recipes

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Joined: 10/07/2011
Posts: 272
recipes

i love to cook. I really do. I'm trying to brighten up my recipe collection with some new dishes to try. Especially those that will be good to get through the cold dark winter in Chicago. If anyone wants to share their favorite recipes I would love it! I will even share one of my favorites.

Gnocchi Mac and Cheese

1 pound purchased or homemade gnocchi
2 Tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons garlic, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
1/4 cup shredded fontina cheese
Salt and white pepper to taste
1/3 cup shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano
Basil leaves for garnish, optional (I chopped fresh basil and added it in to my cheese sauce)

Preheat oven to 375. Prepare gnocchi according to package directions. Drain and place gnocchi in a single-layer in a 1-1/2 quart shallow baking dish that has been sprayed with nonstick spray.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Whisk in flour until it thickens and bubbles, then whisk in milk and Dijon. Continue to whisk mixture and cook until slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes.
Combine Gruyere and fontina, then add by the handful to milk mixture, stirring until melted before adding the next handful. Once all cheese is melted, season sauce with salt and pepper.

Pour sauce over gnocchi and sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano over top. Bake gnocchi until they puff and the cheese is golden and bubbly, about 25 minutes. Let gnocchi rest for 5 minutes before serving.

What I love most about this recipe is how you can easily change it to what you have on hand. Gruyere is expensive so I used sharp cheddar or you can use swiss. I couldn't find Fontina and the grocery store but they did have fontinella on sale. Which is just a creamier mozzarella based fontina. I'm italian so I ALWAYS have gnocchi in the freezer and parmigiano-reggiano in the frdige. It's a pricier meal to make because of all the cheese, but it's so worth it. for anymore than 3 people I would recommend doubling the recipe.

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Joined: 09/12/2010
Posts: 4704

That sounds yummy!

I can't cook worth spit, but Joe can. He has a food blog here that you are welcome to check out.

My favorite recipe is whatever Joe has made that is now sitting in front of me laugh

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Joined: 10/07/2011
Posts: 272

Jeff you should have Joe try it if you aren't much of a cook. It's really decadent and delicious. I'm going to check out his food blog now and add it to my list.

Kris1971's picture
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Joined: 08/10/2011
Posts: 2350

Holy calories, but it sounds yummy! Here's one of my favorites:

Lobster Salad

1 pound uncooked lobster meat, about 1 1/2 lbs of lobster tails
1/4 cup reduced-calorie mayonnaise
1 large egg, hard-boiled, finely chopped
1 tsp capers, finely minced
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest, optional
2 Tbsp parsley, fresh, minced
1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground, or less to taste
1/2 tsp table salt, or less to taste

Steam or boil Lobster Tails. Removed cool lobster from shells and cut into bite-sized pieces; place in a medium bowl and add remaining ingredients; mix well. Yields about 2/3 cup per serving. Serve on a club roll or in a pita. YUM!

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Joined: 10/07/2011
Posts: 272

Yes Kris it is a TON of calories. But when you live in the cold, frozen tundra of chicago those calories are your happiness in the winter. Plus, when I know I'm making that my breakfast is fruit my lunch is a salad. yay

JoAnn C's picture
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Joined: 05/20/2011
Posts: 6757

The gnocchi mac and cheese sounds sooooooooo good.

Here's my favorite recipe. I usually make this in the summer for cookouts (it's requested by the host). It would be good in the winter.

Baked Bean Casserole

1/2 lb bacon
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1 cup ketchup
1 can pork and beans
1 can lima beans
1 can kidney beans

Brown bacon (and crumble) and ground beef and mix with all remaining ingredients in a casserole dish. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes at 350 degrees.

I use turkey bacon and ground turkey. Also, I have been using vegeterian beans in place of the pork & beans for my friend's mother-in-law who is Jewish so she can enjoy it as well. It tastes just as good. It's better if you make it the day before and heat it when needed.

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Bella's picture
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Joined: 06/11/2010
Posts: 3886

Yummy..all of those look great! Gnocchi Mac and Cheese. How come I never thought of that before??

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mickey Bella