Gnocchi with Meat Sauce

If you’ve never had gnocchi, you’ve got to try it! While it may look like pasta, it’s not. Gnocchi is actually soft, thick dumplings made out of potatoes. They don’t taste like potatoes, because trust me, if they did…. I wouldn’t eat them! I hate mashed potatoes. Lol.

Last week I saw a delicious recipe for gnocchi and meat sauce adapted from Taste and Tell blog and just had to try it!

My mom loves gnocchi just about as much as I do, and came over last night to babysit Harper while I went to a scarf exchange party. I thought I’d treat her to a home-cooked meal as a thank you.

The gnocchi was perfect and was so easy to whip up on the stovetop. Unless you’re really, really, really short on time, don’t cheat and buy a jar of spaghetti sauce. The homemade one in this recipe is EXTREMELY simple, is cheaper than the jar of sauce you would buy, AND only simmers for 15-20 minutes. Most sauces simmer for like an hour. Win-win!

peek a boo — Harper playing peek-a-boo after dinner.

Harper was a little unsure of the gnocchi and meat sauce at first. She’s getting to the point where if she’s never seen a food before, she isn’t too keen on trying it. I think the gnocchi and meat sauce sat on her plate for 20 minutes before she finally adventured into trying some.

We also discovered that Harper LOVES Parmesan cheese! While mom and I were getting seconds and sprinkling the gnocchi and meat sauce with Parmesan, I decided to add some cheese to Harper’s plate. I should have done so earlier!

At that very moment, she dug right in like she couldn’t get enough of the meat sauce. Note to self… sprinkle all of Harper’s food in Parmesan if I want her to eat it! Hahaha.

Harper then proceeded to play peek-a-boo with her bib after dinner. Too cute!

After dinner I was off to a first-annual scarf party with some church friends. It was like a white elephant party where you can steal a gift up to three times. So much fun!!

Lucky for mom, Harper was pretty good and was asleep within 25 minutes of mom putting her down. That’s saying a lot, because I NEVER go anywhere, so for Harper to fall asleep without me is great news!! Harper is growing up which means I’ll be less and less needed. 😦

gnocchi with meat sauce — Cook the beef, onion, zucchini and garlic until beef is browned and no longer pink.

gnocchi with meat sauce

TGIF and have a great weekend!

Gnocchi with Meat Sauce

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 30 mins

Serves: 6

Adapted from Taste and Tell Blog

Ingredients

1 lb. ground beef
1 1/2 cups diced onion
1 medium-size zucchini, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cans (8 oz each) no salt added tomato sauce
1 can (14.5 oz) no salt added petite diced tomatoes
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 lb. gnocchi
freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving
shredded basil, for serving

Instructions

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef, onion, zucchini and garlic and cook until beef is cooked through, breaking up the beef as it cooks. Add in the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, sugar, oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the gnocchi and cook until the gnocchi rises to the surface of the water. Drain.
Add the cooked gnocchi to the meat sauce and stir to combine. Serve topped with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and shredded basil, if desired.

Meatless Mondays: Eggplant Parmesan

If you participate in “Meatless Mondays”, you’ll definitely want to check out this Eggplant Parmesan dish adapted from Mario Batali from Food Network.

They boys in our family are big meat eaters, so convincing them to follow a “Meatless Mondays” diet might not fly over, but when they are out of town….. us girls can eat whatever we want to!!!

When both Matt and my dad were out of town a few weeks ago, my mom thought she’d try this eggplant parmesan recipe that she’s had her eye on for a while. Originally she was just going to eat it by herself, but when she texted me a picture of it as it was going in the oven, I just couldn’t resist! I high-tailed it to the car for the 45 minute drive (in rush-hour) over to my parent’s house.

What a wonderful decision that was! This is one of the most elegant meals I’ve ever eaten with freshly carved mozzarella cheese melting down the sides of the eggplant, topped with the easy but delicious homemade Italian tomato sauce. Talk about good!

Had the boys been here, I doubt they would have really eaten this. Dad does not like cheese (crazy, right!!) and Matt is not big on change. He likes the same 5 meals and you better not add anything weird or he’ll get pretty upset. 🙂

However, for us girls, we loved the dish and enjoyed trying a new recipe. If you’re family is as picky as some of the members in our family, good luck!

Before assembling the eggplant, prepare basic tomato sauce in a 3-quart sauce pan.

Slice each eggplant into 6 pieces about 1 inch thick.

Bake eggplant at 450 degrees F until the slices begin turning deep brown on top, about 12-15 minutes.

In an baking pan, place the 4 largest eggplant slice evenly spaced apart.

Over each slice, spread 1/4 cup of tomato sauce and sprinkle with a teaspoon of basil.

Place one slice of mozzarella over each and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of grated Parmiagiano.

Repeat the layers (eggplant, tomato sauce, basil and two cheeses) ending with the cheese. Sprinkle toasted breadcrumbs on top.

eggplant parmesan — Bake uncovered, for 20 minutes in a 350 degree F oven.

