Fresh Cheese Gnocchi

Directions

1. Place the Petit Suisse Cheese in a bowl with the egg yolk, salt, pepper and lemon zest and mix well to combine. 

2. Add in the flour, folding it in with a soft spatula until the dough starts to clump together. 

3. Turn the dough out on to a well floured work surface and gather it together, kneading gently for about a minute until it becomes a smooth homogenous ball. 

4. Wrap in plastic and let it rest for at least a half hour before rolling out. This dough can be made the night before and rest overnight in the refrigerator. 

5. After the resting period, place the dough on a well floured work surface and cut it into four pieces. 

6. One piece at a time, use your hands to roll the dough out into a long rope, about 1" thick. Start by forming it into a log shape and spreading your fingers wide, starting in the middle of the log and pressing down with your fingers, moving back and forth and working your way out to the ends of the rope, continue until you reach the desired thickness. 

7. Cut the rope into 1" wide gnocchi using a bench scraper or a knife and place them on a lightly floured sheet tray in the refridgerator. 

8. Continue this process with all four pieces of dough. 

9. Once all of your gnocchi are rolled out and in the fridge, bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well. 

10. Once the water is boiling, warm a large nonstick or cast iron pan over medium high heat with 2 Tbsp butter. 

11. Place however many gnocchi you'd like to eat in the boiling water and cook them until they float up to the surface.

12. Using a mesh strainer or a slotted spoon, transfer the gnocchi to the butter pan and crisp them up for about 2-4 minutes, until they get golden and crunchy on the outside. 

13. Serve with green garlic pesto or butter and fresh mint and parmesan cheese or in a nice mushroom and parmesan broth with an array of cooked spring vegetables (as pictured). 

14. To freeze them, place the sheet tray with gnocchi in your freezer and freeze them until they are firm. Transfer them to a plastic bag or sealed container. When you are ready to use them, follow the same cooking instructions as above.