Rustic Roman Gnocchi with Rosemary Potatoes

This recipe is made in three stages, each in the Dutch oven, and then you mix everything together at the end & serve. This way the juices don't soften the texture of the Gnocchi, and the flavors merge at the end. The potatoes will get a better caramelizing texture is you cook them separately.

Roman style Gnocchi is pan friend, versus the traditional Gnocchi which is cooked by blanching in hot water, similar to how you would cook other pastas.

It’s delicious, & the Gnocchi dough can be made weeks ahead of time (see my recipe here Pumpkin-Potato Gnocchi) & freeze/defrost for later use. The recipe shows the steps to prepare the pumpkin gnocchi, & the sauce I made with it.

Rustic Roman Gnocchi with Rosemary Potatoes

Ingredients:

1 pint fresh Mushrooms-sliced thinly

2 cloves whole fresh Garlic-(unpeeled-but slightly smashed)

¼ teaspoon green Peppercorns

3 cups Fingerling or other small Potatoes (cut into half)

4-5 sprigs fresh Rosemary

2 ½ cups uncooked Gnocchi

6 tablespoons Butter-(divided into 3 batches)

4 teaspoons Olive oil-(divided in half)

Sea Salt

Step 1:

In a Dutch oven, heat to medium high, melt 2 tablespoons butter, 2 teaspoons olive oil, garlic & 2 sprigs of Rosemary. Add potatoes, sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt & black pepper, & cover. Cook for about 2-3 minutes at a time, tossing potatoes so that they cook evenly. Once thoroughly cooked, appearing firm, yet soft when pierced with a fork, remove from heat & allow to cool for 10 minutes covered. Remove from pan & place in a large serving dish, covered in plastic wrap to retain heat.

Step 2:

In the same Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of butter, & sauté mushrooms with a pinch of sea salt & pepper until tender. Remove & add to potatoes. Cover.

Step 3:

In the Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of butter, 2 more sprigs of rosemary, & 2 teaspoons of Olive oil on medium heat. Add gnocchi in two batches. Sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt. Cook evenly without gnocchi touching one another, in one layer. Turn them over half way to cook the underside.

The appearance should be a golden brown, forming a thin crust on the outside, but still soft & fluffy on the inside. I cooked my gnocchi in two batches. Otherwise, only about half of the recipe will cover the pan at one time. Remove from heat, toss with mushrooms & potatoes, and sprinkle with shredded Parmesan cheese. Serve.  

Chicken-Mushroom Stroganoff

I think everyone has heard me say that my hubby doesn't eat red meat or pork. That still leaves a lot of options for me to cook for dinner, even by eliminating it from our diets. There are so many other options, I find that I rarely miss it.

If I ever do, I may order a steak when we go out, or since we are in Bison country, possibly a spicy Bison burger. That usually satisfies my temporary craving, & I can go back to a seafood, chicken, & fish diet....which by the way, is quite delicious!

One of his favorites is egg noodles, with stroganoff. I replaced the red meat for chicken, and it still hits the spot!

Chicken-Mushroom Stroganoff

Ingredients:

1 pound Chicken breasts-cubed

3 cups chicken broth

3-4 cloves fresh Garlic-minced

1 yellow Onion-diced

2 tablespoons Butter

½ cup red Wine

4 tablespoons All-Purpose Flour

1 & ½ cup low-fat Sour Cream

1 pound Mushrooms-washed & sliced

½ cup fresh Italian flat leaf Parsley-minced

1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence

1-2 large sprigs fresh Rosemary

Salt & Pepper to taste

Olive Oil (for sautéing chicken)

Directions:

In a large pot, heat olive oil & sauté onions & garlic. Add herbs. Cook for about 2-3 minutes or until golden brown, & onions are clear in color. Add chicken, & cook for about 5 minutes. Add salt, pepper, spices, chicken broth, and stir well. Simmer on medium-low for about 15 minutes.

In a small frying pan, melt butter over medium high heat. Add mushrooms & a pinch of salt. Sauté & toss frequently until the edges of the mushrooms caramelize & have a golden brown color. Add to pot with chicken.

In a glass, add wine & flour. Mix well to remove any lumps. Add to chicken, mixing well. Cook for about 2-3 minutes, as the sauce thickens. Mix in sour cream, and then remove from heat. I served my stroganoff over the top of buttered homemade egg noodles.

