Meyer Lemon Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Thyme

Sometimes I think I hit the jackpot. There are some very few and far between, amazing days, that I get to stay home from work when the Mr. has to go to work, that I relish in. Those are the days I wake up, go on a run, read through some cookbooks, clean the bathroom, do some laundry, possibly head to the store, then plan my attack.

Yesterday was one of those days. Except it happened somewhat backwards. The day before I had picked a plentiful amount of Meyer Lemons from the tree next door and was so excited to start using them that my run got pushed to the end of the day. So here I was was at 5:30 showered and clothed in what my sister would refer to as "the frumpiest outfit ever", a long gray skirt, moccasins, an oversized tshirt, with my hair in disarray. The Mr. walks in, (and here is what I mean about the jackpot), and tells me I look amazing.

With a smile on my face, he starts munching on the only thing I probably made beautiful that day, Meyer Lemon Gnocchi.

Meyer Lemon Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Thyme

1 lb potatoes

3 egg yolks

finely grated zest of two lemons

1 tsp olive oil

1 1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup All Purpose Flour

3TB unsalted butter
juice of 1-2 meyer lemon(s)
3 thyme sprigs

Peel and chop potatoes into 2 inch pieces and place them in a boiling pot of water and cook until tender.

Drain the potatoes and place on a dry rag to dry, then push the potatoes through a ricer.

Mix egg yolks, zest, olive oil and salt in a small bowl, then pour over potatoes and combine.

Gently fold in the flour, then roll the dough into a long strand.

Cut the strand into four pieces and roll each into a smaller strand.

The "ropes" should be approximately 1/2inch thick.

 Cut each rope into 1/2-inch pieces.

Roll each piece against the tines of a fork (or a gnocchi board) to make ridges.

Have a boiling pot of water ready.

Boil gnocchi until they float, then carefully strain and place on a plate.

In a pan, heat butter.

When the butter is hot, place gnocchi in the pan in one layer.

Occasionally toss the gnocchi in the pan, being careful that they do not stick.

When the gnocchi begin to brown, separate the thyme from the sticks, and then add the thyme to the gnocchi.

Cook for several more minutes allowing the thyme to become aromatic.

Pour lemon juice over the gnocchi (season with salt to taste), toss in the pan, and heat for another minute.

Serve and enjoy.

Pad See Yew

 I love Thai food. I didn't really realize I loved Thai food, however, until I didn't have it around in Napa. We have it, yes, but I have also had really amazing Thai food, and there is nothing better. I assumed though that it was something I could get into trying to master. 

My sister Paige, and my man friend Tim, love this dish, as do I, and so as a favor to us, I decided to start here. It is delicious, and easy, and did I say delicious? Make it, try it, you really can't go wrong.

Pad See Yew

1 lb rice noodles
1 lb broccoli, cut into florets
2.5 oz extra firm tofu, cut into cubes
3 eggs, beaten
3TB light soy sauce
3TB dark soy sauce
2 TB agave nectar
3TB oil
6 large cloves garlic, minced

Soak rice noodles in water for 30-45 min.

Fry garlic in oil until fragrant, then add the rice noodles, fry for a minute or so, then add soy sauces.

Add Tofu and Broccoli, and Stir, then add agave nectar, and stir again.

Create a well in the middle of the noodles, so you can see the bottom of the wok (or pan) add eggs, let them sit for a few moments and allow to cook thoroughly, then scramble and mix in with rest of dish.

Serve and enjoy. 

Kung Pao Chicken

I'd first like to preface with an apology, because I recognize that not having pictures is really drilling into your side. I promise, now that I am back to regular schedule I will utilize my camera again soon. But because I told you I would have a recipe again soon, I wanted to keep my word. 

I have this bad habit of remaking a recipe over and over again if I like it and its good. Makes sense, right? Not to the Mr. According to him, I have made the same asian style vegetable dish more times in the last two months than he would like to mention, and he suggested I "branch out". He is right I suppose, because when I can memorize a dish with over 18 ingredients and whip it out in no time flat, then I have probably overdone it.

There is something about garlic, chilis, ginger and soy that makes my mouth water. Yes, I said it. And in fact its watering right now just thinking about those ingredients.

Keeping his request in mind and wanting to keep inside my asian influenced dish obsession, I decided to take on Kung Pao Chicken. I love it. What I didn't love about the basic dish, is the lack of vegetables, so I took it on as my own and spun some in.

Kung Pao Chicken 

adapted from rasamalaysia

Marinade

1 tablespoon corn starch
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Sherry
1 teaspoon peanut oil

Sauce

 3 tablespoon light soy sauce
2 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon sherry vinegar
4 tablespoons water
2 teaspoon corn starch

Ingredients

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into pieces

1 small fistful of peanuts

9 dried chilies deseeded

5TB neutral oil such as vegetable

2 cups chopped broccoli

8 large slices of ginger, cut into slivers

4-5 cloves of garlic, minced

5 scallion stalks, chopped

Marinate the chicken (in the marinade) for 30 minutes.

Coat the Wok, or pan with oil and cook the chicken until it is about 80% done,
which should take about 5 minutes.

Remove chicken from pan and set aside.

Add chilies and ginger to same pan in remaining oil, and saute until aromatic, then add
the garlic and cook for another minute or so.

Add the chicken and broccoli, and cook for about 3 minutes.

Add the peanuts and scallions and sauce, in that order.

Stir and cook for a few more minutes, then turn off the heat.

Serve over rice, and enjoy.

Quinoa Vegetable Burgers.

My dear friend Tim once had this huge revelation about quinoa, well, maybe a revelation is not quite the correct word, a tirade rant would better suit this specific situation. I am not sure what it was exactly that I had cooked that night, but the topic of quinoa and salad came up. Quinoa was the hot new ingredient at the time, and he was announcing his dislike for the fact that every dinner party or barbecue that he had been to recently had a quinoa salad, as if there was nothing else that anyone could figure out what to do with it.

Months later, Tim brought us bushels of garbanzo beans...fresh ones...they were delicious.

It immediately occurred to me that it would be a great base to a veggie burger.

After trials and tribulations with how to make a veggie burger, incorporating quinoa as my main ingredient, I finally prevailed with something that i was proud to slap on a bun, and eat more than one of.

Quinoa Vegetable Burger

2 cups of fresh garbanzo beans

(i think you can substitute for a can of drained chickpeas)

2 cups of cooked quinoa (2/3c uncooked)

1 small zucchini, julienne

1 largish carrot minced

1 yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 Serrano pepper, minced

4 eggs, beaten

1c breadcrumbs

salt and pepper

pulse garbanzo beans in a food processor until it forms a paste like consistency.

take the prepped zucchini and onions, and put on a towel, sprinkle with salt, and allow to drain of liquid.

you can even squeeze the paper towel, as you want the zucchini and onion to be relatively dry.

place the zucchini, onion, garlic, pepper, quinoa and carrot in the bowl with the garbanzo paste and mix.

incorporate the eggs, then the breadcrumbs and allow to sit for 10 minutes.

get your pan hot and line the bottom of the pan with olive oil.

form patties with the mixture, and cook in the hot oil.

cook until the bottoms are brown (5-10 minutes) and flip.

cook the same on the other side, then remove from your pan.

enjoy as you would a burger with the same accompaniments.