I recently wrote to my high school girlfriends, wanting to know what types of recipes they felt would make their lives easier in the kitchen. Amongst the varied responses (make-ahead appetizers, formula for a good charcuterie plate, ideas with leftovers), my friend Ashley’s husband, Steve, replied, “limited-mess dishes. For example, not having to brown multiple things and use 46 pots for one dish.”
Not an unreasonable request. I went on to develop a quick 10-minute sauce to serve with gnocchi, keeping Steve’s “limited-mess” request in mind. I cook the gnocchi in a heavy bottomed pot, then make the tomato sauce in the same pot while the gnocchi drains in a colander. To keep the gnocchi from getting gummy, I toss them in the pot while the sauce finishes cooking. The gnocchi and sauce then go straight to a serving bowl with some fresh mozzarella and basil. Here’s my one-pot gnocchi for Steve.
GNOCCHI WITH 10-MINUTE TOMATO SAUCE
serves 4
Ingredients
1 pound gnocchi
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 batch Simple Tomato Salad (total of 1 pound tomatoes)
Kosher salt
8 ounces fresh mozzarella, at room temperature and torn into pieces
Fresh basil leaves, for serving
Heat a large pot of heavily salted water over high heat until boiling. Cook gnocchi according to package directions, drain well and set aside.
Return pot to stove. Heat olive oil over high heat. Add Simple Tomato Salad to pot, bring to a boil and let it rapidly simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste for seasoning and adjust as you see fit. Add gnocchi to the pot and toss for about 30 seconds to 1 minute, until they are well coated with the sauce.
Transfer gnocchi to a shallow serving bowl. Add the mozzarella, quickly toss and serve immediately with additional basil leaves, if desired.
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