Cooking for one person sucks, so often I don’t spend a lot of energy making fancy meals for myself. A downside of being single. Sharing food with friends is much more fun and far more satisfying. It was about time to do some serious cooking, so I decided to invite a bunch of new and old friends to come over and cook side by side, sharing techniques and knowledge with one another. We omitted putting together a menu and threw caution to the wind to see what would come together organically at the table. A success, not surprisingly. Get a bunch of folks together that already appreciate great ingredients, and yummy is inevitable. I prepared a Chicken Marbella, and also wanted to use one of my favourite veggies in a brand new way. Go Rutabaga Go! There was ricotta in the fridge, and I was inspired immediately. Gnocchi. I’ve only attempted, unsuccessfully, to make gluten free gnocchi once, so I thought I needed to give it another try. Gluten free out the window, I looked around for more goodies to include in the mix. I found some frozen spinach and lovely nutmeg, I was set. And it turned out beautifully.
The rest of the meal was made complete with Fennel Apple Slaw, Filo Wrapped Hors D’Oeuvres, a lovely selection of four stinky cheeses, creamy leeks, and finished with a Pineapple Upside-Down Cake and Chocolate Cookies. The wine flowed freely, and Prosecco tickled our tongues to finish the meal.
Spinach Rutabaga Gnocchi
Spinach Rutabaga Gnocchi
1 cup flour
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 cup finely grated rutabaga (use a Microplane if you’ve got one)
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 package frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed to remove water
2 eggs
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
Mix 1/2 cup of flour, Parmesan, ricotta, spinach, rutabaga, nutmeg, salt and pepper together thoroughly. Portion into teaspoon-ish sized balls and roll each one around in remaining flour. In a large saucepan, carefully place gnocchi into rapidly boiling, salted water. When they rise to the surface, they’re ready. Skim them out with a slotted spoon, sprinkle with olive oil and smother with more Parmesan, serve and enjoy!
Four servings.
