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So, you may or may not have noticed that I haven’t published anything for several months. Almost exactly 5 months to the day since I returned to work after maternity leave. Apparently contemporary child-rearing is compatible with writing, but only insofar as you are not also working (and running a household and planning family holidays and trying to get back into regular exercise and keeping up with reading). The spate of cookbooks dedicated to ‘15 minute meals’ and ‘weekday dinners’ and the like are a sign of the times; modern life is busy, and food increasingly takes a backseat.

For me, however, food never takes a backseat. While I haven’t had time to write about food, I am still here eating (obviously), cooking, and creating in the kitchen. As many parents will tell you, cooking changes after you have a child. Gone are the days when I could spend an entire Saturday afternoon rolling pasta dough, par-cooking filling, cutting pasta squares, filling and shaping dough, par-baking, then, finally, gently simmering in a garlicky yoghurt, before dinner of spiced lamb manti is eventually served at 8pm. I still make pasta, but now I opt for #bakedfetapasta ala TikTok style trends, where you whack a tray in the oven while the pasta boils and the supervision required is slim to nil.*

Tray bakes are definitely the strongest meal in my current arsenal. Offer me a good tray bake that includes veg, protein and carbs in one, and I’ll be cooking before you can hit ‘Send’ on the link. But today I want to talk to you about another secret weapon I keep in my back pocket: packet gnocchi.

I know what you’re thinking. Packet gnocchi is not gnocchi. They’re spongy, doughy lumps of what feels like reconstituted potato dusted in a fine grainy substance (what is that? Is it semolina? Is it another flour? What?), that is little improved by the cooking process. Boiling them yields soggy dumplings with zero flavour and a weird palate-sticking texture.

But. But but but. Packet gnocchi is not just packet gnocchi when you know the trick to cooking it. A #LifeHack, if you will. Though I admit it’s not much of a trick. Actually no, to be fair, it is much of a trick, but it’s the same trick that makes pretty much everything better.

Butter.

And not a stingy amount of butter either. A generous Nigella Lawson-style portion. Which is actually where this whole story begins. I’ve only made fresh gnocchi from scratch once, but the experience was so far superior to the store-bought version (which I had only ever tried to cook by boiling in a soup once. How embarrassing) that I ruled out ever buying it from Woolies, Coles or, yes even Aldi, again. But after several recommendations from a couple of foodie friends, I finally had a look into Nigella’s Theory of Perfecting Packet Gnocchi. It took me a bit to track it down, as Nigella disguises it well. Her recipe refers to ‘roastini’. I imagine a ‘roastini’ is the British equivalent of the American ‘Tater Tot’, though I’m unsure and haven’t had the inclination to Googlarify. Semantics aside, the recipe is nothing short of genius. Anyone who has pan-fried gnocchi before, or even simply eaten pan-fried gnocchi before, will likely think that I’m having them on. How can it be called a recipe to speak simply of frying gnocchi in fat? How am I even claiming to legitimately write an entire blog post on this? Well recipe is as recipe does, and I am going to continue on for at least one more paragraph before getting into the ingredients and methods you’re expecting.

Technically, Nigella’s original recipe calls for olive oil only, but I find a combination of fats works marvellously, with butter aiding the browning process and olive oil tempering it. When using a fattier cut of meat, I render the meat first and leave the fat in the pan for frying the gnocchi. Either way, the key is to heat the fat in the pan on medium-high, and allow the gnocchi to cook well on each side for a good few minutes. The heat can’t be too high. And the pan can’t be too crowded. You don’t want too much fat to the extent that you’re shallow-frying — you’re after a super thin layer that almost-but-not-quite coats the bottom of the pan. Don’t be afraid to fry in batches and top up a little oil (and butter!) as you go.

And that’s it. The tough, powdery, lifeless dumplings gently shiver in the heated oil, taking on colour, moisture, and deliciousness. The emerging crisp, buttery, brown shells conceal a newly transformed filling that is soft and fluffy, exuding steam with every bite. It’s incomparable.

Once I discovered this, packet gnocchi became a pantry staple. I now always keep a pack in the fridge (though not the freezer. Defrosted potato is not a friend to those seeking sublime on the texture front). Most supermarket brands will do the job, though I’ve personally come to rely on i Pastai. And when I say ‘rely’, I mean it. No one ever said it was easy cooking family meals with a small child tottering around, clamouring for attention. But as someone who loves food, and loves cooking food, even on a busy, difficult night when I’m operating one handed with a toddler on my hip, I still struggle to relegate the dinner portion of the evening to Uber Eats. So packet gnocchi steps in to save the day. It’s quick to put together. Packet gnocchi takes the thinking out of it while still allowing me to be creative. It lends itself to whatever fridge raid flavour combination I can concoct with a sleep-starved brain. Over the past 16 months of my son’s life, I have pulled together many variations of this gnocchi with equally as varying (but unfailingly delicious) results. Through this, a few clear favourites have emerged, which tend to rely primarily on various other pantry and fridge staples I maintain seasonally.

