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Tuesday, May 02, 2006

The joys of gnocchi

Ivonne! Ivonne! I made them! My first attempt at gnocchi.. how fab is that? All thanks to Cream Puffs in Venice. I have not had gnocchi in FOREVER. Reason being, when my Aunt Doo (somehow a nickname for Antoinette) passed, no one else in the family made them. I don't like ordering them (or much italian food for that matter) out because rarely are they ever homemade. These were just wonderful.. brought me back to so many times in my Aunt's kitchen - they tasted just like hers =) Another little funny story about my Aunt Doo's gnocchi (which she called cavadels (I so sounded that out)) - when I was younger, much younger, most of my father's side of the family was still alive and we'd hold a huge family reunion every summer at some park in our town. Everyone would bring a dish for sharing (with like 90 hungry italians) and their own beverages. After everyone arrived, they'd lay out all the food buffet style and you'd have to RUN to try to be first in line, basically, for my Aunt Doo's cavadels. They were famous - as were her meatballs. God forbid you were late to these functions. If you were, you were stuck with my Aunt Julia's cabbage rolls which tasted like sawdust wrapped in plastic. Gawd. And you had to take one, regardless of where you were in line, because she was the only one who'd stand over her dish and dole them out making sure only one went to a person (as if anyone would want two) and making damn sure each person had one. All I can say is, there were a lot of uncomfortable gassy doggies at the end of those gatherings. teeee!

I miss those reunions. The men would always play bocce and then gather around a table with their jelly jars full of home made red wine and play cards for hours. The women would chase around their babies and kids, gossipping and telling stories about their husbands. And being a kid there was great, because with 50 aunts and uncles gathered - you were sure to be spoiled rotten that day. And there were hardly any rules.. we got to run amok and have a grand old time as long as we stayed away from the water "you don't know who has been peeing in that water - stay out!!" hehe

Anyhoo.. many thanks to Ivonne for sharing that recipe and a photo that looked so damn good that I knew it was finally time for me to make my own gnocchi. As much as the cheese and butter sauce looked divine in Ivonne's photo, when it came to finally eating these little dumplings made of potato, I couldn't resist fixing them like my Aunt did all those years ago. So I made up a quick batch of meatballs and marinara and dug in.. Mmmm Mmmm good! :D

Gnocchi

The only change I'll make next time is to cut them a bit smaller.. I got a lil carried away because, obviously, I don't know what an inch is. lol

Again, I'm going to link to Ivonne's recipe because she shows you step by step the process in making them, which was really and truly helpful to me.

Gnocchi with cheeeesssse =)
My gawd I almost forgot the cheese! =)

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Comments on "The joys of gnocchi"

 

Anonymous Anonymous said ... (5/02/2006 9:18 AM) : 

It's 11pm, I've eaten dinner, and whilst taking a break from study I decide to peruse the blog world.

Noooooooooooooooooo! The images of loveliness burn through the screen! Is it not enough that your cake had me rummaging through my cake books, looking for a way to remedy my own chocolate cravings? (too late now, but tomorrow I've vowed to try choc chip muffins!!)

Now I've got to add potatos to my shopping list as well!

P.S. I'm also terrified of meatballs...what do you suggest replacing them with?

 

Blogger Acme Instant Food said ... (5/02/2006 11:22 AM) : 

MMmmmmmmmmm...gnocchi!!! Interesting. I've never made gnocci but I've been eyeing some recipes lately and wanting to give it a try. I'll give these a shot AND I found a recipe for sweet potato gnocchi in a sage, brown butter sauce(try not to shudder and frighten the dog) that I want to try. Why am I drawn to such high-caloric recipes? I should move the treadmill into the kitchen.

 

Anonymous Anonymous said ... (5/02/2006 12:25 PM) : 

Thanks for sharing the lovely story of your family reunions. The cabbage rolls sound terrifying, but I'd love a plate of cavadels! Or your excellent gnocchi, for that matter. :-)

 

Blogger Lis said ... (5/02/2006 5:54 PM) : 

Cin - thank you for the nice compliment =) I hope you do try them!

Ellie - Girl.. you've gotta stop making me larf so hard or I'm going to fall in love with you. Now what would your boyfriend, my hubby and that chocolate cake think of that, hmm?
Let's see.. she's afraid of the ball of meat.. mushrooms in a marinara are delish.. are you afraid of the actual ball of meat or meat in general? Because if it's the "ball" that throws you.. try a meat sauce.. like a bolognese :D Orrrr.. go for the Gnocchi alla Bava on Ivonne's site - can't go wrong there! =)

Kevin - Holy crap.. sweet potato gnocchi sounds fabulous! I say you go for that one so you can blog about it - SOON! =) Only put the treadmill in the kitchen if you need extra space to hang the dish towels ;)

Tania - awww thanks! I'm glad you liked the story =) heehee

 

Anonymous Anonymous said ... (5/03/2006 1:47 AM) : 

Have conferred with chocolate cake, it says it's okay, so long as you give it a little love now and then..., but I'm sure our respective partners would shoot quizzical eyebrows left, right and centre!

It is totally the solid ball of meat thing that wiggs me out. Went to a Greek restaurant once, meatballs came out as a side dish (?!?!), I tried a bite and couldn't quite figure it out, so spent the next 15 minutes rolling it around the plate and pretending it was on a magical journey.

And no, it was not a "special" *cough* meatball...though you can never tell what goes on in the kitchen!

I'm having gnocchi for dinner on satdee night ;) hur hur hur! Will try bolognese and see how it goes!

 

Blogger Lis said ... (5/03/2006 6:08 AM) : 

yay! I look forward to hearing all about Satdee's dinner! Did I just speak Australian?? How cool is that?? =)

I hope your greek balls enjoyed their journey! lolol

 

Anonymous Anonymous said ... (5/03/2006 10:29 PM) : 

Lis!!!

I'm so glad that you tried the gnocchi and that they worked! You are so right ... a plate of homemade gnocchi is like nothing else.

I just loved your post about your family reunion. I laughed as I read it because it sounded like so many family functions I've been to.

But what a great memory. There's nothing like being a kid at a big Italian family party.

Your gnocchi look beautiful and as always I really appreciate the mention!

 

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