Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Ingredients

2 medium-sized sweet potatoes
1/2 cup ricotta
1 clove garlic, minced or chopped
2 T. grated Parmasan
1 egg
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 T. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
About 3 cups flour (375 g.)

Directions

1. Steam or cook the sweet potatoes so they're soft and cooked through (I find it easiest to microwave by poking a few holes in the sweet potato, wrapping in plastic wrap, and popping in the microwave for 4 minutes on each side)

2. In a large bowl, mix together the ricotta, garlic, egg, parmasan, nutmeg, salt, and brown sugar and stir until well blended.

3. When sweet potatoes are ready, scoop the flesh into the ricotta mix and blend

4. Add flour 1/2 a cup at a time until it forms a soft dough; cut into 6 pieces

5. Roll each piece into a long snake that's about 1/2 an inch tall, then cut out 1 inch pieces

6. Boil in lightly salted boiling water for about 6 minutes; drain and serve with your favorite pasta toppings!

Easiest alfredo (ish) sauce ever

This makes for a very quick and easy meal; another one of those meals that's ready before the pasta has finished boiling!

You could make this REALLY easy and omit the mozzarella and parmasan!

I also added steamed broccoli to make it at least marginally nutritious, and I really recommend the addition. Actually, you can sneak pretty much any vegetables in here; I tried it with frozen spinach (excellent!) and peas (a little strong for my taste, but Murat liked it).

Ingredients:

3/4 lb. pasta
1 package (5.2 oz) boursin cheese (or allouette, not partial to brands)
1/2 cup milk (more or less, depending on how creamy you like it)
1 handful mozzarella cheese plus a couple T. parmesan (I used the 4 cheese pre-shredded Italian blend)
Pepper to taste

Spinach Ricotta Ravioli

I had a recipe for pumpkin ravioli in a cookbook that looked delicious, and it suggested that you use wonton wrappers for the pasta. In theory, that sounded great, but in reality, they were puke-worthy (and it was a pregnancy cookbook! How cruel!)

I recently decided to try again, this time using something called "pasta sheets". Well, maybe you can find them, but I couldn't. So I decided to make my own. I don't have a mixer or a pasta roller, just a bowl, a spoon, and a rolling pin. If you have a pasta roller, more power to you.

I think the filling can't really be screwed up; just taste it until you like it. I made it with way more spinach than is probably appropriate because I love spinach and thought it would be a bit healthier that way.

Ravioli (pasta)

Ingredients:

3 cups flour (375 g.)
4 eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
1 T. olive oil
a couple tablespoons of water (as needed)

Directions:

1. Mix together the flour and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre.

2. In the well, add the 4 eggs. Beat the eggs inside the well, then slowly incorporate them into the flour to create a dough.

3. Dump dough out onto kneading surface (should be shaggy looking with lots of loose flour).

4. Add olive oil, then water a tablespoon at a time while kneading until a cohesive dough forms

5. Knead for about 5 minutes, or until smooth and consistent

6. Divide into 4 parts and cover with a damp towel; allow to rest for 20 minutes while you make the filling!


Ravioli (Filling)

Ingredients

1 15 oz. container ricotta
2 shallots (could probably use a small, mild onion, like red)
1 cup frozen spinach
3-4 T. grated parmesan
4 T. grated mozarella (optional; it might not hold together well without it, or you can use an egg)
olive oil
a couple dashes of nutmeg
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Saute the shallots in the olive oil until tender (about 2 minutes), then add the frozen spinach and cook on medium-high until all the spinach is melted

2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix the ricotta with the parmasan and mozerella.

3. Add spinach to the cheese and a couple dashes of nutmeg. Salt and pepper to taste!


I haven't perfected a way to put it altogether yet; Murat managed that part. Basically it involves putting heaping tablespoons onto the dough, folding the dough over, and sealing it.

Boil for 4-5 minutes than serve! I like it topped with plain parmesan.