Eggplant Parmesan

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 35 mins

Total time: 45 mins

Serves: 4

Source: Food Network (Mario Batali)

Ingredients

Extra-virgin olive oil
2 large eggplant, about 2 pounds
Salt and pepper
2 cups basic tomato sauce, recipe follows***
1 bunch fresh basil leaves, chiffonade
1 pound fresh mozzarella, sliced 1/8-inch thick
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 cup fresh bread crumbs, lightly toasted under broiler
**BASIC TOMATO SAUCE
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 Spanish onion, 1/4-inch dice
4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh thyme leaves, or 1 Tbsp. dried
1/2 medium carrot, finely grated
2 (28-ounce) cans peeled whole tomatoes, crushed by hand and juices reserved
Salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Using some extra-virgin olive oil, oil a baking sheet.
Slice each eggplant into 6 pieces about 1 inch thick. Lightly season each disk with salt and pepper and place on oiled sheet. Bake the eggplant at 450 degrees F until the slices begin turning deep brown on top, about 12-15 minutes. Remove the eggplants from the oven. Remove the slices from the baking sheet and place them on a plate to cool.
Lower oven temperature to 350 degrees F. In an 8 by 12-inch brownie pan, place the 4 largest eggplant slice evenly spaced apart. Over each slice, spread 1/4 cup of tomato sauce and sprinkle with a teaspoon basil. Place one slice of mozzarella over each and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon grated Parmigiano. Place the smaller slices of eggplant over each of the disks and repeat with tomato sauce, basil and the 2 cheeses. Repeat the layering again until all the ingredients are used.
Sprinkle the toasted bread crumbs over the top of the eggplant dish, and bake, uncovered until the cheese melts and the tops turn lightly brown, about 20 minutes. Serve immediately.
FOR THE BASIC TOMATO SAUCE: In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft and light golden brown, about 8-10 minutes.
Add the thyme and carrot and cook 5 minutes more, until the carrot is quite soft. Add the tomatoes and juice and bring to a boil, stirring often.
Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes until as thick as hot cereal. Season with salt and serve. (Note: this sauce holds 1 week in the refrigerator or up to 6 months in the freezer).

Riso alla Pitocca (Traditional Chicken and Rice)

Like chicken? Check.

Like risotto? Check.

Like Italian food? Check.

Then you should really like Riso alla Pitocca, Italian for traditional chicken and rice and from Lidia Matticchio Bastianich’s cookbook, Lidia’s Favorite Recipes. If you’re looking for foolproof Italian dishes, you’re might want to buy her book!

I love this recipe because while it sounds simple, the combination of fresh ingredients create an irresistible and authentic Italian dish.

Chopped onions, carrots and celery create bold and bright colors to this dish. The chicken makes this dish savory, and the wine, chicken broth and cheeses create a unique complexity of flavors that cannot be beat.

Once you get your pestata (crushed onion, carrot, celery and garlic) and chicken cooked, add the liquid ingredients and rice and bring to a boil. Then let is cook for 14 minutes and you’re pretty much done.

All that’s left is to stir in the butter, parsley and my favorite ingredient… Parmigiano-Reggiano!

Did I mention my parents’ cat likes this dish? Their cat is kind of weird…. she actually likes people food! I’ve never seen a cat that acts as much like a dog as this one does. Its actually kind of cute and makes me love her even more.

Enjoy!

Riso alla Pitocca (Traditional Chicken and Rice)

Recipe Type: Main

Cuisine: Italian

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs (we used chicken breasts)
1 cup onion cut into 1-inch chunks
1 cup carrot cut into 1-inch chunks
1 cup celery, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 plump cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. kosher salt
1 fresh bay leaf
1 cup dry white wine
5 cups hot chicken or turkey stock, plus more if needed
2 cups Italian short-grain rice, such as Arborio or Carnaroli
2 Tbsp. butter, cut into pieces
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/2 cup grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for passing

Instructions

Trim any excess fat from the chicken thighs, and cut the thighs into 1-inch chunks. Use a food processor to mince the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic into a fine textured pestata (means “to crush” or “to grind” in Italian).
Pour the olive oil into a saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Stir in the pestata, and season with 1 teaspoon of the salt. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the pestata has dried. Toss in the chicken pieces and the bay leaf, and sprinkle with remaining salt. Tumble the chicken in the pan until browned and caramelized all over, about 4 minutes.
Raise the heat, pour in the white wine, and cook, stirring and scraping up the browned bits in the pan, until the wine has almost completely evaporated. Pour in the hot stock, stirring, and add the rice.
Bring to a boil over high heat, then cover and reduce the heat to keep the riso bubbling gently. Cook for about 14 minutes, or until both the rice and the chicken chunks are fully cooked and the consistency is creamy.
Turn off the heat, drop in the butter pieces, and stir vigorously until thoroughly combined; then stir in the parsley and 1/2 cup of grated cheese. Spoon the riso into warm pasta bowls, and serve immediately, passing additional grated cheese at the table.

Notes

Source: Lidia’s Favorite Recipes by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali