Cookbook lovers are a discerning group with high expectations that must be met for a title to enter our coveted collection. Some of us shy away from restaurant books and others only collect those high-end tomes. The criteria for the type of books we enjoy varies as much as our individual personalities.

Single-subject books can be a hard sell but seem to be experiencing a resurgence of late. A well-done single-subject title researches, works through the intricacies of a recipe and provides us with the technique and knowledge we need to master that particular dish. Such a title is Christine Y. Hickman's Gnocchi, Solo Gnocchi: A Comprehensive Tribute to Italy's Other Favorite First Course.



Christine is the voice behind the Gnocchi Sonomarcella website and is an experienced teacher, caterer, and writer who divides her time between New Mexico and Italy. Her cookbook is the book on gnocchi - sharing the history and basics of this seemingly simple but complicated dumpling that requires skill, a light hand and dedication to master. 

The detailed instructions and selection of recipes here are outstanding (Christine's tutorial video is recommended watching.) From basic gnocchi to filled varieties, the author has laid it all out for us. The sauces, gratins and even sweet dessert gnocchi are impressive and one can spend hours in the kitchen with this creative collection of recipes for this versatile Italian classic.

At this time, you may order Gnocchi, Solo Gnocchi directly from the author's site which our BUY BOOK button links to. The photographs are old school but plentiful and clearly reflect the finished dishes. This does not distract from the brilliance of this title. The two plus pages of process photographs for the basic gnocchi recipe are immensely helpful. Ingredient amounts are given in pounds and ounces for certain ingredients (potatoes, cheese, sausage) and volume for others (cup, tablespoons, etc), there are no metric measurements. If you wish to master gnocchi, you must order this book. 

I have made a few of the sauce recipes and they are spot on. I plan to have a gnocchi weekend soon that will involve a number of Italian dishes. Who wants to come over?

Our  takes you inside this masterful title and features the following 

 

To celebrate Christine's book, we are offering a gnocchi prize package to one worldwide winner (see details below). The author has autographed a copy of her book which I have in my possession. Our friends at OXO are providing a ricer OXO Good Grips ricer and a fine mesh strainer and I am providing a Gnocchi board and stripper - all these items will be shipped from my home to yours.

The author is providing one autographed copy of her book, OXO is providing one adjustable ricer and fine mesh strainer, and I am adding a gnocchi board to this giveaway open to EYB Members worldwide. One of the entry options is to answer the following question in the comments section of this blog post.

Which recipe in the index would you try first?

Please note that you must be logged into the Rafflecopter contest before posting or your entry won't be counted. For more information on this process, please see our step-by-step help post and this forum post. Once you log in and enter your member name you will be directed to the next entry option - the blog comment. After that, there are additional options that you can complete for more entries.

Be sure to check your spam filters to receive our email notifications. Prizes can take up to 6 weeks to arrive from the publishers. If you are not already a Member, you can join at no cost. The contest ends at midnight on March 31st, 2019.