Show Some Love

Why is cooking so enjoyable? Obviously, there is the fact that the end result of cooking is a delicious array of food you get to eat. But why else? Well...perhaps because cooking is a way of expressing your feelings. If you are having a bad day, cooking can help you decompress, release some frustration, and (sometimes) give you that sense of accomplishment you've been craving all day long. If you're feeling creative, cooking is a great outlet to experiment with new ideas and unleash your imagination - sure, the dishes may not always come out great, but at least you're trying. And most importantly, when you want to show people that you love and care about them, then make them a meal. Cooking involves time, effort, and energy, so it is a fabulous way of saying "you're worth it" to whomever  - be it your family, friends, significant other, or you. 


You don't need to be a professional in order to cook for others; and at this point you should know that it is O.K. to make mistakes. Whether the menu is as easy as scrambled eggs with toast, or as complicated as handmade pasta with five-herb pesto, the important thing is the simple act of cooking  - it shows that you care.  Everyone will be grateful for, and impressed by, the effort you put into cooking even if the dish comes out of the oven in flames. Sure, you could skip this minor embarrassment by just going to a restaurant; but, nothing says "i love you", "you're a great friend" or "thanks for always being there for me" like a homemade meal.


This weekend I had some love to show. I was reunited with a couple of dance friends from Bates, and rather than spend an excessive amount of money at a crowded restaurant, we made a stellar three-course meal together. Everyone contributed to the menu: Sarah made a decadent cheese platter with crackers to start; Kate brought angel food cake with fresh blueberries, strawberries, and whipped cream for dessert; and I was in charge of the main course - handmade sweet potato gnocchi, a veggie side dish, and a salad. Though I was the primary "chef" in the kitchen, I was assisted by two wonderful sous chefs, without whom the meal would not have been possible. We washed down each course with a glass of wine - white to start and red to finish. Not only did we have a wonderful time catching up on life, but we also had a fun, intimate, and superbly flavorful night because of the food we cooked and ate.  


The next time you step into your kitchen or have plans to see someone special, make sure you show some love. Cook something...anything. Below is the main course from my dinner this weekend (with links to some of the recipes). It was a wonderful meal and certainly showed how much we all care about each other. Feel free to use the recipes during your next dinner date. But in the meantime, what is a dish that you usually make when you want to show someone some love?  

Sweet Potato Gnocchi from the blog Kath Eats Real Food

*I used dried rosemary instead of fresh and I added about 1 tablespoon of maple syrup to the gnocchi while they sauteed in the pan

Roasted Cauliflower, Raisins, and Vinaigrette from Mark Bittman's book How to Cook Everything Vegetarian 

*the recipe I used does NOT include anchovies, so just ignore that part of the directions from the link above

Side Salad: a few handfuls of leafy greens (you choose) + 1 cup chickpeas + 1 orange (sliced) + 1/4 cup gorgonzola cheese + 1/4 red onion (sliced) + whatever vinaigrette you like!

Ricotta Gnocchi: So Easy and So Delicious

The morning of Saturday, September 17th, I found myself with 16 ounces of part-skim ricotta cheese in the fridge, with an expiration date of...Saturday, September 17th. Uh-oh. What do you do with 2 cups of ricotta cheese? Make ricotta gnocchi, of course! This is a super easy, super healthy, super delicious, all around super recipe (it's a slightly tweaked version of one of my work's recipes). I made a double batch (obviously, because I needed to get rid of my ricotta cheese STAT) and it yielded 175 gnocchi - yes, I counted every individual piece of gnocchi...I wanted to be able to report exactly how much gnocchi you can expect from this recipe (that's how much I love you all).  So, here's what you need: 

Ricotta Gnocchi

Ingredients

-1 egg

-1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese

-1/2 cup whole-wheat flour

-1/2 cup all-purpose flour

-optional: 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

And here's what you do: 

Directions

1. Put a large pot of water on the stove and bring it to a boil (this can occur while you're making the gnocchi dough)

2. Crack egg into medium-size bowl and beat with a fork (or whisk, if you're savvy like that)

3. Add ricotta cheese, both flours, and nutmeg (if using). Mix together until sticky dough forms. 

4. Divide dough into 6-7 logs. 

5. Lightly flour a cutting board, as well as your hands, and proceed to roll out each log (one at a time) into a thinner log (about 12-14 inches in width), using a back-and-forth motion. Add flour to the cutting board if the dough starts sticking (the dough is rather sticky, so it will definitely stick to your hands; but if you keep flouring your hands, that will reduce the amount of dough that sticks to you). 

6. Cut each log into 1/2 inch wide pieces (these are your gnocchi).

7. Your water should be boiling by now, so drop the individual gnocchi into the water (be careful of splashing yourself with scalding hot water!) - I'd recommend batches of 10 gnocchi at a time.

8. When the gnocchi start to float (after 30-40 seconds), remove gnocchi from water using a slotted spoon or spatula, and place them into a colander to drain.

9. Voila! You made gnocchi! According to my calculations you should have approximately 87-88 gnocchi (you don't actually need to count). Now what do you do with them? 

I ended up giving about half of my double batch to one of my bitches and I froze almost all of the rest. I kept 3/4 cup of gnocchi in my fridge, so that I could make some for dinner tonight. I created a rather tasty dish using some leftover pesto I had in my freezer, as well as some kale and an heirloom tomato from the farmer's market. Here's one way to use your gnocchi: 

Ricotta Gnocchi with Pesto (served over Sauteed Kale and Tomato)

Serving Size: 1 person (though you could easily double this recipe for more people)

Ingredients: 

-1 tomato, of any kind, sliced or diced however you'd like

 (you could use 1 cup of cherry/grape tomatoes, in which case you'd want to slice them in half or quarters)

-3-4 cups of kale leaves & stems, roughly chopped (make sure to separate the leaves from the stems and to keep them in different piles)

*you can easily substitute for whatever type of greens you like (ex: spinach, swiss chard)*

-1/4 cup onion, sliced or diced (it's up to you... tonight I sliced)

-1-2 garlic cloves, minced (if you're not kissing anyone when you make this, I'd advocate for 2 cloves)

-1 heaping tablespoon of pesto, store bought or homemade (recipe to come at some point)

-3/4 cup of Ricotta Gnocchi

-2 tablespoons of olive oil, divided

-salt and pepper to taste

-optional: 2 tablespoons mozzarella cheese

Directions: 

1. Place sauté pan on stove, over medium heat 

2. Pour 1 tablespoon of olive oil into pan (once the pan is hot), followed by the onions and kale stems; cook for 5 minutes

3. Add the kale leaves to onion & stem mixture (depending on the size of your pan, you may need to do this in batches - wait for some of the kale to cook down before adding more) and cook until wilted

4. Add tomatoes and reduce heat to low; season with pepper and stir

5. Heat another sauté pan on medium heat, and once it's hot, add your remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil

6. Sautee garlic for approximately 30-40 seconds (do not let garlic burn), then add your Ricotta Gnocchi

7. Heat your gnocchi until they start to brown on both sides (3-5 minutes)

8. Once browned, add your heaping tablespoon of pesto and mix, making sure to cover all of gnocchi in pesto; add mozzarella (if using)

9. Pour kale & tomato mixture into a bowl/on a plate and top with gnocchi & pesto mix. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Bon Appétit! Let me know if you try this recipe (or if you do something else with the Ricotta Gnocchi).