Caesar gnocchi, the crouton situation
The crisp gnocchi is the crouton. Massaged romaine, a proper yolk-and-anchovy dressing, a blizzard of pecorino.
At a Glance
Story
Caesar salad was invented in Tijuana, not Italy, by Caesar Cardini on a slammed Fourth of July in 1924 out of what was left in the kitchen. The original had no anchovy at all, the savory hit came from Worcestershire, and the whole romaine leaves were built to be lifted and eaten by hand. A real Caesar dressing is an egg-yolk emulsion, not a spoonful of mayonnaise, and that is what gives it the glossy cling.
Ingredients
- 1 × 16 oz package shelf-stable potato gnocchi16 to 17 oz
- 2 romaine heartschopped (or lacinato kale, massaged)
- 1 egg yolk
- 4 anchovy filletsminced (plus more, they are the point)
- 1 garlic clovegrated
- ½ lemonjuiced
- 6 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 oz Pecorino Romanofinely grated (plus more to finish)
- ¼ cup pankooptional, for pangrattato
- salt and black pepper
Method
The crouton pun that turns out to be dinner. The dressing is the whole game, so build it first and make it loud.
- Whisk the egg yolk, anchovy, garlic and lemon juice in a large bowl, then stream in 5 tablespoons of the olive oil a little at a time until it turns glossy and thick. Stir in the pecorino and plenty of black pepper. Taste, it should be sharp and savory and a little aggressive.
- If you want the extra crunch, toast the panko in the last tablespoon of oil in a small pan until golden, then tip it out to cool.
- Crisp the gnocchi in a large skillet, 8 to 10 minutes, tossing every 2, until golden all over. Let them cool in the pan for a couple of minutes.
- Toss the romaine through the dressing until every ribbon is coated, then add the warm gnocchi and the pangrattato and toss once more.
- Finish with a blizzard of pecorino, more black pepper and a few extra anchovies laid over the top for anyone brave enough.
For a crowd
Scale the dressing by eye in your biggest bowl and taste as you go, it wants to be punchy. Crisp three packages of gnocchi across two sheet pans at 450°F for 20 to 25 minutes until deep golden, and toss them through at the very last minute so they stay crisp against the leaves rather than going soft in the dressing.
Gnocchi series
Crisp the gnocchi hard, then pile a dinner you already know on top. It improves nearly everything.
10 recipesMore to cook
Crisp rice cakes and sausage in a ketchup glaze
Rice cakes fried until they crackle, then lacquered in ketchup and miso with the sausage.
A full course of Italian penicillin
Chicken soup's glamorous Italian cousin, with a spicy crumb and a cold lemon dollop.
Harissa shrimp broiled over a tray of greens
The greens go in first with half a cup of water, and the shrimp only arrive once the broiler takes over.
Salt and pepper dumplings straight from the freezer
Frozen potstickers and green beans, tossed at the last second in salt, sugar and more black pepper than seems wise.
Garlic noodles the way San Francisco does them
Two heads of garlic, plenty of butter and three bottles from the cupboard, done in the time it takes to boil the pasta.
Shrimp over creamed corn, and rather a lot of feta
Corn simmered soft in cream and butter, then blitzed until chunky and used the way you would use grits.
Creamy lemon spaghetti with a Sichuan pepper buzz
Crème fraîche, miso and lemon make the sauce, and toasted Sichuan peppercorns go in twice so your lips hum.
Chicken sausage and lemon, baked as a lasagna
A lasagna that went on holiday and came back with a tan and a lemon habit.
Pumpkin pasta with sausage and crisp sage
Tinned pumpkin, Gruyère and a sheet pan to crisp the lot.
Sausage lasagna spread thin for the crust
Lasagna with no layers, baked flat on a sheet pan, and an insult to nonnas everywhere.
Vodka rigatoni, baked till the tops crackle
Vodka sauce given a sheet pan, a jar of Calabrian chilis and a honey drizzle it did nothing to deserve.
Charred corn and halloumi panzanella with chili crisp
One bowl, mostly made in the morning, so the cook can sit down with the guests.
Chicken and zucchini meatballs under a feta sauce
Half the meatball is grated zucchini, which is the only reason a chicken meatball has any business being this juicy.
Dan dan noodles, served cold on purpose
The sesame and chile sauce is bossy enough to work as a dressing, so the noodles never need to be hot.
Zucchini parmesan, roasted not fried
All the comfort of the fried original, a fraction of the oil, and no pan spitting at you.