Gnocchi with sausage and apples
- Lactose Free
- Difficulty: Average
- Prep time: 30 min
- Cook time: 55 min
- Serving: 4
PRESENTATION
Gnocchi with sausage and apples is, honestly, a dish you just gotta try. It's something you'll find on winter menus in Northern Italy, where people crave cozy, tender comfort food during those chilly days. And here's the thing—making gnocchi here is more than just mixing potatoes and flour. Really, it's a cherished tradition. You see expert hands shaping each piece to achieve that perfect soft, pillowy texture. It's quite the ritual, boiling the gnocchi until they float, which is great because it means they’re ready. And the flavors? So so good. The sausage gives a little kick, while the apples add a sweet and almost tangy bite, brightening up the meal. It is a unique autumn gnocchi recipe that's both familiar and a bit unexpected.
Many Italian families stick to the classics, but this sausage apple gnocchi recipe adds a creative twist while still honoring tradition. In places like Trentino or Lombardy, people love experimenting, incorporating fruit into dishes typically paired with butter or a simple tomato sauce. The apple and sausage combo with the golden, chewy gnocchi is really something. I mean, each bite offers a blend of moist sausage and silky dumplings. Super super satisfying. You get those hearty, filling vibes, making it perfect for a quick gnocchi dinner. The sauce clings to every piece in a way that just works. Folks who enjoy easy gnocchi recipes or want to try a gnocchi with fruit and meat dish will find this one a real treat, especially when apples are in season. It's the kind of food that shows why Sunday meals in Italy are such a big deal—simple ingredients, lots of care, and a little creativity—bringing something new to the table. As the seasons change, this dish becomes a favorite, capturing the heart of Italian comfort food with a twist—making every meal memorable. For sure.
You might also like:
INGREDIENTS
- Ingredients for gnocchi
- Red potatoes 2.2 lbs (1 kg)
- Type 00 flour 2 ½ cups (300 g)
- Eggs 1 - medium
- Fine salt to taste
- Marjoram to taste
- Semolina to taste
- for the sausage and apple ragout
- Fuji Apples 2 cups (240 g)
- Sausage 0.9 lb (400 g)
- Dark beer 3.4 oz (100 g)
- Fennel seeds ¾ tsp (4 g)
- Fine salt to taste
- Black pepper to taste
- Extra virgin olive oil to taste
- Water 1.4 oz (40 g)
How to prepare Gnocchi with sausage and apples
To prepare the gnocchi with sausage and apples, start by boiling the potatoes: after washing them, put them in a pot and bring the water to a boil, then cook for another 30-40 minutes 1 depending on their size (to shorten the time, you can cook them in a pressure cooker). Peel them while still hot and immediately mash them with a potato masher onto the flour that you have spread in a fountain on the pastry board 2. Add the egg in the center 3,
a pinch of salt 4 and flavor with chopped marjoram 5. Knead the ingredients until you get a compact but still soft dough 6.
Take a small portion of dough 7 and roll it out with your fingertips to obtain logs about 3/4 inch thick 8; to do this, help yourself by flouring the pastry board from time to time with semolina. In the meantime, cover the remaining dough with a cloth to prevent it from drying out. Place a cloth on a tray and sprinkle it with semolina 9.
Cut the logs into chunks 10 and drag them over the gnocchi board, making a slight pressure with your thumb to obtain the typical shape 11. As you make the potato gnocchi, place them on the tray well spaced from each other 12. Once they are made and finished, let them rest in the refrigerator.
Now prepare the ragout: remove the casing from the sausage 13 and cut it into coarse chunks 14. Wash and cut the apples first in half 15 and then into quarters,
remove the core 16, then cut the apples into medium-sized and rather irregular pieces 17. Set the apples aside. Brown the sausage for a few minutes in a saucepan with a drizzle of oil 18.
Once the sausage is well browned, add the fennel seeds 19, apple chunks 20, and mix everything, browning over medium heat; then add the beer 21.
Let it evaporate, always making sure to stir from time to time, and once the alcohol has evaporated, salt and pepper to taste. Add 1.5 oz of water 22, lower the heat and cook covered for about 15 minutes 23. Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in a large pot and salt it when it boils (this will be for cooking the gnocchi). After 15 minutes, remove the lid and cook for the remaining time over medium heat (about ten minutes). Cook your gnocchi 24
and as soon as they start to float, drain them directly into the ragout 25 (make sure to set aside a ladle of gnocchi cooking water). Toss them briefly in the saucepan, combining them with the ragout with a little cooking water as needed 26 and serve the gnocchi with sausage and apples piping hot 27.