Homemade Potato Gnocchi

Adapted from this recipe.

1 pound Russet Potatoes

3-4 large egg yolks

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 cup flour, plus more for dusting

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Bake potatoes approximately 45 minutes or until soft. Bake them directly on the oven rack, piercing them with a knife or fork prior to baking. Cut in half and scoop out flesh. Pass potatoes through a potato ricer or grate them. You should have about 2 cups. Make a mound of potatoes on the counter with a well in the middle. Add 3 of the egg yolks, the cheese, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Mix in the potatoes and mix well with your hands.

Sprinkle 1/2 cup of flour over the potato mixture and press it in well with your hands. Gently work it in to the dough. Gradually add more flour, folding and pressing the dough together just until it holds (try not to knead it). If the mixture is too dry, add another egg yolk or a little water. It should feel firm but yielding to the touch. Test the consistency by forming a rope half an inch in diameter. If it holds together well, it is ready. (I ended up adding a lot more flour than the recipe called for.)

Keeping your dough and your work surface lightly floured, cut the dough into 4 pieces. Roll each piece into a rope about 1/2 an inch in diameter. Cut into 1/2 inch long pieces. Lightly flour the gnocchi as you cut them. (This step is important if you want the gnocchi to dry and not stick together into a huge mess! Not that I know from personal experience... :) You can cook these as is or try to form them into a classic gnocchi shape by following the directions given at the above link.

My gnocchi didn't look so good:

But they tasted great!

Scatter gnocchi on a cookie sheet. Set cookie sheet in front of a fan on low for half an hour, turning after 15 minutes. Bring a large pot of water to boil and drop in the gnocchi. Cook for about 90 seconds from the time they rise to the surface. This is obviously hard to time since they all pop up at different times, but they will take on a different texture-kind of bumpy and white-when they are done. If you are unsure, just taste one and see if it's done. Remove cooked gnocchi from water and serve as desired.

Note: I thought this was yummy, but unless you are a huge fan of gnocchi, probably only worth the work occasionally.

Apple Pancake Dutch Baby

I found this recipe here the day we got back from Utah last December. I made it that night, and we have loved it ever since!

3 Tbsp. butter, melted

Thinly sliced apples (I use one medium apple)

1/4 c. brown sugar

1/8 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. milk

3 eggs

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place butter, apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon in pie pan and bake until apples are soft (3-5 min.). Beat together flour, milk, and eggs until smooth. Add to pie pan and bake 12-15 minutes.

Tips: You can put the butter in the pie plate and put it in the oven while it's preheating to melt it. Also, I typically double this recipe for Sam and I and bake it in two pie plates. Sam easily eats one and a half (or more) himself.

Roasted Red Pepper Rotini Caesar

This pasta dish is so quick and easy, but the taste is kind of complex...a really good combination of flavors. This is Sam's favorite kind of pasta he's ever had...and I got the recipe off of the back of the Ronzoni rotini box! He was eating it for lunch at his lab one day, and the lab manager asked him for the recipe because she thought it looked/smelled so good. It's great for those nights when you need something quick to throw together!

1 13.25 oz. pkg. rotini noodles (I typically use whole wheat, although white is pictured above)

1 12 oz. jar of roasted red peppers, diced

4 cups of fresh or frozen spinach, chard, sugar peas, basil leaves, arugula, pesto, artichoke hearts, or broccoli florets

1 cup Caesar dressing

shredded parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

Cook pasta according to package directions. Heat a large saute pan with a light film of oil, toss in red peppers and spinach; heat until warmed (about 1 minute). In the large saute pan, toss cooked pasta with spinach and peppers. Add Caesar dressing, stirrin frequently until heated through (approximately 3-5 minutes). Top pasta with desired amount of parmesan cheese, cracked pepper, and salt (the cheese, salt, and pepper really do make a big difference).

To make things even faster, you can toss the dressing, spinach, and peppers in with the pasta without sauteing them. I've done it that way and it works beautifully.