Pumpkin Pasta

This is INCREDIBLY filling. I didn't make it with the pears but after trying it I think that pears could have greatly improved the recipe. This looks like a lot of work but it's really simple to prepare.

Ingredients

1/2 - 2/3 lb. pasta (ideally penne; I used shells)
1 small-medium yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
olive oil for cooking
1 14 oz. can pumpkin
1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste (or a little pasta sauce)
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 large pinch cloves (optional)
1/3 - 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 - 1 cup fresh milk (depending on how creamy you like it)
Handful fresh rosemary, finely chopped
2 T. brown sugar
A couple handfuls of chopped walnuts
1 handful chopped pears
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Boil pasta; while pasta is boiling (turn off the heat when it's ready, of course!)

2. Saute onions in olive oil until soft but not yet fully translucent; add garlic and saute for a couple minutes more.

3. Puree onions and garlic with can of pumpkin and tomato paste in a food processor

4. Transfer to the pan you sauteed the onions and garlic in; add a giant heap of yogurt (about 1/3 of a cup or more) then milk until it's the consistency you like

5. Add rosemary and brown sugar; salt and pepper to taste

6. Add sauce to still hot cooked pasta mix in.

7. Toss with walnuts and pears if you have them.

Pad Thai

Ingredients

10 oz. rice noodles
4 T. brown sugar
1 T. honey
3 T. lime juice
4 T. soy sauce
1 T. sesame oil
3 green onions, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1x1 inch bulb of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 bunches of broccoli, cut into florets and steamed for 4 minutes
1/2 cup salted peanuts, chopped by food processor
Olive or peanut oil for cooking

Directions

NOTE: In order to cook rice noodles, you shouldn't boil them like you do with semolina pastas; they need to be put into warm (not hot) water and left to sit for 1-3 hours. When you're ready to use them, just drain.

1. Mix together brown sugar, honey, lime juice, soy sauce, and sesame oil; set aside

2. Heat up oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat

3. Toss in scallions, garlic, and ginger and cook for about 1-2 minutes, being careful not to let the garlic burn (be sure to move it around the pan)

4. Add the steamed broccoli, noodles, and soy sauce; toss around until noodles are coated

5. When the noodles are well-coated and everything is evenly distributed, add the peanuts and toss again to spread them around; let noodles sit in pot, cooking, for a minute or two until the noodles have absorbed the sauce

6. Serve immediately.

Feta and Gruyere Mac N Cheese

Ingredients

1/2 lb. pasta (I prefer tubular pasta of any kind)
4 oz. gruyere
5. oz feta
2 T. flour (30 g.)
3 T. butter
1 bunch dill, chopped
1 1/2 cups milk
lemon zest from one lemon

Directions

Preheat oven to 400

1. Cook pasta according to directions; when ready, drain and set aside

2. In a small bowl, mash 1/2 T. butter, a little bit of the feta, a little bit of the dill and one pinch of lemon zest, and mash together with a fork; set aside

3. Over medium heat, melt the rest of the butter; once it's melted, add the flour and whisk constantly for 2 minutes

4. Add the milk to the butter/flour mixture, and let sit and cook until thick and bubbly (about 5 minutes)

5. When it's ready, stir in remaining lemon zest, gruyere, feta, and dill; stir until uniform

6. Pour over the pasta and mix with a wooden spoon until pasta is coated

7. Put into a casserole dish; sprikle top with feta/dill/lemon zest mixture that you had set aside

8. Put in the oven for about 20 minutes

Stuffed Shells

Ingredients

1 box Jumbo pasta shells
1/2 jar pasta sauce (about)
15 oz. ricotta
1 cup mozarella cheese
3 T. parmesan
(a little goat cheese if you have it; this makes it really good!)
(a sprinkle of cheddar if you have it)
1 egg
1 clove garlic
1 bunch fresh basil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Directions

Heat oven to 350

1. Boil the pasta according to the directions (add olive oil to the water to make sure they don't stick)

2. Meanwhile, chop basil, parmesan, and garlic (and goat cheese) in a food processor

3. Mix the above mixture with the ricotta, egg, mozarella, cheddar, and salt and pepper in a large bowl

3. Put pasta sauce along the bottom of a baking pan until it is just covers the bottom

4. When the shells are cooked, run them under cold water so they're cool to the touch and place them along the pan so they're spread out; stuff each shell with a spoonful of the cheese mixture

5. Spoon some more pasta sauce over the top, and if you like, sprinkle with a little mozarella. Cook for about 30 minutes.

