Gnocchi Two Ways, with Pesto and Kale

A fast and tasty weekday meal, that you could probably serve at a summer dinner party as well. Cooking the gnocchi two ways gives the dish more texture and crunch. Serve with a big salad if extra hungry.

Serves 2

Method

• Put a frying pan on a medium heat and add a generous splash of olive oil
• Pour in half the packet of gnocchi
• Add pepper and salt and stir – keep stirring every now and then as prepare the veg
• Chuck the kale in a colander and wash thoroughly. Set aside
• Chop up the pepper into bite sized squares
• Quarter your tomatoes
• Squash each olive with the back of your knife to pop out the stone, rip in half
• Pour kale onto board with rest of veg and assess the frying gnocchi – if the gnocchi is starting to turn a light gold colour, turn down the heat and fill the kettle up with water
• Pour boiling water into a saucepan, on a medium/high heat and throw in the remaining gnocchi
• When each of the gnocchi have floated to the surface (after a couple of minutes) turn down the heat and pour into the colander to drain
• In the same pan, on a low heat, put a generous dollop of pesto
• Add the peppers, tomatoes and olives and mix together
• Check that your fried gnocchi is nearly done – you want it golden in colour, with a crunchy outside and a soft middle. Try if you are unsure
• Add the boiled gnocchi to your pesto mix and then add the kale, stirring as you go
• When the kale is starting to wilt and darken in colour, turn off the heat on both pans
• Serves immediately onto warmed plates, with the pesto-covered gnocchi in the centre and some crunchy fried gnocchi round the edges
• Add a little cracked pepper on top

TIP: Leave some for seconds as it is very moreish, but the gnocchi is more filling than you imagine. Best enjoyed with a cool glass of vino!

Serving suggestion: Top with roasted chickpeas and spring onion for an extra twist (second image). Chickpeas are so easy to roast: drain and rinse a can of chickpeas in cold water, pour onto a clean tea towel and dry off as much of the moisture as possible, pour into a bowl, add a splash of olive oil and a half a teaspoon of each of the following: cayenne pepper, oregano, celery salt and garlic granules (this is my favourite mix, but you can experiment with any flavours you like really), and mix well, pour onto a baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes at about 220, and then leave for 5 minutes or so to cool.