Serves 6-8
The ingredients are quintessential summer, and colors are inspiring, from the deep red of the salsa rossa to the shades of gold that come from the gnocchi and the chanterelles. It’s like looking over a field of sunflowers and realizing that this moment can’t just happen any day of the year—that we are lucky to have this experience in front of us.
Ingredients
3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
Gnocchi alla Romana (recipe below)
Salsa Rossa (recipe below)
2 cups Chanterelle Conserva
Sartori Parmesan or Roth Kase Granqueso cheese, to taste
Preparation
Place a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil. Once oil is almost smoking, add gnocchi to the pan, making sure not to overcrowd it. Sear gnocchi on all sides, until golden-brown and warmed throughout. Separately, warm the sauce and warm the chanterelles in their oil. Place a large spoonful of salsa rossa on a plate and top with a piece of gnocchi. Scoop chanterelles out of the oil and spoon them around the gnocchi. Repeat five times, for a total of six plates. There will be extra gnocchi, just in case one breaks. Grate cheese over the dish and serve.
Gnocchi alla Romana
Ingredients
1 quart milk
¼ onion, studded with cloves
Bouquet garni of bay leaf, parsley stems, and basil stems
1 heaping cup semolina flour
2 oz. Sartori Parmesan or Roth Kase Granqueso cheese cheese, finely grated
2 oz. butter
4 egg yolks
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Preparation
In a medium pot over medium heat, infuse milk with onion and bouquet garni by bringing the milk to a bare simmer and then letting ingredients steep for 10 minutes. While the onion and herbs steep in the milk, prepare an 8-x-8 casserole dish by spraying it with cooking spray or greasing it with softened butter.
When the onion and bouquet garni are finished steeping, remove them and increase the heat to high. Add semolina to milk, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon. Once the semolina is fully incorporated, reduce heat to medium low. When the mixture resembles a stiff paste, turn the heat off. Stir in the cheese and butter, allow to cool for a few minutes. Next, add in the egg yolks, stirring constantly until combined. Scoop the mixture from the pot into the prepared casserole dish. Press down the mixture and smooth the top. Lay plastic wrap directly on top of the dough and allow to cool completely in the refrigerator.
When cooled, flip the gnocchi out of the casserole dish onto a cutting board. Cut the dough in half, then cut each half into four pieces for a total of eight pieces. Before serving, crisp gnocchi in a pan as described in the above recipe.
Salsa Rossa
Ingredients
¼ cup olive oil
8 canned piquillo or roasted red peppers, diced
1 jalapeno, red if possible, minced
10 cloves garlic, minced
1 red onion, cut into small dice
4 beefsteak tomatoes, diced
2 tbsp. basil, chopped
2 tbsp. parsley, chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Preparation
Heat olive oil over medium-low heat in a large skillet. Sweat garlic and onion until onions are translucent. Add piquillo and jalapeno peppers to the pan and continue cooking for 4-5 minutes, taking care not to let the garlic burn. Add tomatoes and cook for 10 more minutes. Remove from heat, add herbs, and season with salt and pepper.
