Gnocchi with Sun-dried tomato pesto

My husband and I went to the Orchard Street Chop Shop for drinks a few weeks ago. The bar area upstairs is pleasant and I thought for sure I would be able to get a hot toddy. It turns out they don't have hot water at the bar (?), so I just had a shot of whiskey anyway. Anyway, as we were sitting there, we decided we should probably eat. I didn't think that I would find anything I could eat, but they had gnocchi as the token vegetarian dish that night with smoked carrots and beets. Oh man it was so good. I decided to try making my own at home.

Both of the recipes are from Vegan with a Vengeance.



It did not really photograph that well

Gnocchi
Ingredients
Potatoes (I cooked three in my slow cooker, but you can bake them in the oven. Do not boil because it will bring too much liquid into the mixture)
1 head roasted garlic
salt
olive oil
1 1/2 C white whole wheat flour

Method
Once the potatoes have cooled enough to handle, peel off the skin and place in a large bowl with the garlic. Add enough salt and olive oil until you get creamy mashed potatoes. Start adding the flour by handfuls until a dough starts to form. Knead on a floured surface until the dough is non sticky, but not dry.

Bring a salted pot of water to boil.

Divide the dough into three sections and roll each section into a log. Cut off about 1 inch pieces and roll the pieces into a ball. You can use a fork to add the traditional lines on the dumplings.

Add the gnocchi in the salted boiling water. They should rise to the surface after a couple of minutes. Let them continue to cook until they start to look "whiter". I then transferred them to a heated cast iron pan and browned them on both sides. Top with the pesto and eat with fresh bread.

Sun-dried tomato pesto
Ingredients
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes
1 cup water
1/4 cup almonds
roasted garlic (I had some leftover from the gnocchi)
olive oil
salt
pepper
1/4 cup fresh basil

Method
Soak the sun-dried tomatoes in warm water for about 10 minutes then add the tomatoes, the soaking water, almonds, and garlic to a food processor. Blend until a chunky paste is obtained. Add olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste and for consistency. Chop the basil and add at the end.

I wish I had added the basil in the processor so it wasn't so chunky in the pesto afterwards. Also, next time I will be adding more liquid (water or oil) to make it less thick.

The gnocchi was not as good as the Chop Shop. It was good though. I have a bag of frozen gnocchi in the freezer, maybe next week, I can try cooking them again and see if they turn out different.

The husband thought this was good.