**Recipe for homemade Egg pasta to follow!

Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps

When planning dinner last night I realized that I had eaten over the last week, enough sugar, carbs, and butter to kill a large horse. It was time for something a little healthier, AND totally different.....Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps...how different can that be from the many holiday foods we all eat around this time of year. After two of these, and a glass of water, I felt like I had "done my body good".....!

Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Leaves from Butter Lettuce-washed & patted dry

4 tablespoons Oil

1 teaspoon Sesame oil

3 boneless skinless Chicken breasts

1/2 cup Water Chestnut (from can)

½ cup Mushrooms-chopped

½ yellow Onion-minced

2-3 green Onions-chopped

1 cup fresh Carrots-julienned

3 cloves minced fresh Garlic

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons Soy sauce

2 teaspoons Fish sauce

2 tablespoons rice wine Vinegar

2 teaspoons Siracha sauce

1 tablespoon hot Mustard

1 teaspoon red chili paste in oil

White pepper

¼ cup toasted Sesame seeds

Directions:

Heat oil over high heat in a large wok. Sauté onions, garlic, and green onions until golden brown & fragrant. Add chicken, soy sauce, white pepper, fish sauce, chili sauce, Siracha, and stir well. Cover & cook for about 5-7 minutes, stirring every few minutes. Add carrots, and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Add mustard, rice wine vinegar, sugar, water chestnuts, and mushrooms & cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat & stir in sesame seeds. Serve immediately over washed & dried lettuce leaves.

Caramelized Onion & Portabella Pizza

Caramelized Onion & Portabella Pizza

Okay folks, this really is easy pizza dough to make. Although the directions call for a mixer, last night I hand mixed the dough with a large wooden spoon, then set it aside to rise. The entire process took me maybe 10 minutes, & another 20 to rise. You cannot beat that.

AND, I topped it with whatever we had in the house…..of course Mozzarella cheese….and I added a little Brie.

Mine was topped with sliced Portabella Mushrooms, sautéed for about 3 minutes in olive oil & a few garlic slices, salt & pepper…done!

I also added some caramelized yellow onions, which consists of peeling, & cutting into slices a yellow onion, then sautéing it on medium heat in butter until golden brown. Salt & set aside.

Follow the directions below for the pizza dough. Once ready, cut the large ball of dough in half. This makes two good sized pizza’s that will feed about 3.

Pizza Dough

1 package active dry yeast
1 tsp. sugar
1 cup warm water
1 tsp. Salt
2 tsp. Extra-virgin olive oil
2 ½ cups (Approx.) All-purpose white flour, plus more for dusting & rolling pizza

Directions:

In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the yeast, sugar, and warm water; stir gently to dissolve. Let the mixture stand until the yeast comes alive and starts to foam, about 5 to 10 minutes.

Turn the mixer on low (or just use your arm & a wooden spoon) and add the salt and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the flour, a little at a time, mixing at the lowest speed until all the flour has been incorporated.

When the dough starts to come together, increase the speed to medium; stop the machine
periodically to scrape the dough off the hook. Get a feel for the dough by squeezing a
small amount together: if it's crumbly, add more water; if it's sticky, add more flour - 1
tablespoon at a time. Mix until the dough gathers into a ball, this should take about 5
minutes.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and fold it over itself a few times;
kneading until it is smooth and elastic. Form the dough into a round and place in a lightly
oiled bowl, turn it over to coat. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let it rise
in a warm spot (i.e. over a gas pilot light/warm oven) until doubled in size, about 45 min. to 1 hour.

This is a good time to stick a pizza stone in the oven and preheat them to 425 degrees F.

Once the dough is domed and spongy, turn it out onto a lightly floured counter. Roll and
stretch the dough into a cylinder and divide into 3 equal pieces. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes so it will be easier to roll out.

Roll or pat out a piece of dough into a 12 inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick. Dust a pizza
paddle with flour and slide it under the pizza dough. Brush the crust with a thin layer of
olive oil, and top with your favorite flavors.

Slide the pizza onto the hot stone in the
oven and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the crust is golden and crisp. Repeat with the
remaining dough.