By Mary Capone

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Gnocchi

SERVES 6

Perfect for the cooler days of autumn, homemade gnocchi is delicious—and much easier to make than you think. Living Without’s test kitchen tweaked Mary Capone's wonderful recipe to create an egg-free option. (It works great!) Serve gnocchi with your favorite gluten-free Italian-style tomato sauce. For vegan gnocchi, omit the Italian-style sausage. Avoiding tomatoes? Top gnocchi with our delicious beet-based sauce.

1½ pounds (about 4 medium) baking potatoes
1 cup Mary’s All-Purpose Flour Blend
½ teaspoon xanthan gum
1 egg (or 1 tablespoon arrowroot + 2 teaspoons water to create
    a paste)
¾ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon fresh nutmeg, optional
½ pound gluten-free Italian style sausage, casing removed, cooked and diced

1. In a large pan, boil potatoes with skin on until they are easily pierced with a fork. Drain and peel.

2. Put potatoes through a food mill or grate them on the large side of a cheese grater onto a clean work surface.

3. Combine flour blend and xanthan gum. Add to potatoes and knead dough, forming a mound with a well in the center, like the shape of a bird’s nest.

4. Break egg in the center (or place egg-replacement paste in center) and add salt, nutmeg and sausage. Knead dough until ingredients are well incorporated. (Depending on what kind of potato you use, your dough may be too sticky to handle. If so, add a little more flour blend after you add the egg.) Dough should be smooth and stay together when rolling. Dust your work surface lightly with flour blend, adding only enough to handle dough.

5. Divide dough into 4 parts. Roll each part into a long, sausage-like shape about 1½-inches in diameter. With a knife or pastry cutter, cut each long roll into individual dumplings, each about 1 inch long.

6. Set fork face down on the end of your board. Gently roll each gnocchi over the back of the fork prongs.

7. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Drop in a few gnocchi at a time, only enough to fill the bottom of the pot in a single layer. Gnocchi will soon rise to the surface of the water. Cook for additional 2 to 3 minutes. Remove gnocchi with a slotted spoon to a serving platter.

8. Cover with Capone’s Marinara Sauce or your favorite tomato sauce. Serve immediately.

TIP: Pressed for time? Caesar’s Pasta (caesarspasta.com) and Conte’s Pasta (contespasta.com) sell prepared gnocchi that’s gluten free.

Each serving contains 324 calories, 13g total fat, 4g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 64mg cholesterol, 582mg sodium, 42g carbohydrate, 2g fiber, 10g protein.

Recipe by Living Without contributor Mary Capone, author of  The Gluten-Free Italian Cookbook. To buy this cookbook, click here. Egg-free version created by Madalene Rhyand, director of  Living Without’s test kitchen.

Mary’s Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Blend

MAKES 6 CUPS

A combination of white and brown rice flour lightens the texture of baked goods. For a more nutritious mix with lower glycemic index, use all brown rice flour, a total of 4 cups flour.

2 cups brown rice flour
2 cups white rice flour
1 1/3 cups potato starch (not potato flour)
2/3 cup tapioca starch/flour

Mix ingredients together. Store in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator until used.

Each serving contains 564 calories, 2g total fat, 0g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 0mg cholesterol, 4mg sodium, 127g carbohydrate, 4g fiber, 7g protein.