A delicious centre of aubergine alla parmigiana shrouded in soft potato gnocchi. If just the thought of it makes your mouth water, make sure you try out this recipe!

Ingredients for 4 people
Potatoes, 800 g
Flour, 250 g
Egg, 1
Aubergine, 500 g
Carrot, 100 g
Onion, 100 g
Tomato purée, 200 ml
Butter, 100 g
Sage, 20 g
Grated Grana cheese, 30 g
Salt, as needed
Extra-virgin olive oil, as needed

Preparation
Start by making the dough for the gnocchi. Peel the potatoes and then steam them (we would recommend you to use yellow-fleshed potatoes, which are perfect for making gnocchi). Whilst they are still warm, use a potato masher to mash them up, add the flour, the egg, and a pinch of salt, and then mix together vigorously until you get a compact mixture. Lay it out onto a floured work surface and use a rolling pin to make a 2-3 millimetre thick sheet, from which you’ll be able to cut out disks of 6-8 centimetres in diameter.
Now move on to the filling. Finely chop the onion and carrot and sauté them, and then add the aubergines, which have been cut into small cubes. Brown on a low heat for 15 minutes, until they have become soft. Pour in the tomato purée and let it cook for another 30 minutes on a low heat, stirring occasionally, until the sauce becomes very thick. Turn off the stove and leave it to cool down completely. Add the grated Grana cheese and mix well.
Now it’s time to stuff the gnocchi: place a small spoonful of the filling in the centre of each disk of dough, carefully close the edges to seal the gnocchi, and then gently shape them into balls with your hands. Cook the gnocchi in a large saucepan, in salted boiling water for a few minutes (they’ll be ready as soon as they begin to float), carefully drain them with a skimmer, and then finish them off with some melted butter and a few sage leaves.
A piece of advice: steaming is a great way to prevent potatoes from absorbing too much water, or alternatively, you can keep their skin on to boil them and then peel them whilst they’re still warm.