Thursday gnocchi (dumplings), Friday fish, Saturday tripe: this has been a mantra of Roman cuisine for centuries and is still respected in some trattorias.
We will talk about the ‘gnocchi alla romana’ which unlike all the others gnocchi are not made with potatoes but with semolina.
The use of some products for this recipe has often questioned its Roman heritage. Someone talks about a Piedmontese dish due to the presence of butter, but Artusi himself wrote of them as a traditional Roman dish.
And who are we to question the great Artusi?
Roman-style gnocchi is perhaps the traditional dish that had less success than pasta alla 'gricia' or 'cacio e pepe'. But it is an interesting dish that can be reinterpreted in modern cuisine.
It is said that it was put on a Thursday because being a dish rich in calories it would have compensated for the lightness of the fish the next day, on Friday.
My gnocchi alla romana are a childhood memory and at the same time a dish that I like to share with friends.
Roman-style gnocchi recipe
In a saucepan, we heat the milk together with a knob of butter, a grated nutmeg and a little salt. When the milk starts to boil, we add the semolina and cook adding some Parmesan cheese.
We turn until the dough comes off the walls, then pour onto a damp surface and level the dough with a wet spatula.
Then, with a simple glass we make discs that we partially overlap one another in a bowl. We sprinkle them with butter, Parmesan and pecorino cheese and finally bake everything.
Aside, we made quenelles of Roman broccoli sautéed with garlic, oil and chilli, crispy bacon and crumbs of tarallo.
In the glass I chose a Frascati Classico but also a Gavi or an Arneis is fine, let's say that Lazio and Piedmont wines go well with this dish.
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