Gnocchi Bun Sausages

    An Italian sausage served in a bun made from gnocchi and topped with pesto and caramelized onions.

    Ingredients

    • 1 bunch Parsley
    • 1/4 cup Grated Parm
    • 1/4 cup Almonds
    • 1 clove Garlic
    • Salt and Pepper
    • 1 1/2 cups Potato Flakes
    • 1 1/4 cup Hot Water
    • 1 Egg
    • 1 cup Flour
    • Italian Sausages
    • Caramelized Onions

    Instructions

    1. Mix the pesto ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.
    2. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil
    3. Mix the water and potato flakes in a bowl and stir until it becomes mashed potatoes. Season with salt. Stir in the egg and flour and mix to form the dough.
    4. Transfer dough to a work surface and knead for a minute or less until it comes together. Don't over knead.
    5. Cut the dough into 4 equal pieces. Form them into logs and sprinkle with flour. Use a dowel that is a similar width as the sausages and wrap the dough around it, pushing it against the work surface on 4 sides to flatten and form it into a square. Make sure the top touches. Drop the whole thing into the boiling water and cook about 4 - 5 minutes. Remove from water and carefully remove the dough from the dowel. Put the bun on an oiled surface and repeat with the rest of the dough balls.
    6. Meanwhile, cook the sausages.
    7. Put the cooked sausages into the "buns" and sear them on all 4 sides in a hot nonstick pan with plenty of oil or butter.
    8. Remove from the pan, top with the onions and pesto, and serve.

    Notes

    I had Italian sausages in the freezer, and I bought some beautiful sub rolls for something else, so I thought it would be nice to come up with a simple recipe for sausage sandwiches. I started brainstorming and thought of putting gnocchi in the sandwich, then came up with the idea of gnocchi as the bun. Welp, there goes my “simple” recipe idea. It’s ok though because I was cracking myself up the whole time I was thinking of this recipe, and it came out great! I tried a few different ideas for the bun but when I squared it off it really worked best.


    If instant mashed potatoes were good enough for my grandmother, they are good enough for me!

    After you make the potatoes, mix in flour and egg.

    I made the dough a little stiffer than I normally would to make sure it would hold together in bun form.

    I kept the sausage nearby to help make the buns the right size.

    I also used this dowel to help. As I mentioned before, I squared off the bun a bit and tried to make it as thin as I could. I dropped this whole thing into the water.

    I first tried to make the buns more of a thin sheet but they didn’t work. Once I squared it off and connected it on the top is when I started having success.

    Squaring the buns also helped them sear nicely on all sides.

    I topped these with some parsley pesto and caramelized onions. YUM!

    The buns were nice and thin and the perfect size to match with the sausage. They still tasted like gnocchi and had a great chewy texture. The pesto and onions paired great with this sandwich, but I also added some mustard after I took the picture.