Nibbles & Bites

“Oh this sounds yummy.” 

A lot of my culinary explorations start with some variation of this statement. This time Sally had found a CIA recipe in the USA Weekend Sunday supplement magazine. CIA? Not Men In Black Helicopters. This CIA is the Culinary Institute of America.  They do get told by the rest of us that they should be wearing black chef's coats, however!

Butternut Squash with Ricotta Gnocchi

This is my take on the CIA recipe, leaving out a couple fiddly bits.

Gnocchi? Think dumplings. Made by hand and boiled in a pot of salted water or broth. The dumplings can be made from a variety of combinations of flours, potatoes, cheeses, and other things. You can buy dried gnocchi in packets at the megamart; but where's the fun in that? These are both fun to make and flavor-filled.

Soft and tender, this is comfort food x 10. It would also make a perfect meal for someone recovering from an illness or surgery.

4 cups peeled and cubed Butternut Squash

1 tsp unsalted Butter

1 can low sodium Chicken Broth

1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan (not that canned nonsense)

1-2 Tbsp Italian Seasoning blend

Gnocchi:

1-1/4 cups Ricotta cheese

3/4 cup AP Flour, plus additional as needed

1 Egg

3 Tbsp Olive Oil

3/4 tsp salt

Microwave the squash (or roast at 400F for about 20 minutes) until soft but not mushy. Reserve.

To make the gnocchi, start heating a large diameter pot of salted water. Mix the ricotta, flour, egg, oil and 3/4 tsp of salt into a soft dough. Add a tablespoon of flour at a time to stiffen the dough as needed, and reduce its stickiness.

When the water comes to a hard rolling boil, use two teaspoons to form more-or-less football-shaped dumplings and drop them in the boiling liquid a few at a time. When they rise to the surface, let them cook another minute or two, then use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked gnocchi to a dish. Repeat until the dough is used up.

OK! I admit that it's been years since I made gnocchi and my two-spoon skills have been lost. They don't look so hot. But who cares when it's for yourself at home? They tasted fabulous, and that's what counts, when all is said and done.

In a large skillet, place the chicken broth, butter, cooked squash and gnocchi. Dust with Italian Seasoning, to taste. Bring the liquid to a low simmer, cover and warm everything through for a few minutes before plating. Garnish with Parmesan and serve.

Frankly, serving the gnocchi and squash in a couple spoonfuls of broth was kind of a waste of broth, IMHO. Next time I'll use half broth and half water to cook the gnocchi in. That'll add some flavor. Or else I'll make a serious, soup-like broth and serve the gnocchi and squash as a soup.

Serves 4.

Chicken and Eggplant

This is the usual sort of dish I make for Lady Sally and myself, on the fly, from what's at hand in the fridge. Thursday night what I found was a pair of chicken breasts, a couple of nice Japanese eggplant, and a can of diced tomatoes with basil and garlic and oregano. From the spice shelf I grabbed an Italian Seasoning blend and some Spanish Smoked Paprika.

I sliced the eggplant about an inch thick, drizzled the rounds with a bit of EVOO, and dusted with the Italian Seasoning (I happen to have Rachel Ray's on hand). Fired up the broiler and gave them 5 minutes per side for color and caramelization. Then held them in reserve as I cooked the chicken.

Dusted the breasts with smoked paprika, then browned them for a few minutes on each side, tossed in a cup of water and slapped the lid on. Fifteen minutes later I had perfectly done bird. Add the eggplant rounds and the drained tomatoes and heat everything through. Bingo!

Guava Goodness

We've been seeing guava in the markets lately, and I picked some up for making desserts. We're big fruit smoothi fans, as you know, and guava are perfect for the task.

There are two basic kinds of guava – the pink or “Florida” guava common to Florida and Latin America, and the white or Thai guava originally from Southeast Asia and now grown everywhere in the tropics. The pink are our favorite, as they have a scent and taste reminiscent of strawberry and banana! The white guava are less juicy, only mildy sweet, and have very little fragrance. Both range in size approximately that of a tennis ball.

As you can see, there are a zillion tiny, and very hard, seeds. Don't try to chew them, you'll break a tooth! There are so many that it's nearly impossible to remove them unless you take out the whole “seed packet”, which would be like seeding tomatoes, but more troublesome.

The smoothies I made featured three guavas of course, and three small bananas from a bunch recently ripened from the neighbor's creekside planting (taken with permission, of course). Instead of yogurt, I added some kefir.

Kefir? A sort of cross between milk and yogurt, made by fermenting milk using a special “kefir starter” – a bacteria/yeast culture similar to, but distinct from those used in making soft cheeses and yogurts. We got our kefir from a wonderful central Florida organic farm we recently discovered, but the drink kefir originated among the peoples of the Caucasus Mountains of Eurasia, between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea.

The taste of kefir is sort of like buttermilk, sort of like yogurt. Slightly tart, and creamy at the same time. Enzyme rich, it is a very healthy food, and is often recommended for those with sensitive stomachs and gastro-intestinal “issues”. If you don't have an organic farm nearby, you can usually find kefir in the better class of megamart or health food store.

Bon Appetite!