When you think of celebrities that would be most fun to vacation with, Fabio Viviani is certainly up there! With charisma, humor, a wonderful Italian accent and fantastic culinary skills, Fabio is an asset in any situation. We recently had Fabio Viviani on our October 22nd Athens to Rome sailing and he was even more fun to have onboard than we anticipated!
Guests remarked on his enthralling cooking demonstration, where his passion and contagious enthusiasm pushed him to share his ingredients with the entire room up close and personal. Below is Fabio’s Potato Gnocchi with Cherry Tomato Sauce recipe – but remember Fabio’s advice: don’t become too distracted with a recipe, use your common sense when cooking! So just consider this recipe a starting point for your own Fabio-esque creations:
Potato Gnocchi with Cherry Tomato Sauce
Serves 4
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
GNOCCHI:
- 3 medium baking potatoes peeled, cooked and mashed
- 1 egg
- ½ tsp. ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. black pepper
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
SAUCE:
- 2 Tbsp. Bertolli® Classico™ Olive Oil
- 1 lb. cherry tomatoes
- 1 bunch fresh basil leaves
- ¼ cup Bertolli® Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Thinly sliced Parmesan cheese
Directions:
- For Gnocchi, combine room temperature potatoes, egg, nutmeg, salt and pepper in bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until combined. Add ¼ cup of flour at time on low speed until dough starts to form. Dough should be easy to handle and smooth. Use additional flour if necessary. Turn dough out on lightly floured surface. Cut the dough into four pieces. Gently roll each piece of dough into cylinder-like shape, about a ½ inch in diameter. Cut dough into ¾-inch long pieces and set aside on a lightly floured surface. Repeat with remaining dough.
- Cook gnocchi, in batches, in a large pot of salted boiling water, 2 minutes or until gnocchi start to float.
- For Sauce, heat Bertolli Classico Olive Oil in large skillet over medium-high heat and cook cherry tomatoes, about 5 minutes or until skins start to blister.
- Add basil to food processor Process until well chopped. Slowly add Bertolli Extra Virgin Olive Oil and process until smooth. Spoon basil oil into cheesecloth-lined strainer set over a bowl; let drain. Reserve liquid.
- Combine cooked gnocchi and tomato sauce in serving bowl. Season with salt and ground black pepper to taste. Drizzle with reserved basil oil and top with Parmesan cheese. Garnish, if desired, with fresh basil leaves or fried fresh basil leaves.
- Enjoy!
Stay tuned for more on Fabio Viviani’s voyage with us!
