Mama Zuquinis Gnocchi Cavofiore Recipes

Steps:

• For the sun-dried tomato pesto: Combine the sun-dried tomatoes, almonds, garlic, rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon salt and some pepper in a food processor. Add the oil gradually until smooth.
• For the cauliflower "gnocchi": Put the cauliflower rice in a large microwave-safe bowl and microwave until tender, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Mix the steamed cauliflower with the spinach, cassava flour, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, oregano and salt. Knead the dough until smooth; depending on how much moisture was in the cauliflower rice it may need more cassava flour to form a dough that is not sticky on the hands.
• Form the gnocchi by either rolling 2 teaspoon pieces of dough with your hands OR rolling the whole dough into a long snake and cutting 2-inch pieces off. Use cassava flour if it starts to stick.
• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the gnocchi in batches until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side; do not overcrowd the pan.
• Divide the pesto between two pasta bowls and add the gnocchi on top.

Steps:

• For the gnocchi: Starting in a large pot of cold water, bring the potatoes to a gentle boil. Cook slowly until tender when pierced with a knife. It is important to use a large volume of water and to cook the potatoes as slowly as possible. This "lazy boil" takes approximately 1 hour.
• While still hot, peel the potatoes with a spoon. Mash or preferably run through a ricer onto a sheet pan and allow to cool and dry. Crack the eggs into a mixing bowl and mix thoroughly with potatoes. Add the flour and mix by hand. Take a handful of mixture and rub palm-to-palm to create a cohesive softball-sized sphere. Place on a lightly floured surface and roll into a long cylinder just under 1 inch in diameter. Cut in 1-inch-long gnocchi, then lightly flour to avoid sticking. Repeat with remaining mixture.
• Drop the gnocchi into salted boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain in a colander and let cool.
• For the cavofiore: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Cut the top off the garlic bulb, then place the bulb in a small oven-safe dish and pour 1/2 cup of olive oil over it.
• Roast in the oven until soft and caramelized, about 30 minutes.
• Remove the garlic from the oil. In a large skillet, saute the cauliflower in the oil from the roasted garlic until the cauliflower starts to brown. Add 1/4 cup water and remove from heat. Squeeze garlic bulb to remove the tender cloves; add them directly to the skillet. Then add the gnocchi, heavy cream and Parmesan, and mix. Bring back up to heat.
• Stir until the sauce is hot and the cheese has completely melted.

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop in potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain, cool slightly, and peel. Season with salt, then mash potatoes with fork, masher, or in ricer. Place in large bowl, and stir in egg and olive oil. Knead in enough flour to make a soft dough.
• On a floured surface, roll dough into a long rope. Cut the rope into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Drop in gnocchi, and cook until they float to the top, about 3 to 5 minutes. Serve with pasta sauce.

Steps:

• Combine pasta, water and bouillon in large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Cook, stirring frequently, for 8 to 10 minutes or until pasta is tender and broth has reduced to about 1/2 cup; do not drain. Reduce heat to low; add pesto.
• Cook, stirring frequently, until sauce has reduced slightly. Stir in tomatoes, broccoli and beans. Cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Sprinkle with cheese before serving. Season with ground black pepper, if desired.

Steps:

• Place the frozen spinach in a saucepan with the salt. Cook until thawed (15 min) over low heat. Drain squeezing out the water from the spinach and then mince until fine.
• In a large bowl, combine the spinach, breadcrumbs, the two cheeses, eggs, the herbs, the nutmeg and black pepper. Mix well and refrigerate overnight.
• When ready to make, form oval dumplings 3 inches long and about 1 inch in diameter. Roll each dumpling in the flour. Do not let them touch each other while they stand.
• Bring the salted water to a boil. Drop the dumplings into the salted water to form one layer. When they have risen to the surface, cook for 4 more minutes.
• Lift out the cooked malfatti, letting them drain well, and place into a well-buttered oven proof dish in a 250 degrees F oven while the other batches cook.
• To serve, toss with butter and serve. Garnish with Parmesan cheese and 1 cup marinara per person.
• NOTE: can be frozen after cooking. To serve, toss frozen malfatti in melted butter and Parmesan cheese, place in a well buttered dish and heat in a 350 degree F oven for 30 minutes.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut the top off of a large bulb of garlic and place the garlic bulb in a small oven safe dish and pour 1/2 cup of olive oil over bulb. Roast in oven until soft and caramelized. This takes about 30 minutes.
• Boil enough salted water to cook gnocchi according to package directions.
• Drop gnocchi into boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain in colander and let cool.
• Remove garlic from oil and set aside. In a large skillet, saute cauliflower in the reserve oil from the roasted garlic until the cauliflower starts to brown. Add water and remove from heat.
• Squeeze garlic bulb, removing the tender meat and add directly to skillet. Add gnocchi, heavy cream and Parmesan. Mix. Bring back up to medium heat. Stir until the sauce is hot and the cheese has completely melted.