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 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. My gawd I almost forgot the cheese! =)