So, I present to you, #LifeHack gnocchi as a meal for each season. I hope these recipes make your evenings as delicious and joyful as they have mine. Take these recipes as your inspiration, a friendly fairy god-chef guiding you through your kitchen adventures and helping you to realise your own creative cooking potential. Want to throw in a punnet of juicy summer tomatoes to char? Feel like getting fruity with a squeeze of juice and grating of zest from an orange? Stir through some chicken mince instead? Whatever your heart desires, Packet Gnocchi will be there to serve you in its delightfully reliable and comfortable yet surprising way.

Each recipe serves 4.

*Ok so I actually did make the manti after Hakeem was born but he wasn’t even six months old and definitely not mobile yet, so it was easier to do things without interruption (or fear of injury).

Gnocchi for all seasons

Summer gnocchi (pictured above)

Ingredients

• 500g packet gnocchi
• 1 cup fresh, frozen or canned baby peas (if canned, drained and rinsed)
• 1 cup fresh, frozen or canned corn kernels (if canned, drained and rinsed)
• 2 small-medium zucchinis, ribboned using a vegetable peeler or a mandoline on the thinnest setting
• 1 x 400g can cannellini beans or chickpeas (or other white bean), drained, rinsed, and dried on kitchen towel
• Generous handful of soft herbs of your choice, roughly chopped (basil, mint, and/or parsley all work well, alone or in combination
• 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup dairy of your choice, e.g. sour cream, Greek yoghurt, ricotta, sour cream
• Olive oil, butter, salt and pepper

Method

1. Heat a large sauté pan or shallow casserole pot on high and drizzle with oil.
2. Fry the zucchini ribbons in batches until starting to turn golden in patches. While cooking, season with a grind of salt and pepper. Set aside.
3. Drizzle a little more oil into the pan and add a teaspoon of butter and, once hot, tip the cannellini beans/chickpeas into the pan. Allow to crisp a little and turn brown before stirring and seasoning with salt. Once golden all over, tip beans in with zucchini and set aside.
4. Lower heat to medium-high and add 1 tablespoon each of olive oil and butter (enough to make a verrry thin layer across the bottom of the surface of your pan). Once hot, tip the gnocchi (in batches if necessary) into the pan and give it a good stir to coat with oil. There should be breathing room between the pieces so you may need to cook the gnocchi in batches if your pan is smaller.
   Cook the gnocchi on medium-high heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Don’t stir too often—let the gnocchi crisp up and brown on one side before stirring well and adding salt, then letting it brown on the other side/s. Your gnocchi is done when the pieces feel soft when poked with your spoon (or just eat one and it should be moist and fluffy inside).
5. When the gnocchi is done, add the peas and corn to the pan along with zucchini and beans and stir through for a minute to heat the veg through, then remove from heat. Stir through chopped herbs.
6. Spoon the gnocchi into bowls with a of dollop sour cream or yoghurt on the side. Zest some lemon over each bowl (and add a squeeze of juice if you like it really zingy).

Autumn gnocchi

Caveat: this variation carries a dish rating of at least 3, possibly 4.

Ingredients

• 500g packet gnocchi
• 1/2 medium butternut pumpkin (that’s butternut ‘squash’ to you, my international readers. Because obviously there are so many of you.)
• 200g punnet Swiss Brown mushrooms, sliced
• 1 small bulb garlic, cloves peeled and minced/crushed
• 6 tbs Panko breadcrumbs
• 10g sage leaves, picked, washed and dried well
• Olive oil, butter, salt and pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C fan forced (200°C conventional heat).
2. Slice pumpkin across its width into 1-1.5cm thick crescents. Peel it too if you’re not feelin’ that fibre vibe. Pop the slices in a heavy roasting tray with a drizzle of olive oil, and a generous grind each of salt and pepper. Toss to coat then spread the slices out in a single layer. Roast for 20 to 30 minutes until tender but not too squashy. (Pun not intended.)
3. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon each of olive oil and butter in a large sauté pan or shallow casserole pot on medium-high. Once hot, toss the sliced mushrooms in and let them brown. Once mostly cooked, season with a grind of salt and pepper, and add the garlic. Stir through for another minute or two to heat the garlic through. Tip the cooked mushrooms and garlic into separate bowl and set aside.
   N.B. If the pan is hot enough the mushrooms should sear before releasing too much water. To prevent them releasing water, only season with salt at the end of cooking.
4. Add another 1 to 2 tablespoons each of oil and butter to the pan (enough to make a verrry thin layer across the bottom of the surface of your pan). Once hot, tip the gnocchi (in batches if necessary) into the pan and give it a good stir to coat with oil. There should be breathing room between the pieces so you may need to cook the gnocchi in batches if your pan is smaller.
   Cook the gnocchi on medium-high heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Don’t stir too often—let the gnocchi crisp up and brown on one side before stirring well and adding salt, then letting it brown on the other side/s. Your gnocchi is done when the pieces feel soft when poked with your spoon (or just eat one and it should be moist and fluffy inside).
5. While the gnocchi is cooking, heat a small non-stick frying pan with 1 tablespoon butter. Once hot, tip your dry sage leaves into the pan and fry immersed in hot butter until crisp. Remove leaves from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside on paper towel.
6. Tip panko crumbs into the same butter and fry on medium high, stirring continuously, until golden brown and all the butter is absorbed. Set aside.
7. Once gnocchi is cooked, toss mushrooms and garlic back into the pan and give it a quick stir to heat through again before turning off the heat.
8. Arrange the slices of pumpkin haphazardly in the bottom of a shallow bowl, spoon over the gnocchi mushroom mixture, then garnish with a sprinkle of crispy crumbs and fried sage leaves.

