"Meatless Monday" Recipe of the Week - Potato Gnocchi with Tomatoes and Fresh Mozzarella

This week's "Meatless Monday" Recipe of the Week is a Potato Gnocchi with Tomatoes and Fresh Mozzarella. The name alone sounds like nothing but "delicious". Fresh made Gnocchi topped with Tomatoes and Mozzarella Cheese. The recipe is from the CooksRecipes website. The Cooks site has a large selection of recipes of all cuisines and tastes. Enjoy and eat Healthy!  http://www.cooksrecipes.com/index.html

Potato Gnocchi with Tomatoes and Fresh Mozzarella

This is Italian comfort food—homemade potato gnocchi served with a tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella. Recipe created by Chef Thomas Catherall, C.M.C.

Recipe Ingredients:

Gnocchi:*
2 pounds russet baking potatoes, peeled and quartered

2 to 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Sauce:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
10 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and diced (or 1 1/2 [28 ounces each] cans Italian plum tomatoes, drained and chopped)
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
Large pinch crushed red pepper
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 cup dry red wine
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 to 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

6 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, cut in 1/4-inch cubes
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

Cooking Directions:

1 - For Gnocchi: Place the potatoes in a saucepan and add water just to the level of the potatoes. Salt the water. Bring to a boil and cook until very soft, 25 minutes. Drain well; let stand in the colander for 10 minutes.
2 - Spread the flour on your work surface. With a potato ricer or food mill fit with a medium disk, rice the warm potatoes evenly over the entire top of the the flour. Toss together lightly with your fingers to distribute the potatoes and flour evenly. Make a well in the center and add the egg. Knead to form a ball. Knead 1 minute to gather up all of the bits of flour and potato on the work surface. Cover with an inverted bowl and let the dough rest for 5 minutes.
3 - Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. On a floured surface, roll each piece into a 1/2-inch-thick rope, approximately 12 inches long. Working with one rope at a time (keeping the others covered with towel), with floured hands, cut through the dough with the curved edge of a fork, every 1/2 inch. On the back edge of the fork, roll each piece forward and back, making fork indentations and shell shapes. Toss with the flour. Place on a floured baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough.
4 - Heat salted water in large Dutch oven.
5 - For Sauce: Heat the olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tomatoes, oregano, crushed red pepper, balsamic vinegar, tomato paste, wine, sugar, salt, and pepper. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until the liquid begins to evaporate and the sauce thickens slightly. Remove from the heat. Puree in a blender or food processor. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and red wine vinegar. Return to skillet.
6 - To complete the recipe, bring salted water to a boil. Cook about half of the gnocchi until tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon. Repeat with the remaining gnocchi.
7 - Add the cooked gnocchi to the sauce. Heat thoroughly. Toss in the mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with grated cheese; serve immediately.

Makes 8 servings.
http://www.cooksrecipes.com/mless/potato_gnocchi_with_tomatoes_and_fresh_mozzarella_recipe.html