Tag Archives: garlic

Another Gnocchi Dish…

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Recipe, Tips and tagged with , , , , , ,

This time I made gnocchi with meatballs made from gluten-free sausages that I bought from Waitrose.  It’s the first time I’d seen them in a supermarket, so I was pretty excited.  They’re really lovely actually, quite spicy and peppery and very meaty, although they don’t hold their shape so well when you cook them.

I simply fried off some sliced garlic and some cherry tomatoes in some olive oil.  Then I added little chunks of sausage that I’d cut up.  I also removed the sausage skin but only because it was coming off anyway; no need to bother doing this otherwise.  Once the little balls of sausage meat were cooked through, I added my cooked gluten-free gnocchi to the pan and added a little extra extra-virgin olive oil and some torn fresh basil.  It was so quick to do but it looked and tasted like I’d spent ages on it.  Yumbo-scrumbo.

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Gluten-free Gnocchi.

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Recipe, Tips and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

I’m really liking this gluten-free gnocchi that I found in my local butcher/deli.  Gnocchi is made with potato anyway, so there isn’t a huge difference in texture between this and normal gnocchi.

I used this gnocchi to make a quick lunch: I simply fried some garlic and four cherry tomatoes, halved, in a tablespoon of olive oil.  The tomatoes will soften and mush down to create a small amount of sauce.  Then I added about five prawns and some seasoning, frying on a low-medium heat until the prawns were cooked through and pink.  Once the gnocchi was cooked (this takes about 2 minutes) I added it to the prawns with some fresh basil and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.  I cooked the gnocchi with the prawns and tomato sauce for 30 seconds before piling onto a plate.

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This is so fast and filling, and packed with fresh Italian flavours.  Enjoy!

Bean Mash.

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Recipe and tagged with , , , , , ,

Beans are fantastic.  They are high in protein, almost fat-free… They are, in fact, ridiculously good for you.   But they can be a little dull to eat sometimes.  This recipe, for bean mash, is a perfect accompaniment almost any roasted, grilled or pan fried meat and also goes very well with salmon and it is a very far cry from dull.  It can be as simple or as jazzy as you like, depending on your tastes or the accompanying flavours.  I usually make it with lots of garlic and rosemary (I’ve actually adapted this recipe over time to make it as effortless as possible; now I don’t even chop the garlic, I just leave the cloves whole!), but you could add tomatoes, chilli, bay, anchovies, you could make it with chicken stock or vegetable stock, you could mash it or leave the beans whole or semi-mashed; it’s entirely up to you.

Here’s how you make it:

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Start by heating some olive oil in a small sauce pan.  Then add whole garlic cloves (I use about three or four) and about three sprigs worth of chopped rosemary.  Then add one can of drained and well-rinsed butter beans (this will serve 2-3 people amply as a side dish).   Stir well.

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Now add enough gluten-free chicken or vegetable stock (I use the Knorr stock pots) to cover the beans.  Bring the beans to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the stock has reduced right down and the beans look brown and caramelized.  This can take up to half an hour depending on the amount of stock you added (quantities, in this recipe, are not so important, as you might have noticed).  You will end up with something that looks like this…IMG_2354

At this point you can turn the heat off and leave the beans until you are ready to mash them.  You can see the whole garlic cloves here: they will be mashed into the beans creating a lovely, mellow, garlicky flavour.

Next, mash the beans.

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Admittedly, this dish is not the most glamorous or visually appealing, but it tastes brilliant so who cares.  Taste the mash and adjust for seasoning; the stock, which has also been reduced, and therefore concentrated, can be very salty so don’t add salt until this point.  I rarely find I need it.

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Finally add some chopped parsley and you’re ready to go.

This dish is simple and versatile and everyone I’ve ever made it for has wanted the recipe, and I bet you will too!