Pesto over Gnocchi

Dear Devon,

Basil might be the king of herbs, but my taste buds had mounted a full blown rebellion against King Basil until quite recently. Back in early April, I was a lucky guest at my friend Madeleine's rooftop dinner party. It was at her dinner party that I fell in love with basil and its pulverized sibling, pesto. She set down an easy dinner of salad and pesto over corkscrew pasta. This meal changed my summer eating habits: I've made pesto a half dozen times since that night, heaping it over everything from pasta to potatoes and incorporating it into salad dressing.

This summer, I have tried to avoid too much hot cooking, relying on quickly grilled veggies, lots of salads (olive oil consumption is through the roof), tons of fruit, and pesto everything. I am a firm believer in minimum preparation for maximum tastiness. Pesto has definitely helped me achieve this. It requires no cooking, and its ingredients are easy to come by. A food processor is helpful, though you can make it without one- something I haven't tried, but am willing to contemplate. Lot of garlic is essential for good pesto, and so is really nice basil (but that goes without saying).


I toss the pesto over a batch of soft, ridged gnocchi. The gnocchi cradle the thick pesto in their deep grooves. Topped with freshly cut tomatoes, this dish celebrates the bounty of the summer garden.

Pesto over Gnocchi

Big bunch of fresh basil
3 cloves garlic
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
handful of arugula
1 green onion
1/4 cup walnuts
gnocchi
fresh tomatoes
1/2 cup olive oil or more as needed

Place toasted walnuts and parmesan cheese in the food processor. Whiz until finely grated. Drop in peeled garlic, roughly chopped green onion, basil, and small handful of arugula. With the machine running, add olive oil in a slow steady stream through the feed tube. Remove from the food processor, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula. Taste for seasoning. The parmesan cheese is already salty, so wait until the end before adding any more salt.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add fresh gnocchi and cook until the pillowy gnocchi floats to the top, less than 5 minutes. Drain and set aside in a large serving bowl. Pour fresh pesto over gnocchi. Toss to lightly coat. Chop fresh tomatoes into bite sized pieces. Add cut tomatoes to gnocchi, gently toss together. Finish with a sprinkle of olive oil for richness and a grating of parmesan cheese.

Fall Gnocchi with Cabbage, Apples, and Chorizo

Dear Michelle,

You know, the first time I remember having madeleines was when you sent them to me my first year in college. I was so impressed! Can't wait to try this recipe.

I have been on a bit of a gnocchi craze lately. Ever since I lived in Florence, packaged gnocchi have never been the same for me. Compared to the puffy little potato pillows they have there (which are not really that hard to make from scratch, but time-consuming), store-bought gnocchi seemed so dry and heavy. That is, until I recently saw Jacques Pepin's technique, on a public television rerun of one of More Fast Food My Way. It seemed so obvious; instead of boiling them, you saute them in fat, then cover almost all the way with water and let simmer till they are almost dry. They are still a whole different thing than Florentine gnocchi, but they deserve a respect all their own. They get a little crispy and golden on the outside, and soft and tender on the inside, and they are perfect for this cold weather when you want something substantial.


Jeff and I tried a chorizo taco at our favorite Mexican restaurant (this place is seriously good, and easy on the wallet. Try the tongue taco. For the squeamish, there are lots of terrific normal tacos, and all sorts of other delightful things), and loved it. When we saw some chorizo at a local bodega, he wanted me to try cooking something with it. I think that the fresh version might be better in this dish; I imagine it would fall apart instead of staying in chunks, but those were perfectly fine. Like usual, it was a winning suggestion on his part. Not only does the sausage ooze a bright orange fat when it is cooked, and I do love anything that intensely colorful, but the flavor is amazing. It is smoky and peppery from the paprika, and crunchy and delicious like anything made from the fatty parts of a pig tends to be. Add in soft gnocchi, silky sauteed cabbage, and just-cooked apples, and you've got a winner of a cool-weather meal.



Fall Gnocchi with Cabbage, Apple, and Chorizo

1/2 link chorizo, casing removed, diced (about a 1/2 cup)
1/2 package pre-made gnocchi
1/4-1/2 small green cabbage, core removed, cut in thin ribbons
1 apple
bacon fat and/or olive oil
butter
1/4 cup chicken stock (optional)
splash beer (optional)
water
splash apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper
some sort of cheese to grate on top (optional, and we used aged Gouda)


Add 1T fat and/or oil to large, heated frying pan. Add chorizo and cook, stirring, till crispy and just browned. Remove, leaving fat in pan. Add gnocchi, and cook, stirring occasionally, till crispy and lightly browned (they will turn orange from chorizo fat, or I'd say till golden). Add cabbage and saute till mostly wilted. Add stock, beer, and water, or just water, till gnocchi and cabbage is 3/4 covered. Turn down to slow simmer, cover, and let soak up water for about 10 minutes, or until almost dry. Add apples. Add a splash of vinegar and pepper to taste. Stir in chorizo. Add salt to taste, and stir in 1T of butter. Plate and grate cheese on top if using.