Gnocchi

There is nothing more comforting than mashed potatoes and gravy, except maybe gnocchi in a wonderful meat sauce! Every now and then I get this craving for soft pillowy home made gnocchi. It's kinda like pasta, once you have home made, there is no going back. The easiest trick for me is to use left over mashed potatoes. I make my mashed potatoes with unsalted butter and a combo of cream, half and half, milk, or chicken broth, and a little salt and pepper...it really depends on what's in the fridge at the time and what I have to use up, so it's never the same. The gnocchi turn out wonderful every time so it really doesn't matter. Now I have to say I do cheat, besides using left overs, I run down to Genova's, a wonderful little Italian deli, and grab a pint of their meat sauce. When you work full time, you gotta have shortcuts! Their meat sauce may be better than mine, but my gnocchi is better than theirs....so it's a wonderful combination in my book. How fun is that !

Gnocchi Recipe

Ingredients

2-3 cups prepared mashed potatoes

1/4-1/2 cup flour to begin with, may need up to 1 cup 1 egg yolk salt & pepper to taste 1-2 cups meat sauce

fresh parmigiano reggiano cheese, grated for garnish Instructions If using left over mashed potatoes, heat in small pot or microwave until warm. If not, make some! Transfer warmed mashed potatoes to a mixing bowl, add the yolk and mix. Add salt, pepper, and 1/2 cup of the flour. Knead together, I use a fork... and add more flour if necessary, bit by bit, kneading until a slightly sticky consistency is attained. Lightly dust a work surface with flour. * Form the dough into sausage-like rolls about the thickness of your thumb. Cut into pieces about 1 inch in length. (See my note below, I leave my dough too tacky to be able to do it this way.) Using a fork, flatten the piece as you roll so that the tines leave an imprint in the gnocchi and roll it right off the end of the fork.  Keep a glass of water nearby to clean the fork. Transfer to waxed paper lightly dusted with flour. Heat meat sauce in serving platter in oven and keep warm. Meanwhile, fill a 6 quart pot with salted water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat so the water is a gentle roll. Drop the gnocchi into water, about 12-16 at a time. They will sink to the bottom but will rise to the surface after a minute or three. Continue to cook for another 15 seconds. Immediately remove with a slotted spoon to a colander. Sprinkle with a little olive oil to keep from sticking together, mix gently and transfer to heated meat sauce dish. Repeat until all gnocchi have been cooked. Serve with parm on the side! Kim's Note: * My trick for tender gnocchi is to stay as light on the flour as possible. When the dough is still fairly tacky, I scoop the potato mixture into little balls with a little #100 scoop and let sit for about 10 minutes on my baking sheet. They will develop a slight crust which you can then shape on fork. If you use too much flour your gnocchi will be too heavy, in both flavor and texture. It takes a little practice, but once you get the right consistency, you will be jumping for joy!

Corn and Poblano Lasagna

Marcella Valladolid, you have outdone yourself. She is the cute little chef on the Food Network that does the show Mexican Made Easy. I honestly don't watch it that often, but I do DVR episodes and scan through them real quick to make sure I don't miss anything I could learn; I just love Mexican food! Well, this is an episode that looked interesting and sounded so good I had to try it. This was just wonderful, nothing left to say. The star of the dish is the lasagna sauce. The mixture of fresh sweet corn and cream with a hint of garlic and thyme blended into this creamy wonderful sauce would go well with any vegetable lasagna you choose to throw together. I did find the sweetness of the sauce paired with the subtle heat of the poblanos nice. I used fresh white corn ears and cut the kernels off, the sauce is such an important flavor you need to make sure the corn is really good.    

Corn and Poblano Lasagna Recipe

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
3 cloves garlic, minced, divided
2 cups fresh corn kernels (from about 2 ears), or frozen and thawed
2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup thinly sliced white onion
1 large zucchini, thinly sliced lengthwise
4 poblano chiles, charred, peeled, stemmed, seeded and cut into 1-inch strips
12 (7 by 3-inch) no-boil lasagna sheets
2 cups shredded Oaxaca cheese, or mozzarella

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add 2/3 of the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Mix in the corn and saute for 5 minutes. Stir in the cream and thyme. Cook over medium-low heat for 5 minutes for the flavors to incorporate. Turn off the heat and let cool slightly. Transfer to a blender and puree until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a small, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining garlic and cook for 1 minute. Mix in the zucchini and poblano strips and cook for 5 minutes for the flavors to incorporate. Season with salt and pepper. Turn off the heat.

Spread about 1/4 of the corn mixture over the bottom of an 11 by 8-inch baking dish. Cover with a layer of 3 lasagna sheets. Spread 1/4 of the poblano mixture and 1/4 of the cheese over the pasta. Repeat the layering 3 more times. Cover with foil.

