Potato gnocchi with Taleggio cream, speck, and chopped pistachios

Prepare classic fresh potato gnocchi. Boil the potatoes, let them cool, peel them, and mash them. Add a third of their weight in flour and a pinch of salt.

Season to taste with pepper, nutmeg, and Parmesan cheese, or leave them plain and quickly mix everything together. Form into tubes and then cut them into the desired size to make gnocchi.

Bring the water to a boil for the gnocchi and season it with slightly less salt than necessary. In a large skillet, brown the speck, cut into strips, over low heat. Remove it, drain it on paper towels, and set aside.

In the same pan, add a knob of butter and the very finely chopped shallot. As soon as it starts to sizzle, add a ladle of boiling water and let it soften for a few minutes.

Add the diced Taleggio cheese and the remaining cream, lower the heat, and let the cheese melt, stirring constantly. Then add half of the remaining speck.

Lower the gnocchi into the boiling water and fish them out as soon as they rise to the surface, then dip them in the Taleggio sauce.

Stir gently, adding a little of the pasta cooking water if needed. Season with pepper and serve. Garnish with the remaining crispy speck and a sprinkling of chopped pistachios.

Serve.