If there is something that gets me really excited about the cold season being over is that I can finally enjoy going to the Farmer’s Market. Whether I visit the Dane County Market on the square Saturday mornings, or the Monona Market on Sundays, or the Capitol View Market on Wednesdays afternoon. There is something special about the smell of fresh produce and the excitement of the farmers telling you about the pick of the week. Then of course, who doesn’t love to walk outside on sunny days? Hello Summer!
The excitement over Morels a couple of weeks ago was absolute craze!! People at the market were all over the morels and even thou I had never cooked them myself I decided to give them a try. I had already made this recipe from the April issue of Bon Appetite swapping the morels for other fresh mushrooms available. Since the morels were here I decided to make it again, this time, with every ingredient it called for. I made few changes to the original, according to my cooking style and it turned out great. If you feel a little bit adventurous this s a great recipe to try. If you don’t have morels don’t worry, any kind of fresh mushrooms will be delectable on this recipe. Enjoy!
Ingredients – Serves 4
For the Gnocchi
16 oz. of ricotta
1 large egg + 1 egg yolk
1 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese
3/4 cup of flour
Salt & pepper to taste
For the Vegetables 
1 bunch of asparagus (cut into bite size pieces)
2 Tbsp. olive oil
5 oz. Morels (you could substitute with shiitake or oyster mushrooms)
1 shallot (finely chopped)
1 cup frozen peas (thawed)
4 Tbsp. Unsalted butter
Salt & pepper to taste.
Flat leaf parsley (for serving)
For the Gnocchi
Using a big strainer, line 2 paper towels on the bottom and pour the ricotta cheese, place on top of a bowl and press down to strain some of the water from the ricotta, let it sit for about 20 minutes. In a food processor (or blender) combine the ricotta, eggs, parmesan, salt & pepper and process until smooth. Add the flour and mix again. Transfer the mixture to a large zipper bag. (This step could be done one day ahead and keep refrigerated).
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil, reduce the heat to simmer. Cut a 1/2 inch opening in a corner of the bag. Working in batches, pipe dough into the pot, cutting off 1 inch lengths with a pairing knife into the water. Cook until doubled in size and start floating to the top, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer gnocchi to a lightly oiled baking sheet into one layer. Reserve 1/4 of the cooking water.
For the Vegetables:
In a large skillet, add 2 Tbsp. olive oil over medium heat. Add shallot and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Add asparagus and morels, cook until soft tossing occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add peas, butter and reserved cooking water, toss gently and cook for about 3 minutes. Add salt & pepper to taste. Set aside and keep warm. In a medium skillet melt 1 tablespoon of butter, sauté gnocchi in batches to get a caramel color on the outside, about 1 minute per batch. Add gnocchi to the asparagus, peas, and morels sauce. Toss gently. Transfer to a serving plate, sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.
To find the original recipe from Bon Appetit click here.