Bake until the pasta is cooked and tender, about 50 minutes. Remove the foil and turn up the oven temperature to broil. Broil until golden brown and bubbly, 8 to 10 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Kim's Notes: I used 4 ears of corn. I also used regular cream instead of heavy.
Recipe courtesy Marcela Valladolid

Pizza

My sister-in-law just built a backyard pizza oven. Pretty cool if you ask me...I asked my husband and he said "no way".  I didn't expected a "sure honey, do you want me to get started on it today?" answer anyway so I wasn't disappointed.  This put me on a mission...to bake pizza outside without the luxury and ambiance of an outdoor wood burning oven. I watched an episode of  BBQ Addiction with Bobby Flay that showed him making flatbread on the BBQ, now why didn't I think of that? I still don't understand the technical difference between flatbread and pizza, but from a culinary standpoint, my flatbread pizza was excellent! I made a traditional pizza dough, hand formed 6 oz dough balls into an oval of sorts, and baked it on the grill for a few minutes on each side. Then once the flatbread pizza's were baked enough to handle, we each made our own individual pizza's with our own choice of toppings. It only took another 5 minutes on the grill for the sauce to warm and the cheeses to melt into this wonderful homemade flatbread pizza. Mine was a beautiful pizza with a white sauce made from a basic bechamel with the addition of mascarpone and parmesan cheese. Fresh spinach, artichoke hearts, zucchini, tomatoes and a combination of mozzarella, fontina, asiago, and parmesan cheeses finished off my first masterpiece. I was very happy with the first trial. How fun is that!

Goat Cheese, Chicken, & Sun-Dried Tomato Roll-ups

Very rarely do I get goose bumps over savory dishes. I'm a sweets girl, they are so much more fun to make but I have to say this was impressive.

Every now and then I get in the dinner "rut" and have to start searching for something new. I love Cooks Illustrated. I found this while searching for new creative ideas. This won't exactly replace or add to a weeknight dinner menu as it was fairly time consuming but I am very excited none the less. This would be a perfect dinner party entree. The nice thing about this is the ability to do prep earlier in the day, or even the day before.

The filling consisted of a cheese base including parm, mozzarella, and goat. Shredded chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, pine-nuts, a host of herbs and a little lemon zest with an egg to bind made up the rest of the filling. The sauce was a nice take on a Mornay using the addition of chicken broth and more herbs. I love using lasagna noodles as a way to bundle up the filling goodness into nice little packages. I can't wait to use this filling in ravioli. I love when a recipe can do double duty.....how fun is that!

Goat Cheese, Chicken, & Tomato Roll-ups Recipe

Ingredients

CHICKEN AND SAUCE:
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts and/or thighs, trimmed
2 1/2cups low-sodium chicken broth
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 medium onion , minced
4 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 4 teaspoons)
1/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 cup heavy cream
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
1ounce Parmesan cheese , grated (1/2 cup)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
Salt and ground black pepper
FILLING AND NOODLES:
10 ounces goat cheese
6 ounces whole-milk mozzarella cheese , shredded (1 1/2 cups)
2 ounces Parmesan cheese , grated (1 cup)
1 large egg , lightly beaten
1 teaspoon grated zest and 1 tablespoon juice from 1 lemon
1 medium garlic clove , minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 1 teaspoon)
Salt and ground black pepper
1/4 cup pine nuts , toasted
2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano leaves
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes , rinsed, patted dry, and chopped fine
16 no-boil lasagna noodles

Instructions

1. For the chicken and sauce: Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine the chicken and broth in a large saucepan, cover, and simmer over medium heat until the breasts register 160 to 165 degrees and the thighs register 175 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 8 to 12 minutes.
2. Remove the chicken from the pot and pour the liquid into a measuring cup. Let the chicken cool slightly, then shred the meat into bite-size pieces (see illustration below).
3. Wipe the pot dry, add the butter, and melt over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the white wine and simmer until nearly evaporated, about 30 seconds.
4. Gradually whisk in the reserved broth and cream. Stir in the bay leaves and nutmeg, and simmer, whisking often, until the sauce is thickened and measures about 31/2 cups, about 10 minutes. Off the heat, remove and discard the bay leaves. Whisk in the Parmesan and basil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover the sauce to keep warm; set aside.
5. For the filling and noodles: In a large bowl, combine the goat cheese, mozzarella, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan, egg, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper until uniform. Gradually stir 1/2 cup of the sauce into the cheese mixture, then fold in the shredded chicken, pine nuts, oregano, 1/2 cup of the basil, and sun-dried tomatoes; set aside.
6. Pour 1 inch of boiling water into a 13 by 9-inch broiler-safe baking dish and slip the noodles into the water, one at a time. Let the noodles soak until pliable, about 5 minutes, separating the noodles with the tip of a knife to prevent sticking. Remove the noodles from the water and place in a single layer on clean kitchen towels; discard the water and dry the baking dish.
7. Spread 1 cup more sauce over the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch baking dish. Mound 1/4 cup of the chicken-cheese mixture evenly over the bottom of each noodle and roll, and compact into a tidy log. Roll the noodle up around the filling, and lay seam side down in the baking dish. Spoon the remaining sauce evenly over the filled noodles, covering the pasta completely.
8. Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil that has been sprayed with vegetable oil spray (or use nonstick foil). Bake until the edges are just bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time.
10. TO MAKE AHEAD Assemble the Pasta Roll-Ups with Chicken and Goat Cheese or Pasta Roll-Ups with Chicken, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, and Pine Nuts through step 7, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for up to 1 day. Remove the plastic wrap and bake as directed in steps 8 and 9, increasing the covered baking time in step 8 to 45 to 55 minutes.
     

Recipe by Cook's Illustrated