Gnocchi

I first fell in love with gnocchi at al Vento restaurant in South Minneapolis. The first time Luke and I went there (with Jennie and Adam) was New Year's Eve in 2005. I had gnocchi with their mother sauce.....and I fell in love. I have always loved all things potato....but gnocchi is heaven.

I had a delicious baked gnocchi in marinara last year in Rome:

I don't remember the name of the restaurant...but it was in Piazza Navona. Unfortunately, at the end of the trip I had a really bad gnocchi somewhere near the Trevi fountain...which steered me away from gnocchi for nearly a year.

A few weeks ago, I was ready to try it again, I found this recipe in Everyday Pasta by Giada de Laurentiis, it's phenomenal. I made half the recipe, and it was still 4 fairly good sized portions.

Baked gnocchi 2 (17-ounce) packages potato gnocchi (use the vacuum-packed type - not the dry boxed kind, or make GF gnocchi using the recipe at celiac.com) 3 cups heavy cream 1 cup gluten-free chicken broth 1/4 cup rice flour 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. pepper 1/4 tsp. nutmeg 12 ounces baby spinach 3 ounces fresh goat cheese (I actually used Havarti instead..yum) 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the gnocchi in a lightly greased baking dish, set aside. In a saucepan, whisk together the cream, chicken broth and flour over medium heat. Continue whisking until the sauce is simmering and thickened, about 5 minutes. Add the salt, pepper and nutmeg and stir. Add the spinach and toss to coat in the cream. Pour the cream and spinach mixture evenly over the gnocchi. Crumble the goat cheese over the spinach. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the top. Bake until the top is golden, about 30 minutes.

Bacon-wrapped delight

It is still raining....in MN...in January. Needless to say, I'm not going to brave the icy roads, so I'm staying in and cooking instead. Tonight I made a bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin and roasted vegetables. De-wait for it - lightful!




















I had a one-pound pork tenderloin that I seasoned with some random spices and then rubbed with deli mustard. Then I wrapped it in thick, center-cut bacon and roasted it for 45 minutes at 350 degrees in a stoneware roasting pan. Yum-o. I used my Cuisinart with the slicing blade to prepare the veggies, I had potatoes, carrots and parsnips....I tossed them in EVOO and seasoned with salt and pepper. I roasted them on a stoneware pan, also at 350 degrees. They only needed about 30 minutes, as they were sliced nice and thin. So good! The double pork entree earned thumbs up from Lulu and Luke as well!

dumplings

In this cold weather, especially this week with freezing rain, I always crave a warming soup. This one is super easy to make, as it's sort of a "semi-homemade" recipe. I use a large can of Campbell's Chicken and Rice soup and then make dumplings using Bisquick. Pour the soup into a stockpot, add water as directed on the can, and add an additional cup of water, as you'll boil off a lot of liquid. Bring to a boil, drop in the dumpling dough, boil uncovered for 10 minutes. Cover and boil an additional 10 minutes. The soup gets really thick and creamy from the dumplings:) Yummmm.

Galette

 

I have developed a slight obsession with this dessert, I've made many variations - all are delicious. I think my favorite is apple, but mixed berries are also delightful. Homemade crust makes this standout, but store-bought crust makes a much quicker substitute. The first recipe I tried was from Martha, but I've modified it over time, and used different spices for different fruit fillings.

 Here is the basic recipe:

Galette

1 pie crust (can use gluten-free)
1 Tbsp. flour (can use gluten-free)
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. corn starch
1/4 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. sugar, divided
1-2 cups fresh fruit
1 egg

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Mix flour, brown sugar, corn starch, salt and 1 1/2 Tbsp. sugar in a small bowl. Roll out pie crust, spread out spice mixture in middle of crust, leaving a 1 to 2 inch border around the edges. Place fruit on top of mixture, fold sides of crust up over the edges of the fruit, pinch together. Brush with egg and sprinkle remaining sugar over the crust. Bake for 12-18 minutes, once fruit softens and crust browns.


When I make this recipe for apples, I add cloves, cinnamon, and allspice. I also warm up some apple jelly in a saucepan to drizzle over the finished galette. I have served with vanilla ice cream and with whipped cream....both delightful. I've also tossed a few fresh (or frozen) cranberries in here with pink lady apples.

The Shore

Travel. Luke and I both love travel. If we had an infinite supply of vacation days and two incomes we would be traveling all the time. Being that right now we are both in school and only Luke is working, we won't be doing much traveling. We also realized - halfway through our winter break - that because I'll be going to school throughout the summer and that our spring breaks don't line up - we won't even have the opportunity to go anywhere. Bummer. Last year at this time we were planning our February trip to Italy....so we started experiencing a little "cabin fever", realizing we can't go anywhere.
We took a spontaneous trip up to Duluth for one night. Visiting the North Shore in January probably wasn't our brightest idea ever - but we did have fun! We stayed at the Canal Park Lodge, which has great views of Lake Superior and is a really nice hotel. They had the best continental breakfast ever! I highly recommend this place. The rooms with the lake view are great - some also have balconies....not necessary in January...but would be great in the summer.


We walked along the water, shopped along Canal Park and had dinner at Little Angie's Cantina. Margaritas and enchiladas (pronounced in MN as Aunt-chiladas, not EN-chiladas).


The next morning we did some more shopping and walking around (freezing from wind off the water) and ended with lunch at Grandma's. We then headed back to St. Paul, stopping at the Outlet Mall in Cambridge. The one disappointment of the trip was Betty's Pies - which has very limited hours in the winter...they were closed when we were there:( We did learn, however, that there is a new location in White Bear Lake...which just might be worth the drive one day.

Penuche

I'm craving these cupcakes right now. I think I probably have all the ingredients on hand....but don't dare make them when I don't have anywhere to take them. If they all stay at home, they will all be eaten.

I used dark chocolate cake mix for the cupcakes, but french vanilla is also really good with this frosting. For gluten-free, use a GF cake mix.  The Penuche tastes sort of like a maple cream....delicious.


Penuche
1 stick butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 to 2 cups powdered sugar

Melt butter in saucepan, add brown sugar. Boil for 2 minutes over low heat. Remove from heat, slowly stir in 1/4 cup milk. Return to heat, bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Let cool for at least 10 minutes. Add 1 cup powdered sugar. Continue to add small amounts of powdered sugar until frosting is desired consistency for spreading.

Cincinnati Chili

It's cold. This time of year I always crave warm, beef-based meals. Growing up, my g-ma always made Cincinnati Chili on New Year's Day, we always looked forward to its warmth and enticing aroma. I came up with this recipe on my own, I think it has more spice than g-ma's, but it definitely reminds me of hers.


Cincinnati Chili

1 lb. ground beef
1 white onion, chopped, divided
1 green pepper, chopped
1 large can (29oz.) can tomato sauce
1 can (14.5 oz) can diced tomato
2 tsp. cinnamon
s/p to taste
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2 tsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. Chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. cloves

Brown beef, season with salt and pepper, drain. Add peppers and onion, saute a few minutes until soft. Add tomatoes and sauce and remaining ingredients. Simmer at least 30 minutes. Serve over regular or gluten-free spaghetti noodles. Serve with warm kidney beans, chopped raw onion, shredded cheese and sour cream as optional toppings.

Beginnings

And so begins my new adventure for 2010. This site is intended to be a place for me to pour out my thoughts and share my photos and recipes. I imagine only my family will read this:)