Whole Wheat Batter Bread

I dug this recipe out of some papers I had from my college cooking class. I had no idea how good it would be! But wow. Sam and I were both amazed by this bread. And seriously, please don't give up the honey butter. It makes this bread incredible! It's very fast, easy, and nutritious, and it has the consistency of a sweet bread. It is really dense with a very soft crust. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

2 1/2 cups hot water

1 tablespoon yeast

1/3 cup oil

1/3 cup honey

2 teaspoons salt

4 1/2 to 5 cups whole wheat flour

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in hot water. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Add oil, honey, salt, and half of flour to yeast and water. Mix with flat beater attachment. Switch to dough hook (if using a KitchenAid stand mixer, or switch to your hands if you're not) and add enough of the remaining flour to make a thick, sticky batter. This dough is very sticky. Knead well (at least 5 minutes in the mixer), place dough in two well-greased loaf pans, put pans in warm oven, and TURN OVEN OFF. Let loaves sit in warm oven for 20 minutes. With loaves still in oven, turn oven to 350 degrees. Set timer for 30 minutes. Remove bread from oven when timer goes off. If loaves aren't nicely browned, bake for an additional 3-5 minutes. Brush with butter and remove from pans to cool. Eat warm with honey butter spread on top. (To make honey butter, simply whip equal parts butter and honey until light and fluffy.)

NOTE: My bread pans are the larger size, so I put all the dough in one pan. I still only let it sit in the oven for 20 minutes before baking. I'm not sure if the consistency would turn out the same if it is cooked in two pans, like the recipe says. Maybe you can try it and let me know!

White Chip Mint Chocolate Cookies

These cookies were inspired by Great Harvest Bread's "Mint Blarneys." Mom and I decided to combine the recipe on the back of Nestle White "Morsels" (Sam pointed out that they don't even have chocolate in them!) with the Mint Blarney idea, and this is what we came up with. This recipe makes a double batch, so don't be too alarmed when you see a whole pound of butter on the list of ingredients!

1 pound (4 sticks) butter, softened

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 1/3 cups brown sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

1-2 tsp. mint extract

4 eggs

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking soda

1 1/3 cups cocoa

4 1/2 cups flour

12 oz. pkg. white "chocolate" chips

12 oz. pkg. milk chocolate chips

Cream together butter, sugars, vanilla, and mint extract (to taste). Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add salt, baking soda, and cocoa. Mix well. Add flour and mix until combined. Stir in both packages chocolate chips. Refrigerate dough for at least an hour. Shape into balls and cook at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes, until centers are just set. Cool on pans for about 5 minutes or until cookies are easily transferred to cooling racks with a spatula.

