Years ago, as I watched a Martha Stewart show, I saw the guest chef make Gnocchi. I was completely intrigued..
... Which leads me to our last trip to California, when after an evening at the beach in Malibu, we stopped at an Italian restaurant near our hotel late one night. John and I tiredly flopped our slightly sun burnt bodies into a booth, worrying we weren't dressed nice enough for the formal environment. (The host had to assure me we were fine.) There was an excellent guitar player finishing his last set as we waited for our food. When our salads and bowl of little Gnocchi arrived, (we shared the dish,) I can say that we absolutely fell in love! Not with each other, that's already happened!!! But with the adorable little balls of dough sitting before us! The pillowy soft pieces of pasta that the chef had doused in a delectably creamy cheese sauce were the perfect texture and taste! We both left the restaurant pleasantly impressed, and I began on my journey to find out more about this new dish.
Each recipe I found was about the same, with the same 4 ingredients, but there was always a varying amount of how much potato, flour, egg, and salt to add from recipe to recipe. After one attempt, with a tomato, basil and garlic sauce, the little gnocchi turned out too soft. To my delight, John still scarfed them down, and said they were good enough to eat!
My second attempt (with a little more flour) turned out perfect! I was ecstatic as the "play-dough snake" cylinders of dough rolled out under my hands and didn't fall apart! It was definitely a little bit of work, and a tiny bit time consuming, but the finished product was amazing! This time I tossed the gnocchi in a creamy citrus sauce with chicken, broccoli, leeks and toasted pine nuts. Yummy!!! Next time around I will double the amount of sauce though.
So there it is. After successfully preparing gnocchi, I feel like I have ventured a little further into the delectable world that is Italian cooking! To leave you, I will share what I believe is the most magical part of these little dumplings... I love the way they cook! You throw them in bowling water, and in about three or four minutes, when they're finished, they float to the top! Now if only I could get my pork roast to wave at me or yell out "Hey Elisha! I'm done!"
... Which leads me to our last trip to California, when after an evening at the beach in Malibu, we stopped at an Italian restaurant near our hotel late one night. John and I tiredly flopped our slightly sun burnt bodies into a booth, worrying we weren't dressed nice enough for the formal environment. (The host had to assure me we were fine.) There was an excellent guitar player finishing his last set as we waited for our food. When our salads and bowl of little Gnocchi arrived, (we shared the dish,) I can say that we absolutely fell in love! Not with each other, that's already happened!!! But with the adorable little balls of dough sitting before us! The pillowy soft pieces of pasta that the chef had doused in a delectably creamy cheese sauce were the perfect texture and taste! We both left the restaurant pleasantly impressed, and I began on my journey to find out more about this new dish.
Each recipe I found was about the same, with the same 4 ingredients, but there was always a varying amount of how much potato, flour, egg, and salt to add from recipe to recipe. After one attempt, with a tomato, basil and garlic sauce, the little gnocchi turned out too soft. To my delight, John still scarfed them down, and said they were good enough to eat!
My second attempt (with a little more flour) turned out perfect! I was ecstatic as the "play-dough snake" cylinders of dough rolled out under my hands and didn't fall apart! It was definitely a little bit of work, and a tiny bit time consuming, but the finished product was amazing! This time I tossed the gnocchi in a creamy citrus sauce with chicken, broccoli, leeks and toasted pine nuts. Yummy!!! Next time around I will double the amount of sauce though.
So there it is. After successfully preparing gnocchi, I feel like I have ventured a little further into the delectable world that is Italian cooking! To leave you, I will share what I believe is the most magical part of these little dumplings... I love the way they cook! You throw them in bowling water, and in about three or four minutes, when they're finished, they float to the top! Now if only I could get my pork roast to wave at me or yell out "Hey Elisha! I'm done!"
