Say What???

Most days I cook “straightforward” meals that are both nutritious yet not too lengthy, some days, like weekends, are left for an extra creativity and time spent in the kitchen.

Some though are met with a big question mark, as to a 15 year-old, all meals should be “straightforward” even if their nutritious value is questionable (to his credit, he’s tried many of my offerings that were quite adventurous, he just didn’t know it, as much of it was disguised with things like bacon 🙂 ).

So as I was spending my usual Saturday afternoon in the kitchen this past weekend, the kid walked in to inquire what was for dinner.

“Gnocchi”, I replied.

Which was met with a silent observance of all the ingredients laid out on the kitchen counter.

“Um, don’t you need potato for that?”, glancing again over the foods and not finding any.

“Yes, it’s in there”, but I was still registering some concern on the 15 year-old’s face who is suspicious by his teen nature and doesn’t like to be played with his food.

“OK, mama!”, sounded like a warning.

Let the games begin! 🙂

What’s Cooking This Week

On my never-ending quest to provide meals that are gluten and mostly dairy free but “you won’t even know it”, I was craving to find some gnocchi recipe that is both gluten/dairy free and possibly less starchy and more nutritious. After viewing some recipes and making some adjustments to satisfy all the requirements, I came up with this recipe. It still needs some minor future adjustments (mainly to play with flour/starches and wet ingredients proportions to hold the shape better), but it surely didn’t disappoint in taste. And, in case you’re wondering, the kid had two bowls. So, guess, who won?! 🙂

Pumpkin Gnocchi in Buttery Coriander Sauce

1 cup of cooked pumpkin

1 egg

1/2 cup of almond flour

1/2 cup of millet flour

1/3 cup of coconut flour

1/4 cup of potato starch

1/2 tspoon of salt

1/4 tspoon of cinnamon

1/4 tspoon of nutmeg

1/2 cup of white wine

1 tspoon of dried coriander

2 Tbspoons of oil spread (I used Earth Balance coconut spread), or butter

1 Tbspoon of fresh lemon juice

2 Tbspoons of pignoli nuts

1/2 Tbspoon of fresh chopped herbs (I used curly parsley)

In a bowl, mix together all the flours/starch with nutmeg, cinnamon and salt. In a separate bowl, combine pumpkin and the egg. Gradually start adding the flour mixture into the wet ingredients until a firm ball of dough forms.

Flour a surface and cut the dough ball into four parts, then roll each part into a long log of about 1/2 inch in diameter. Cut it into 1 inch pieces.

You can leave gnocchi pieces as is or make the standard lines with a fork. Transfer cut gnocchi on a sheet lined with parchment paper. If you want, you can freeze them at this point for future use, just make sure dust them with flour first.

Boil a pot with water, add salt and cook the gnocchi for about 5-7 minutes or untill they start to float at the surface. Drain and set them aside. In a mean while, make the sauce.

In a pan, melt the buttery spread, then add wine and let it cook until alcohol evaporates and the liquid is reduced. Add fresh lemon juice and spice/fresh chopped herbs, stir in pignoli nuts at the last minute. Add drained gnocchi and toss them around in the sauce untill well covered.

There were no complains from the kid about a “lack” of potato or meat ingredients in this meal :).

Enjoy!