Chestnut Gnocchi with Chocolate and Hazelnut Sauce

How to prepare chestnut gnocchi with chocolate and hazelnut sauce

1. Prepare the sauce: toast the hazelnuts in the oven for 5 minutes at 200°C, stirring several times so they don't burn. Remove them onto a towel and rub well to remove the skins. Blend in a small food processor until they become a paste.
2. Melt the chocolate over a double boiler. Add to the hazelnut paste and mix well. Add the cream and blend for a few more seconds.
3. The sauce can be prepared 1 day ahead. Store it in a jar in the refrigerator. When you want to use it, just submerge the jar in hot water and leave it for 10 minutes to warm up.
4. For the gnocchi, use a fork to mix the chestnut puree well with ricotta. Add the beaten egg and homogenize. Add the flour and mix again. The resulting dough will seem a bit too sticky, but that's fine.
5. Take 1 heaping tablespoon of gnocchi dough at a time. Place on a well-floured work surface. Roll the dough on the work surface to coat it with flour. Roll with floured hands into a thin rope.
6. Cut the rope into small pieces. Gently roll the pieces between your palms and place on parchment paper sprinkled with flour.
8. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. When it boils, reduce heat to low. Cook the gnocchi in the water for 1 minute after they rise to the surface. Cook them in batches, don't crowd them in the pot so they don't stick together.
9. Remove the gnocchi from the pot with a slotted spoon.
10. Melt the butter in a wide pan. Add the vanilla bean seeds and mix well. Add the gnocchi to the pan and sauté for 1 minute, shaking the pan several times so the gnocchi get coated with butter. Sprinkle the sugar over them and sauté for 30 more seconds, moving the pan.
11. Transfer the gnocchi to a bowl and pour the chocolate sauce over them. Gently toss until they're coated in sauce.
12. Divide the gnocchi into bowls and sprinkle with cocoa powder. Serve warm.

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