Gnocchi cacio e pepe with mushrooms and sage
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A quick-fix dish that is only as delicious as the quality of the ingredients you make it with. To start with, a good selection of mushrooms makes a huge difference. I’ve suggested an amount, but really you want to fill your pan with plenty of them of varying shapes and sizes, as they significantly reduce during the cooking time. These meaty mushroomy morsels and tender gnocchi, combined with a glossy cacio e pepe-style sauce laden with Pecorino and freshly cracked black pepper, are all you need for a dinner that really does only take minutes to make.
Next, try Donal's recipe for pastina soup.
See all the best recipes from the House & Garden archive.
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Method
Step 1
Toast the peppercorns in a large, hot, dry frying pan (skillet) over a medium heat until fragrant, then roughly crush in a pestle and mortar and set aside.
Step 2
Add 50g (2oz) of the butter to the frying pan and return to the heat. Once the butter is melted, add the mushrooms and sage leaves and fry, without stirring, for a few minutes until golden, then turn and fry on the other side for a few minutes more. Keep frying until the mushrooms are all golden. Season well, then scoop out on to a plate.
Step 3
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add the gnocchi and cook for 2–3 minutes until they float to the surface. Scoop out with a slotted spoon and save 200ml (generous ¾ cup) of the cooking liquid.
Step 4
Add the rest of butter to the pan you cooked the mushrooms in; once it’s melted, add the toasted ground peppercorns. Stir through the reserved pasta water and simmer for a minute or so until reduced by about half.
Step 5
Add the drained gnocchi to the pan and toss to coat in the sauce. Simmer for a minute or two, then remove from the heat and stir through the mushrooms and the cheese.
Step 6
Serve straight away in wide bowls, with a little more Parmesan scattered over the top.
