagnole (No. 414) and tomato purée (No. 730) are three separate mother-kitchen preparations. A well-reduced brown stock or good demi-glace loosened with tomato purée gets you to the same place; the finished sauce should be glossy and just coat a spoon.
Assembly and yieldA pound of flour makes a great many dumplings — enough for eight as a course, more as a garnish. Layer them hot with grated Parmesan so the cheese melts between the layers, then the brown butter, then the sauce over all.

A Little History

Charles Ranhofer published The Epicurean in 1894 after decades as chef at Delmonico's in New York, and the book's Italian entries are filtered through the French professional kitchen — hence the spelling "gnocquis," a French phonetic rendering, and the finishing with espagnole. "À la romaine" today usually means the semolina gnocchi baked in rounds, and Ranhofer's version sits closer to a flour-and-potato paste of the sort that preceded the light potato gnocchi now standard. Potato gnocchi themselves are a comparatively late development, spreading in Italy through the nineteenth century as the potato took hold; a recipe like this one, where potato is a minority ingredient softening a flour dough, catches the technique mid-transition. The layering with Parmesan and browned butter, however, is a familiar enough gesture, even if the espagnole and gravy mark the dish as a product of its own kitchen rather than a Roman one.