Pheasant and Prosciutto Ragu and Homemade Gnocchi

A few weeks ago I was asked if I would like to enter a cooking competition by creating a recipe that uses Prosciutto di San Daniele and Grana Padano cheese. Unfortunately I did not win, but I did create a delicious recipe and even made my know gnocchi, hence why I am sharing it today!

I decided to create a recipe that embraces the origin of both Grana Padano and Prosciutto di San Daniele. After doing some research I found that gnocchi is a popular dish in that area so I knew that it would be a perfect addition to the meal. Instead of buying some gnocchi I decided to make my own and was delighted with the results. Ragu is a firm favourite in our house but I wanted to make it extra special so I decided to use pheasant, which is in season at the moment. The rich game flavours complimented the prosciutto perfectly and combined with the tomato ragu, cooked with red wine we were left with a rich, full of flavour meal. I served this meal with a bottle of Collio Rosso red wine which is also from the same region and finished the meal off perfectly. When it came to sourcing the Collio Rosso we did struggle until we came across Bat and Bottle who specialise in Italian wines.

This is what I did...

Pheasant and Prosciutto Ragu and Homemade Gnocchi

Ingredients

Ragu

400g pheasant breast

6 slices of Prosciutto di San Daniele

400g chopped tomatoes

1 red onion, chopped

1 stick of celery, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

Balsamic vinegar

100mls vegetable stock

300mls red wine

Olive oil

Gnocchi

350g white potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 egg

250g 00 pasta flour

60 butter, melted

Pinch of salt

Method

1 - In a pan of salted boiling water simmer the white potatoes for 20 minutes or until soft

2 - Drain and return to the pan to cool

3 - Heat a large saute pan heat a splash of olive oil and brown off the pheasant breasts then remove from the pan

4 - Add the chopped red onions, chopped celery, carrots and fry for 5 minutes, stirring regularly

5 - Add the chopped garlic and fry for 2 more minutes before adding the chopped tomatoes, vegetable stock, red wine and a good splash of balsamic vinegar

6 - Take the pheasant breasts and wrap with Prosciutto and place in the pan, cover the pan and leave to simmer for 20 minutes

7 - While the ragu is cooking prepare the gnocchi by mashing the potatoes, adding the egg and mixing thoroughly

8 - Add a pinch of salt, the melted butter and mix

9 - Gradually add the pasta flour until you have a dough like consistency

10 - Remove the potato dough and on a lightly floured top cut in half, making the dough in smaller pieces is a lot more manageable

11 - Roll the dough into a long sausage shape and start cutting into small pieces, about 2cms thick you should get about 65 - 70 gnocchi

12 - Roll each individual piece into a ball and using a fork push down to create ridges, this will help the gnocchi to hold the delicious ragu sauce

13 - Bring a pan of lightly salted water to the boil and add the gnocchi as few at a time and boil until they float to the top of the pan

14 - Stir the ragu and serve on a bed of gnocchi and top with a generous amount of Grana Padano cheese

This recipe may not have won the competition but it was definitely a winner in our house!

Enjoy x

Pin me for later!