Falafel

Here is a picture of a perfect falafel. Well, falafel balls, with hummus and a pita on the side. But not everyone can make a perfect falafel ball, and today I came as close as I ever have with this: You might not be able to see the similarities, but if you had seen my previous attempts at falafel you would be shocked at how well these turned out. So I thought I would share the secrets with all of you. - Falafel Balls: 1 16oz can chickpeas 1/2 onion, chopped into small pieces 2 cloves of garlic, chopped into small pieces 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped 1 teaspoon coriander 1 teaspoon cumin 1 egg 2 Tbsp-1/2 cup flour Salt Pepper Oil for frying (I like to use olive oil) - Mash drained chickpeas (I used a blender) to a thick paste and add garlic, onion, coriander, cumin, and salt and pepper (to taste). Add egg and make sure all is mixed/mashed together. - This next part is the key. I had never used flour before and my falafel balls always fell apart. Add enough flour to make the chickpea substance thick enough to be able to roll a ball (but ball will still be slimy). My recipe called for 2 Tbsp but I used at least a half a cup. Add enough that you can make ball-like shapes. - Next, fry the falafel balls in about 2 inches of oil. Before I always boiled them in oil, but that was also a big disaster. Today I fried them in much less oil and it worked out much better. - These are beautiful pitas. And delicious. - Pita: - 1 package yeast 1/2 cup warm water 3 cups white flour 1 1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp granulated sugar 1 cup lukewarm water - Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup warm water. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Let sit for 10-15 minutes until water is frothy. - Combine flour and salt in large bowl, make a small depression in middle, and pour yeast water into it. - Slowly add 1 cup lukewarm water and stir until elastic. - Knead for 10-15 minutes, then place in a bowl after coating outside (of dough) with vegetable oil. - Let rise for 3 hours or until doubled in size. - Preheat oven to 500 degrees. - Pinch off small balls and roll into a pita shape (about 5-6 inches across and 1/4 inch thick). - Bake each circle (I put 4 on a baking sheet) 4 minutes, then turn over and bake for 2 minutes. - I would NOT suggest using wheat flour. I used wheat flour today and they came out looking like this: Round two was much better: - Hummus: - 1 16 oz can chickpeas 1/4 cup liquid from can of chickpeas 3-5 Tbsp lemon juice 1 1/2 Tbsp tahini (optional--I like it better without) 2 cloves crushed garlic 1/2 tsp salt 2 Tbsp olive oil - Drain chickpeas and set 1/4 cup liquid aside. Combine all ingredients in blender and blend for 3-5 minutes until thoroughly mixed and smooth. My blender didn't get it quite as smooth as I would have liked. But it was still good. I personally like it better without the tahini paste, but it is good either way. - Cucumber Dill Sauce: - 1 6oz container plain yogurt 1/2 cucumber-peeled, seeded, and finely chopped 1 tsp dried dill weed salt and pepper to taste 1 Tbsp mayonnaise - Combine all ingredients. This is good to use in your falafel or just as a dip for your pita (or mix in with your tomato cucumber salad). - Cucumber Tomato Salad: - 3 tomatoes, chopped/cubed 1 large cucumber, chopped/cubed 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley 2 Tbsp lemon juice to taste 1/4 cup olive oil (1/2 cup feta cheese--optional) - Mix all ingredients together and put on your falafel. If you want to eat the salad plain, I would suggest adding the crumbled/cubed feta cheese, but not if you put it on your falafel. - If you've never eaten a falafel before, what you do is rip a small section off the top of the pita and then open it. Put in hummus, salad, lettuce (optional), cucumber dip, and falafel balls. And then eat. You can also dip your pitas in the hummus or cucumber dip or any other combination. Although they aren't like what you can buy in the Middle East, they are still pretty good! :)

Thai Massaman Curry

While Sam and I were still dating, I asked him one day what his top 10 favorite foods were. Thai Curry made the list. I had never really heard of it before, let alone tasted it. So when he requested Thai Curry for his birthday dinner a few months after we were married, I went to an Asian Market in Provo to get the ingredients and the instructions on how to make it. I actually ended up getting a small recipe booklet from the market with several Thai recipes in it. This dish is simple, flavorful, and fairly inexpensive to make. Both of us love it! If you can't find the needed ingredients, see if there is an Asian market somewhere nearby--not only will they most likely have what you are looking for, but their prices will probably be significantly lower as well.

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

3 Tbsp. massaman curry paste

1 can coconut milk

1-1 1/2 pounds chicken, cut into bite-size chunks

3 Tbsp. fish sauce

3 1/2 Tbsp. sugar

2 Tbsp. tamarind liquid

1/3-1/2 cup roasted peanuts or cashews

5-6 medium sized potatoes, peeled and chopped into stew-size chunks

On medium heat, put vegetable oil in a pot, then add masaman curry paste. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Add 1/2 can of coconut milk, stir-fry for 4-5 minutes until red bubbles appear. Add chicken and stir-fry for about 5-8 minutes. Add the rest of the coconut milk and 3/4 can of water (using coconut milk can). Add potatoes, fish sauce, tamarind liquid, and nuts. Simmer 30 minutes.

If it's too thick, add a little water. If it's too runny, simmer longer to thicken it. Remove from heat and serve over prepared jasmine rice (this is sticky rice). Jasmine rice tastes way better than regular rice, but regular rice will work in a pinch. If it's too spicy/not spicy enough for your liking, adjust the amount of curry paste.