Potato Gnocchi in Gorgonzola Cream Sauce

This dish was inspired by a meal we had in Venice, which was our most amazing dinner of the trip. At the restaurant, Rosa Rossa, they used “duck ham,” which was essentially fried duck fat, which I substituted for bacon here.

Gnocchi:
1 lb Russet potatoes
1 egg, beaten
¾ cup flour
Pinch of salt

Sauce:
3 slices of thick bacon, diced
4 oz Gorgonzola Cheese (room temperature)
1 oz butter
8 oz heavy cream
Freshly cracked black pepper
Zucchini, thinly sliced

Gnocchi:
Peel and cut potatoes into quarters. Steam potatoes for about 10 minutes (or you can bake halved potatoes for 50 minutes); drain and let cool so you can handle them. Using a potato ricer, or the fine side of your grater, shred potatoes into a large mixing bowl.

Add egg, flour and salt. Gently mix with your hands until ingredients are combined and you have a ball of dough. Do not over mix to maintain light and fluffy gnocchi.

Dust your counter top or work space with flour. Take one piece of dough at a time and gently roll into a long ¾” rope with your hands. Be careful not to press down on the dough, but to roll outwards.

(Make sauce now, before you start boiling gnocchi.)

Cut dough rope into ½” pieces. Drop into a pot of salted boiling water. As gnocchi floats, remove them and set them in a colander.

Sauce:
In a frying pan, cook bacon until crispy. Remove bacon from pan and to a paper towel on a plate. In the same pan, add zucchini slices and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.

In a small sauce pan over high heat, combine cheese, butter, cream and pepper. Bring to a boil, then turn to a simmer. Add bacon. Wisk sauce until cheese is melted and sauce is creamy.

Spoon gnocchi into a bowl, top with sauce, add zucchini, sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan cheese and freshly cracked black pepper. Garnish with fresh basil.