Winter gnocchi

Ingredients

• 500g packet gnocchi
• 500g packet suçuk or other spicy sausage (e.g. chorizo), sliced 1-1.5cm thick
• 1 red capsicum (bell pepper), sliced 1-1.5 cm thick then chopped into shorter lengths whatever size you like
• 4-5 banana shallots (eschalots), cut into quarters lengthwise (or into 6 pieces if they’re particularly fat)
• 60g baby spinach
• Small handful fresh thyme sprigs, leaves picked (or not picked. You do you)
• Olive oil, salt and pepper

N.B. I appreciate those not living in a sub-tropical climate may not be able to get capsicum year-round. You can substitute with any winter veg. Parsnips are a great option to keep the sweetness, but will need to be sliced into thinner lengths and cooked until tender. Cauliflower is another nice neutral option, but similarly will need to be sautéed a little longer than the capsicum.

Method

1. Heat a large sauté pan or shallow casserole pot on medium-high and drizzle with oil.
2. Once hot, add the shallots to the pan and cook, stirring, until soft. Add capsicum slices to the pan and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until heated through and just starting to cook. Season with a grind of salt, then tip into a bowl and set aside.
3. Add suçuk (sausage) slices to the pan in a single layer, cooking on each side for a few minutes until starting to brown and crisp up.
4. Leave any residual fat from the sausage in the pan. If there’s not enough fat to make a super thin layer on the bottom of your pan, drizzle in some olive oil too.
   Once hot, tip the gnocchi (in batches if necessary) into the pan and give it a good stir to coat with oil. There should be breathing room between the pieces so you may need to cook the gnocchi in batches if your pan is smaller.
   Cook the gnocchi on medium-high heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Don’t stir too often—let the gnocchi crisp up and brown on one side before stirring well and adding some salt and the thyme, then letting it brown on the other side/s. Your gnocchi is done when the pieces feel soft when poked with your spoon (or just eat one and it should be moist and fluffy inside).
5. Once the gnocchi is cooked, tip the spinach into the pan, then add the cooked suçuk, capsicum and shallots. Stir through once then remove from heat and serve immediately.

Spring gnocchi

Ingredients

• 500g packet gnocchi
• 300g hot-smoked salmon (I use hot-smoked because I often keep it on on hand and I prefer the texture, though cold-smoked works fine. You can also substitute fresh but you’ll need to cook it before you fry the gnocchi)
• 1 bunch broccolini (tender stem broccoli), stem cut into 4-5cm lengths and heads cut into 1″ chunks
• 1 large handful (approx. 100-150g) sugar snap peas or snow peas, trimmed and string removed
• 5-6 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1/3 tsp ground nutmeg
• 5g fresh dill, roughly chopped
• Olive oil, butter, salt pepper
• 2 tbs salt-cured capers, rinsed (optional)
• 50g of Greek feta (optional)

Method

1. Prepare an ice bath in a large bowl, then bring a pot of well-salted water to boil.
2. When at a rolling boil, drop the green veg into the pot and allow to cook for 1 to 2 minutes until they turn bright green. Remove speedily with a slotted spoon and plunge into the ice bath to cool (you may need to top up with extra ice after a few minutes).
   Once cooled, drain the veggies and set aside.
3. Heat a large sauté pan or shallow casserole pot on medium-high with 1 to 2 tablespoons each of olive oil and butter (enough to make a verrry thin layer across the bottom of the surface of your pan). Once hot, tip the gnocchi (in batches if necessary) into the pan and give it a good stir to coat with oil. There should be breathing room between the pieces so you may need to cook the gnocchi in batches if your pan is smaller.
   Cook the gnocchi on medium-high heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Don’t stir too often—let the gnocchi crisp up and brown on one side before stirring well and letting it brown on the other side/s. Season with salt and add the minced garlic partway through cooking. Your gnocchi is done when the pieces feel soft when poked with your spoon (or just eat one and it should be moist and fluffy inside).
4. Once the gnocchi is cooked, flake the fish into the pan in chunks, sprinkle over the nutmeg and stir through carefully, without further breaking the fish.
5. Remove from heat then add the blanched greens to the pan along with the dill, and stir the whole lot.
6. Divide into four bowls and serve garnished with a sprinkle of capers and/or crumbled feta.

N.B. You can either cook the gnocchi while your water boils, or cook your veg while your gnocchi browns, depending on how long your stove takes to boil water!