Gnocchi alla Romana, Roman-Style Gnocchi Recipe

If you think of gnocchi, you certainly think of the classical type of gnocchi, dumplings made with potatoes and flour. There’s another kind of “gnocco” which is made only in Rome and for this reason it’s called “gnocchi alla romana” or “Roman Style gnocchi”.

The recipe is completely different from the classic one and the main reason why it’s so different is because of the semolina flour used for its preparation; on top of that, an (almost) insane amount of bechamel sauce style to cover the gnocchi and a good amount of Parmesan cheese as a final touch.

This is a very regional recipe I recommend to try at least once to give yourself the chance to discover something really different.

What you need for 4 servings
100 grams of butter
1 liter of milk
120 grams of grated Parmesan cheese
250 grams of semolina flour
2 egg yolks
Nutmeg
Salt

How to make the perfect gnocchi alla romana
1. Boil the milk in a nonstick pan together with a knob of butter, a pinch of salt and a little bit of nutmeg. Once the mixture starts to boil, pour in the semolina flour stirring with a whisk so that no lumps will be formed.
2. Allow to thicken the semolina for a few more minutes stirring constantly then remove the pan from the heat and quickly add 80 grams of grated Parmesan cheese and two egg yolks at a room temperature. Stir quickly with a whisk and transfer the mixture into a high enough and large oiled oven pan and bring it to a maximum height of 1 centimeter.
3. In the meantime preheat the oven to 200°C/392°F and, once the semolina has cooled down into the oven pan, using a glass or a small round baking cutter take from the compound as many disks as you can, each of about of 4-5 cm diameter.
4. Grease a baking dish, place the semolina gnocchi so that they overlap slightly with each other without covering completely then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and the remaining 20 grams of melted butter. Bake in oven at 180°C/356°F and cook until the surface is not beautiful browned, for about 20 minutes. Serve hot.

Preparation time: 40 minutes