Homemade potato gnocchi with meat sauce

In Rome we say "Thursday gnocchi", but in reality in my family gnocchi were always prepared on Sundays, when we were all together. The skilled and wrinkled hands of my dear grandmother, often delighted us at family lunches, in which in the morning she kneaded the gnocchi and my mother prepared the meat sauce and it was immediately a great party! However, time passes inexorably for everyone... My dear grandmother is always with me in my heart, along with sweet scents and memories, and every time I happen to prepare gnocchi for my wife and our son, my heart tightens letting itself be carried away by memories. Among the many, a beautiful one was when at the age of 28 (39 years ago... as I am old) together with my best friend, we spent the whole morning at her house to be taught this succulent dish. Of course, we did very well having an exceptional teacher and our friends licked their lips! Over the years I have modified the recipe by adding an egg, while my grandmother didn't put it, try both versions and choose your favorite!

Ingredients

For the gnocchi dough

1 kg Potatoes 

300 g flour

1 Eggs

1 pinch Fine salt

For the meat sauce

Minced pork

Minced beef

500 g Peeled tomatoes

1 tablespoon Tomato paste 

1 Onions

Extra virgin olive oil

half glass Dry white wine

 Fine salt

Preparation

Finely slice an onion and fry it over low heat in a saucepan with a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, then add the minced meat, mixing everything to flavor it and breaking it up with the tip of a wooden spoon. Season with salt and when it is well browned, deglaze with the white wine, raising the heat a little. When the wine has evaporated and the sauce has withdrawn a little, add the concentrate. Stir thoroughly, add half a glass of water, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Now add the peeled tomatoes, season with salt again (taste) and finish cooking for another 25 minutes or so, then turn off and let rest. Wash the potatoes carefully, put them in a pan of cold water on the stove and count about 30 minutes from when it boils. Once the time has elapsed (to be on the safe side, pinch the potatoes with a fork, to check that they are soft and therefore ready) drain them in a colander and as soon as they are lukewarm, peel them immediately by placing them in a bowl. Take a potato masher and start passing them through it by squeezing them well into another bowl. Repeat the operation a second time, so that you can crush even coarser pieces that may have escaped the first time. Stand on a pastry board or work table, sift the flour in the center of the board, put the potatoes on top, form a hole and pour the lightly beaten egg with a pinch of salt, knead quickly, just enough to collect everything, obtaining a soft dough. Dust a part of the table with flour, and put the dough there. Peel off one piece at a time with a knife and form long and thick cords 2 or 3 cm, then always with a knife or a tarot, cut the gnocchi by about one cm (it also depends on how you like them, whether small, medium or large). Once you have the gnocchi, roll them gently and quickly to give the classic elongated shape, or if you like them striped, use the special wooden board. As you make them, sprinkle them with flour to keep them from sticking, and continue. Once you have them all, let them rest for about twenty minutes. Boil the water in a tall saucepan, as soon as it boils, start dipping the gnocchi, I recommend A FEW at a time (about a dish), in this way they will not stick together. As you drain the gnocchi (use a slotted spoon) transfer them directly to a salad bowl and dress. The gnocchi come back to the surface quickly, that is the exact moment when you will have to drain them, STRICTLY with a slotted spoon, the round perforated scoop so as not to ruin them and be able to drain them as you dip them. Once they've all been drained and seasoned, sprinkle with plenty of grated hard cheese and bring your potato gnocchi with meat sauce to the table!

Note

Grandma's tip: for a perfect outcome of the gnocchi, it is essential to choose potatoes, the "old" yellow ones, or the red ones. The dough should not be kneaded too much, but just enough to collect it forming a soft ball, otherwise you risk making the gnocchi too hard.