Gnocchi Anyone?

What is Gnocchi? It is defined as an Italian dumpling made of potato, semolina, or flour, usually boiled and served with soup or a sauce.  The first time I had this dish was at Maggiano’s, an Italian food franchise on the east coast.  I had seen these little dumplings made on multiple cooking shows, but never had the opportunity to taste them myself.  As soon as I saw the dish on the menu, I had to have it.

I was not disappointed by the dish at all. The dumplings are tender; their texture can not really be compared to basic pasta.  They don’t have a lot of bite but they stand up well to sauce without getting soft.  I had mine in a Arriabata sauce, a spicy tomato sauce, topped with Parmesan cheese. I let Alvin taste it but he thinks they are too soft.  I had no complaints; in fact this dish makes me crave them all the time.  The truth is they are a quick and healthy dish.

As usual, whatever I eat out I have to try to recreate at home.  I am not so adventurous as to make the gnocchi from scratch but I do buy them frozen and they work well.  I bought the “fresh” ones from the grocery store where you find the other fresh pasta but they were horrible.  I don’t know if I overcooked them but they were gummy and tough….yuk.  Below you will find a quick and tasty recipe for making Gnocchi ala Not Just Tofu.  So good, so quick and so easy.

Gnocchi ala Not Just Tofu

• 1 bag of frozen Gnocchi
• 1 15oz can of crushed tomatoes
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1/4 cup of frozen green peas, defrosted
• 1/2 cup of Italian parsley, chopped and divided equally
• 2 tbsp Olive oil (extra virgin if fine too)
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook gnocchi according to package and drain
2. Heat olive oil in medium fry pan with a lid
3. Saute onion and garlic till aromatic
4. Add tomatoes and cook till broken down ( 3-4 minutes)
5. Mix in crushed tomatoes and 1 tbs of balsamic vinegar
6. Cook covered until heated through (3-4 minutes)
7. Mix in green peas
8. Season with salt and pepper
9. Stir in 1/2 of the parsley and then the gnocchi
10. Plate and garnish with the remaining parsley

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