the foodie in me

last night i went home craving gnocci... it's safe to say that the dreary gray days, cold, inconsistent weather and being a "carb person" influenced my desire. i've only had gnocci in restaurants as i believe it's a delicacy and should only be attempted by those more experienced than myself. this is, of course, arguable b/c for one, i have friends who have made incredible gnocci (sweet potato gnocci with maple butter..mmm...) and second, i've had really bad gnocci at places like embrace in hinsdale.

on my delayed trip home (thank you potholes), i noticed a trader joe's on ogden in downers grove and so i pulled in. when one is hungry for bizarre foods, one should venture to trader joe's. meandering the aisles, i picked up some nonfat yogurt, brie cheese, mochi, organic coffee, pretzel thins (my new fave snack) and there, in aisle two: gnocci!!! i nearly tripped over myself in excitement, promptly threw a bag into my cart and started planning my meal.

i decided to go simple and use a sage butter with parmesan. a side salad of baby greens, grape tomatoes and balsamic vinaigrette would suffice to round out the meal.

i melted butter in a frying pan over medium heat and added roughly chopped garlic when the butter started foaming (i cut a clove into 6 pieces - i didnt want it to overpower the sage). when the butter started turning brown, i added about 12 finely chopped leaves of sage and swirled the pan a few times. i turned off the heat and let the mixture cool down while the gnocci were boiling.

after removing the gnocci promptly after floating to the top of the pot, i drizzled the butter mixture over the yumminess, added a bit of sea salt and a few good grinds of fresh black pepper and tossed to coat.

i plated the gnocci in a deep bowl and added a bit of fresh parmesans cheese. a nice glass of pillar box red, salad in hand and i was more than ready to eat my "gourmet" meal while pondering the newest episodes of lost and eli stone...

overall rating of: YUM!!