‘Drooling' Gnocchi (Gnocchi alla Bava)

Make the gnocchi.

Bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil in an 8-quart pot over high heat. (If you plan to cook the gnocchi as soon as they are formed, put the water on to boil while the riced potatoes are cooling. If you are cooking previously frozen gnocchi, make sure the water is boiling before you remove the gnocchi from the freezer.)

Preheat the oven to 450 F. Bring the stock, butter and cream to a boil in a large skillet over medium heat. Adjust the heat to simmering, season lightly with white pepper and simmer until lightly thickened 3 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 450 F. Drop the gnocchi into the boiling water a few at a time, stirring gently and continuously with a wooden spoon. Cook just until they rise to the surface and roll over, 2 to 3 minutes. If the skillet is large enough to accommodate the sauce and gnocchi, gently scoop the gnocchi out of the boiling water with a large wire skimmer and add them directly to the sauce in the skillet. If not, drain the gnocchi gently, return them to the pot and pour in the sauce. Bring the sauce and gnocchi to a boil, stirring gently to coat the gnocchi with sauce. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. Check the seasoning, adding salt if necessary and gently spoon them into a large (about 15 x 10-inch) baking dish, or two smaller baking dishes into which they fit in a more or less single layer. Scatter the shredded Fontina over the gnocchi and bake until the sauce is bubbling and the top is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

POTATO GNOCCHI

Put the potatoes in a large pot and pour in enough cold water to cover them by at least three fingers. Bring to a boil and cook until they are tender when pierced with a skewer, about 40 minutes. Lift them out of the water and let stand just until cool enough to handle. The hotter the potatoes are when you peel and rice them, the fluffier the riced potatoes will be.

Scrape the peels off the potatoes and rice the potatoes. Spread the riced potatoes out in a thin layer to expose as much of their surface as possible to the air.

While the potatoes are cooling, bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil in an 8-quart pot over high heat.

On a cool, preferably marble, work surface, gather the cold riced potatoes into a loose mound with a well in the center. Beat the eggs, 1 teaspoon salt and the white pepper together in a small bowl until blended and pour into the well. Work the potatoes and egg together with both hands, gradually adding as much flour as necessary to form a firm but moist dough. Stop frequently as you mix to scrape up the dough that sticks to the work surface and reincorporate it into the dough. Forming the dough should take no longer than 10 minutes from start to end. The longer the dough is worked, the more flour it will require and the heavier the dough-and the finished gnocchi-will be. As you work, dust the dough, your hands, and the work surface lightly with flour as soon as the dough begins to feel sticky.

Cut the dough into six equal portions. Using the outstretched fingers and palms of both hands, roll each piece of dough into a rope about 1/2 -inch thick. Cut the rope crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces. Sprinkle the pieces with flour, then roll each piece between your palms into a rough ball. Reflour your hands as necessary to prevent sticking. Hold a fork at an angle to your work surface. Dip the tip of your thumb in flour. Take a dough ball and, with the tip of your floured thumb, press it lightly but firmly against the tines of the fork while, at the same time, rolling it downward along the tines. The dough will wrap around the tip of your thumb, forming a dumpling with a deep indentation on one side and a ridged surface on the other. (You can use the non-grating side of a flat or curved cheese grater for a different effect.) Set the gnocchi on a baking sheet lined with a lightly floured kitchen towel as you form them. Repeat with the remaining five pieces of dough. At this point the gnocchi must be cooked or frozen immediately.