Belated V Day: Plaisir d'amour

For obvious reasons, Valentine's Day dinner this year consisted of Mom and I eating in different rooms, on different floors. (Mom's text: "Happy fucking Valentine's Day.") While I was eating alone in Brad's room, I read a great review in the New Yorker by Hua Hsu of the Soul Music podcast that the BBC has been producing since 2000. It's a fabulous testament to the power of music, with each episode generally featuring a good mix of joyous and moving moments. The episodes on "Take Me Home, Country Roads" and "God Only Knows" are some real tear-jerkers.

 

Given the proximity to Valentine's Day, I was especially pleased to listen to the episode on "Plaisir d'amour" (the "pleasure of love"), a classical French love song written in 1784 by Jean-Paul-Égide Martini (how many hyphens can you jam into one name?). Listen to Marianne Faithfull’s rendition of the song (featured in the Soul Music episode) and see if you can figure out why. Do you recognize the tune, before looking below the video? 

 

 

Did you get it? They used the same tune for Elvis Presley's "Can't Help Falling in Love," which was the first dance at our wedding (and Adam and Andi's wedding, too). Pretty cool.

 

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I didn't make this dish for V Day, but I would have if I'd trusted how good it would turn out. It sounds funky, but you'll have to trust me on this. Using instant mashed potato flakes to make gnocchi is genius. It cuts out all of the time it takes to microwave and roast the potatoes, not to mention peeling the ripping hot potatoes, ricing them, and then letting them cool to the right temperature, before weighing out the 1 pound you need to continue on with the recipe. The final product isn't quite as good as our traditional gnocchi, but they're pretty darn close and I was able to make these, by myself, in only 45 minutes from start to finish, turning this into more of a weeknight than special-occasion dinner. And the dough is a joy to work with, much easier than the traditional gnocchi in my opinion. Highly recommended.

Instant Mashed Potato Gnocchi

Adapted from Cook's Country (Dec/Jan 2022)

Time: 45 minutes (the recipe says twice that, but I’m not sure why; maybe it's all the practice I've had making gnocchi over the years)

Gnocchi
140 grams (5 ounces/~1¼ cups) all-purpose flour
115 grams (4 ounces/2 cups) plain, unflavored instant mashed potato flakes, such as Idaohoan® Original Mashed Potatoes
2 teaspoons fine sea salt, plus 4 teaspoons for cooking the gnocchi
355 grams (1½ cups) water
1 large egg (~57 grams in the shell)

Browned Butter-Sage Sauce
70 grams (5 tablespoons) unsalted butter
12 large sage leaves, minced

Grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

    1. To form the gnocchi: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, potato flakes, and 2 teaspoons salt. In a 2-cup measuring cup or a small bowl, whisk together the water and egg; pour over the dry ingredients. Using a silicone spatula, stir until the wet and dry ingredients are fully combined and form a dough ball. Let sit for 3 minutes.
    2. While the dough is hydrating, lightly flour a work surface. Knead the rested dough until it has the texture of Play-Doh and springs back halfway when poked with your finger, about 3 minutes. Dust the dough ball lightly with flour. Let sit for 5 minutes.
    3. While the dough is resting, (a) bring 4 quarts of water to a rolling boil in a large pot over high heat, and (b) lightly flour the work surface again, as well as a bench scraper and an 18-by-13-inch baking sheet (half sheet pan).
    4. Using the bench scraper, cut the rested dough into 6 fairly equal pieces (eyeball it). Roll 1 piece into a ¾-inch thick rope. Using the bench scraper, cut the rope into ¾-inch pillows. Transfer the pillows to the floured sheet pan. Repeat with the remaining pieces. Using a floured finger, poke a divot in each of the gnocchi. (For more traditional ridged gnocchi, use your thumb to roll each piece off the tines of a fork (or a grooved butter paddle) onto the prepared baking sheet; I went with the easier finger-poke method here, in keeping with the spirit of the speedier preparation.) (At this point, you can freeze the formed gnocchi on the sheet pan, then transfer to a zipper-lock bag and stash in the freezer for up to a  month. Cook as directed in step 6, though it will probably take up to 3 minutes for the frozen gnocchi to cook through and float.)
    5. To make the sauce: Melt the butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. When the butter starts to foam and sizzle, swirl it around the pan until it’s a little browned and smells nutty, about 2 minutes. Stir in the sage and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat.
    6. To cook the gnocchi and finish the dish: When the water is boiling, turn the heat down a notch or two, then stir in the 4 teaspoons salt until dissolved. Add half of the gnocchi. Cook until the gnocchi are just cooked through and float to the surface, about 90 seconds. Using a large spider strainer (or a slotted spoon if you must), drain well and transfer to the sauce. Repeat with the other half of the gnocchi.
    7. Place the skillet back over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring very gently, until the gnocchi are heated through and coated with the sauce, about 2 minutes. Serve promptly, with generous helpings of grated Parmesan. Makes ~1½ pounds, serving 3.