Slow roast tomato and gnocchi salad

I’m not sure where the idea came from but I figured why not make a salad out of gnocchi. Not flabby boiled gnocchi, but crispy pan fried gnocchi ready to soak up flavour. The whole idea seemed quite exciting – a salad out of an ingredient I’d never used in a salad before. The slow roast tomatoes are the perfect partner to the crispy little fluffy dumplings – adding hits of flavour and effectively a sauce to the whole dish. Basil and olives keep it fresh feeling.

One word of warning though, this is a make-and-eat-now dish. Leftovers won’t keep until the next day as the gnocchi really firm up and seem overly dense if kept. Successful experiment though.

Slow Roast Tomato and Gnocchi Salad (dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free, soya-free, sesame-free, vegetarian and vegan)

• 1 pack ready made potato gnocchi (I used de cecco which is free from egg, dairy and nuts)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small punnett/ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 garlic cloves, in their papery skins
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 3 spring onions
• Handful olives, sliced
• Handful basil leaves, roughly torn
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Seasoning.

– Place the halved cherry tomatoes, whole unpeeled cloves of garlic, seasoning and 1 tbsp of oil in a roasting dish. Toss well and roast in a hot oven for 45 minutes, until the tomatoes and soft, wrinkly and sticky and oozing a little juice.
– Meanwhile, pan fry the gnocchi in the 2 tbsp of oil until crispy and golden all over.
– In a large bowl mash the roasted garlic cloves (slipped out of the skins) into the balsamic, whisk in the oil and some seasoning
– Add the tomatoes and juice.
– Tip in the hot crispy gnocchi and mix to coat with the dressing and tomatoes.
– Stir in the onions and olives and leave to cool to room temperature
– Just before serving, stir in the basil leaves. Taste and adjust the seasoning if required.
– I added 2 tsp of these Belazu balsamic pearls for added tang