Rukmini Iyer’s quick and easy reccipe for crispy baked gnocchi puttanesca | Quick and easy
Puttanesca purists, look away now,This dish takes the classic elements of a puttanesca – that is, anchovies, capers, olives, tomatoes – and combines them into a rich sauce for gnocchi, which are then covered in mozzarella, breadcrumbs and parmesan, and flashed under the grill,It’s exactly what you want on a rainy night,In fact, my sauce-averse toddler thought it smelled so good that she stole half of my plate – a win all round,(Although her pretty decent suggestion was that next time I use it as a pizza sauce, rather than on pasta or gnocchi.
Noted.)I’ve non-canonically added some small cubes of aubergine to the sauce, because they melt beautifully into it while adding extra plant matter.To make this vegetarian, omit the anchovies, add an extra spoon of capers and use a vegetarian parmesan.Prep 15 min Cook 30 min Serves 2 adults and 2 small children2 tbsp olive oil 1 onion, peeled and finely chopped1 medium aubergine, trimmed and cut into 1cm dice½ tsp flaky sea salt 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely grated2 tsp small capers in brine, drained1 tsp anchovies in oil (about five small fillets)75g black olives, drained400g tinned chopped tomatoes500g fresh chilled or vacuum-packed gnocchi150g ball mozzarella, roughly torn40g white or panko breadcrumbs40g parmesanHeat the oil in a large, ovenproof frying pan or casserole, then add the onion and stir-fry on a medium to high heat for five minutes, until just starting to soften.Add the aubergine and salt, and cook, stirring frequently, for a further 10 minutes, until the aubergine has started to soften and brown.
Add the garlic, capers, anchovies and olives, and stir-fry for 30 seconds, mashing the anchovies well.Add the tinned tomatoes, bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.(Note: it helps to use a good brand of tinned tomatoes here – Mutti’s are fantastic – because other brands may take a little longer to thicken sufficiently.)Just before the sauce is ready, bring a large pan of water to a boil, then drop in the gnocchi and cook according to the packet instructions (usually on a rolling boil for two to three minutes).Drain well, then stir the gnocchi through the sauce.
Heat the grill to medium-high.Scatter the mozzarella all over the gnocchi.Mix the breadcrumbs and parmesan in a bowl, then scatter this over the mozzarella.Grill for three to five minutes, until the cheese has melted and the breadcrumbs and parmesan are well-browned, then serve hot.
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