Homemade Gnocchi …And Mushroom-Bacon Sauce

Making you own, homemade gnocchi is magical.

It will bring you a very special, exciting feeling of triumph – like now that you can make your own gnocchi you can do really anything.

Or maybe it’s just me – estimating my future life through my food accomplishments.

Maybe I’m just weird.

Nevertheless, making gnocchi is really easy.

So please, PLEASE, don’t you ever believe anyone who’ll try to tell you something different.

Because to make it, all you have to do is to mix four simple ingredients into one ball, cut it into teeny-tiny pieces and drop it into a pot of boiling water.

Simple as that.

I’ll show you what I mean – just have a look:

These are the ingredients we need – for the gnocchi and for the delicious, creamy mushroom sauce, too.

1. Let’s start by boiling the potatoes.

To make that – place them in a pot filled with water, bring to boil and let cook until the potatoes soften.

You can check whether they are cooked by sticking a knife in their centers – if it runs smoothly and there’s no resistance, then it’s done.

This process should take about 25-30 minutes.

2. Strain the potatoes and let them cool – just until they are cool enough to be handled with your hands.

(You can speed up this process by placing the cooked potatoes into a pot of cold water for a couple of minutes.)

3. Using a knife, peel the potatoes.

4. Then, using a potato masher preferably (Did you hear that Petra? When are you going to get that?) mash the potatoes.

5. Add the flour, egg and salt and combine with a rubber spatula.

6. Then go on and commit the worst gastronomic sin of them all – mix by hand with you nail polish applied.

Yes Petra, you heard well, you are guilty.

7. Knead the mixture by hand a couple of times until a compact ball forms.

The dough is not going to be extra smooth so don’t worry about that.

8. Place the dough onto a well floured surface.

9. Then using a sharp knife, cut the dough into eight even pieces.

Form a ball from each piece and then roll each ball into this long skinny cigar-shaped log.

10. Using a knife, cut the log.

Continue, until all of your dough is cut.

11. Pour water into a larger pot and bring to boil.

12. Drop about 20 pieces of gnocchi into the boiling water, let cook and stir them gently once (so that they don’t get stuck to the bottom of the pot).

When the gnocchi float to the top, let them cook for additional 20 seconds.

13. Remove them from the water…

… and place them into a larger pot or bowl with some vegetable oil inside.

14. Toss the cooked gnocchi around the pot so that they mix with the oil and don’t get stuck together.

15. Repeat the process with another 20 pieces and then again and again.

And that’s it for the gnocchi.

Now onto the sauce.

1. Melt the butter in a larger pan.

2. Chop the onion.

3. Chop the garlic.

4. Add the onion and the garlic into the pan and cook for about 5 minutes stirring constantly.

5. Now chop the mushrooms.

I’ve used champignons but you can use any kind you like.

6. Then grab some parsley…

… and chop it real good.

7. Add the mushrooms and the parsley to the pan and stir-fry for another 5 minutes.

8. Chop the bacon and add it in.

Stir and fry for 3-5 minutes.

9. Then add the cream and the broth and cook for another 5 minutes.

10. Finally, add salt and pepper to taste.

Yummy.

Enjoy, dear friends.

Red Velvet Cake

I’ve always loved the way this cake looks.

I guess there are many people like me – the color combination is just mesmerizing and so genial.

When you look at it, it truly seems velvety.

And abundant in flavors.

It’s like from another galaxy or something.

These days I really couldn’t help it, I simply needed it in my life.

So this is what I did, dear friends, and I ENJOYED it …

These are the ingredients.

1. First I prepared this flour mixture.

It consists of the flour, salt and cocoa powder.

2. Then, in another bowl I mixed the buttermilk and the food coloring.

(There are many brands of food coloring – please, read the instructions on the package you’ve bought and try to give your final batter some stronger red color.)

3. In the bowl of your electric mixer, mix the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes).

4. Then add the eggs – one at a time – beating well after each addition.

5. Add the vanilla and mix.

6. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and the colored buttermilk, in three additions – beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

7. In a small cup combine the vinegar and baking soda.

Allow the mixture to fizz and then quickly fold into the cake batter.

8. Butter a 9-inch (23 cm) springform pan (or two) and line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.

9. Fill the prepared pan with about 2 cups (500 ml) of the finished batter (there should be about 8 cups of the finished batter altogether and we are going to make 4 layers).

10. Bake at 350 F (175 C) for about 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

11. Meanwhile, we can prepare the frosting.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, process the cream cheese, vanilla and confectioners’ sugar until smooth.

Then, in a separate bowl, with you hand mixer, whip the cream until stiff peaks form.

With a large spatula, gently fold these two mixtures together and place in the refrigerator for about an hour or until firm enough to spread.

12. When the first layer has baked, remove it from the oven and place it (still in the pan) on the wire rack for about 10 minutes.

Then remove the cake from the pan, transfer onto a plate and let cool completely.

13. Wash the springform pan, butter it, line the bottom with parchment paper again, fill it with another 2 cups (500 ml) of the batter and bake.

14. Repeat until you have baked all four layers.

15. When your cake layers have cooled completely place one cake layer on a serving platter.

Spread the cake layer with the layer of frosting.

16. Place another cake layer on top of the frosting and…

… continue to frost and stack the cake layers.

17. Frost the top and sides of the cake.

You can also garnish your cake with sweetened or unsweetened coconut.

And most importantly – enjoy, dear friends.

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