Amiamo lo Gnocchi!

After a disappointing lunch, we hit the jackpot on dinner!  Gnocchi (pronounced Noh-Kee) is an small Italian potato dumpling that is surprisingly tasty!  It's like the marriage of mashed potatoes and southern dumplings and can be used in many ways.  I, being a big fan of potatoes and dumplings, was a little leery until I tried the little buggers, and I must say that I really, really liked them!!  A starch-lover's dream! The recipe we made tonight included a mushroom and pancetta sauce, which was equally delicious and would be very good over any type of pasta.  


The recipe was a bit daunting because the white wine sauce and the vegetable broth for the white wine sauce had to be made, but as I said in my earlier post, these can be made ahead of time and refrigerated or frozen until you are ready to use them.  Had they been pre-made, this recipe would have been a quick one.  The wine sauce is a good base sauce for the imagination.  This is definitely one meal we will surely make again!


Gnocchi 

1 1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut

3 egg yolks, beaten

3/4 cups gluten-free flour, plus extra for dusting

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

Place potatoes in pot and cover with cold water.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cover.  Simmer 15-20 minutes until tender.  When cooked, drain and mash.  Season slightly with salt and pepper.  Beat in the eggs and flour gradually until a sticky dough forms.  Knead dough and work into a ball using flour to dust.  Split dough into fourths and work each fourth into a long snake about 1/2 inch wide.  Cut dough into 1/2 inch pieces, then use the back of a fork to make grooves across each one.

Fill a large pan with water and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium.  Take your first set of gnocci and drop into hot water.  After they rise to the top, let them cook 1-2 minutes.  Remove.  Repeat until all dough has been cooked.

Mushroom and Pancetta Sauce

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
12 oz. pancetta, chopped
3 cups sliced mushrooms
white wine sauce (see earlier post)
sea salt

fresh ground black pepper


Heat the oil in a skillet and add onion.  Cook 3-4 minutes until onion is tender.  Add garlic and pancetta.  Cook an additional 3-4 minutes.  Add mushrooms and cook 10 minutes.  Meanwhile, heat white wine sauce in a saucepan over low heat until almost boiling.  Stir in the pancetta mixture and season with salt and pepper.  Pour the hot sauce over the gnocci and serve.    Delizioso!

A Couple of Staple Recipes

As I have been looking through my GF cookbook, I found a few things that I have decided to go ahead and make to keep in the refrigerator for use in other recipes.  After cooking tonight's dinner I realized it would have gone a lot faster if I had these two items already prepared...


Vegetable Stock
2 chopped onions
2 chopped leeks (the white part)
4 chopped carrots
2 bay leaves
1 small handful parsley stems
12 peppercorns
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 1/2 quarts water


Place all ingredients in pot and bring to a boil.  Turn down heat and cover.  Simmer 40 minutes.  Cool, then strain into container.  Will store for 3-4 days in refrigerator, or freeze.


White Wine Sauce
2 Tbsp. dairy-free margarine
2 Tbsp. gluten-free flour
1/2 dry white wine
6 Tbsp. soymilk
3/4 cup vegetable stock


Melt margarine in saucepan over low heat.  Stir in flour and remove from heat.  Slowly stir in wine, soymilk and vegetable stock.  Return the pan to the heat and bring to a boil, stirring continuously.  The sauce will thicken as it cooks.  Once the sauce boils, reduce heat and simmer gently for 20 minutes, stirring frequently.  Stir in another 1/2 to 1 cup stock to make sauce smooth.  Season lightly with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.