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Squash Gnocchi with Thyme

By mlb, on December 6th, 2010%

gnocchi

This year, we purchased a Thanksgiving CSA Harvest Bag from Sun Gold Farm and while we did use a lot of our produce over Thanksgiving, there have been a few stragglers. This big Sweet Dumpling Squash was one such unused vegetable (we got four and I did use three in the roasted vegetable extravaganza). The other night, I used this one to make some squash gnocchi and it was delicious!

The original recipe used acorn squash and marjoram. Not only did I swap the type of squash, but also the marjoram for thyme. Rebel! I also added garlic and spinach. And I subbed smoked mozzarella for smoked ricotta because I had no idea where to find that.

In slightly blog-post-related news, I used these instructions at (never home) maker and built myself a light box! Very easy and so far I love it. I won’t use it for all . . . → Read More: Squash Gnocchi with Thyme

6 comments   Autumn, Comfort Food, Italian, Vegetables, Winter

Sorbetto di Limone (Lemon Sherbet)

By mlb, on May 25th, 2010%

lemon sorbetto

This was really tart and good. It makes me wish the weather was a bit warmer, but even in the rain and the 50+ degree temperatures, it’s still a great way to end a meal. This took about 6 lemons — but mine were not super juicy.

I also used half regular sugar and half vanilla sugar. I think that it added a really nice background flavor.

Sorbetto di Limone (Lemon Sherbet)
Adapted from a recipe by Jaime Oliver, in Jamie’s Italy
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 cup lemon juice
zest of 1 lemon
1 heaping tablespoon mascarpone cheese

lemon sorbetto

You can make this with or without an ice cream maker. I have one, so I used it. If you don’t have an ice cream maker, put a container in the freezer to chill.

lemon sorbetto

Put the sugar and water in a pan, bring to a boil, . . . → Read More: Sorbetto di Limone (Lemon Sherbet)

10 comments   Cookbooks, Dessert, Fruit, Italian, Spring, Summer

Nuts in the Kitchen: Sicilian Sweet and Sour Rabbit (but with Chicken)

By mlb, on May 10th, 2010%

nuts in the kitchen

One of my favorite cookbook authors, Susan Herrmann Loomis, is coming to Portland! Very exciting! She’ll be at In Good Taste, August 12-15, 2010.

In Good Taste is located at 231 NW 11th Ave, Portland, Oregon, 97209. It’s a 3-day class (with a welcome dinner the night before) and you can enroll by e-mailing cookingclassesATonruetatinDOTcom. You can also call In Good Taste at 503-248-2015 with questions. More info here.

As if that’s not enough, Susan also has a new cookbook out, Nuts in the Kitchen, and I was lucky enough to receive a review copy. So far, I have made two recipes from the book, but like all of her books, some of the most interesting parts are just reading the little features within the cookbook about the people who grow/produce the food used in the recipes and the places where some of these dishes . . . → Read More: Nuts in the Kitchen: Sicilian Sweet and Sour Rabbit (but with Chicken)

3 comments   Comfort Food, Cookbooks, Italian, Nuts, Poultry & Fowl

Genoa Restaurant, Portland

By mlb, on May 7th, 2010%

Genoa Restaurant Portland

Genoa Restaurant
2832 Southeast Belmont St
Portland, OR 97214-4024

Okay, enough about California, let’s talk about a Portland restaurant! Recently, jwa & I went to Genoa to celebrate our 2nd wedding anniversary. We hadn’t been to the new one yet and were both very excited to give it a try. Wow, what a great meal. There’s still a few days left with this menu, I’d recommend trying to check it out. We’ve decided to not wait for another big celebratory event. Maybe Flag Day?

“The Ancient Island of Sardegna” April 28th through May 15th

For the sake of simplicity, I’ll just highlight the choices we had but the full menu is here.

Also, as the evening progresses, the images get a bit darker.

Genoa Restaurant Portland

Genoa Restaurant Portland
It’s a nice, airy dining room with maybe a dozen tables.

Genoa Restaurant Portland
We started with . . . → Read More: Genoa Restaurant, Portland

Leave a comment   Italian, Restaurants, SE Portland

Italian Bread with Sesame Seeds

By mlb, on March 24th, 2010%

Italian Bread

Here’s another breadmaking experiment that turned out pretty well! I’ve heard that King Arthur AP Flour has a bit more of a Bread Flour quality to it than other brands of AP flour, so since I was using Trader Joe’s AP flour, I added about a 1/2 cup bread flour to the dough flour. That’s just swapped out for the AP flour, not in addition to. It seemed to work well.

Let’s see, the original recipe did not use weight measurements, but cup measurements. I know it’s easy enough to figure out the weight and do it that way, but I was too lazy and just followed the recipe. When I made the dough, though, I held back about a 1/2 cup of the AP flour and just added as needed (or kneaded! ha!. I think I used a bit of the reserved flour but not all. . . . → Read More: Italian Bread with Sesame Seeds

5 comments   Baking, Breads, Italian
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