Vegan (almost) pesto sauce

This comes from Chef Chloe's blog with just a few modifications, and I'm just putting it here for safe keeping. It is really, REALLY good and so healthy it should be illegal.

Ingredients:

1 lb. fettucine
2 ripe avocados
A whole lot of basil (the entire container you buy from a grocery store; more never hurts)
1/2 cup pine nuts (since these are super expensive, you can sub half walnuts/half sunflower seeds, but won't be as good)
3-4 T. lemon juice (or whole lemon's worth)
3 cloves of garlic
1/3 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp. honey

Directions

1. While boiling the pasta, mix everything else in a food processor. Toss pesto sauce with still warm pasta.

Can be served with sundried tomatoes.

Pasta Caprese

This is a perfect spring/summer dish, but cleaning the pot is kind of a pain.

Ingredients

2/3 box of shell pasta
Several sprigs of fresh basil
1 large or 2 small cloves or garlic, VERY finely chopped
1-2 medium tomatoes
1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
2 T. olive oil (plus more for cooking)
Fresh ground pepper to taste


Directions

1. Boil the macaroni with olive oil and salt

2. Meanwhile, chop the basil, tomatoes, and garlic

3. When pasta is tender, drain and stir in the olive oil, basil, tomatoes, and garlic

4. Sprinkle in the cheese a little at a time; if you put it in all at once, it will all clump up on the spoon and won't spread around much on the pasta (you may still need to separate the cheese a little)

5. Add pepper at the end when it is a plate/in a bowl, otherwise it may clump up in the cheese

Lasagna

The idea of making lasagna always seemed a little daunting to me. This was surprisingly easy (minus the multitasking and long list of ingredients) and incredibly delicious; beats any restaurant lasagna!

I add spinach to the ricotta, which makes it slightly healthier. Spinach haters rejoice! You can barely taste it.

Ingredients

9 lasagna noodles
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 cup onion
1 clove garlic
2 cans tomato paste (6 oz. each)
1 jar pasta sauce sauce
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. basil, oregano, marjoram (or whatever Italiany herbs you feel like)
1/2 tsp. pepper (I like a little more)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1 15 oz container of ricotta
1 bag frozen spinach (thawed and drained; optional)
2 cups mozzarella
1/4 cup parmesan
Olive oil for cooking (about 2 T)


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350

2. Boil the lasagna noodles until tender (put some olive oil in the pot to prevent them from sticking to each other)

3. While lasagna is boiling, on medium-high heat, saute onions in the olive oil, adding garlic a little later (it tends to scorch). Add the beef and brown it.

4. Add tomato paste, spaghetti sauce, sugar, pepper, basil, oregano, and salt, and lower the heat

5. In a separate bowl, whisk together the ricotta and egg and the frozen spinach if you have it.

6. When all your ingredients are ready, put 1/4 sauce at the bottom of a lasagna pan. The add noodles, 1/4 of the sauce, 1/2 of the ricotta, then 1/3 of the mozzarella. Layer again, eventually ending with noodles, sauce, and mozzarella. There should be, in total, 4 layers of meat, 2 layers of ricotta, 3 layers of noodles, and 3 layers of mozzarella (last one with parmasan). At this point you can refrigerate it for up to a couple of days so that you can pop it into the oven whenever you need it.



7. Cover with foil (rub bottom with olive oil so it doesn't stick to the lasagna) and put in the oven for 25 minutes; remove foil and cook for an additional 15-30 minutes (until it's bubbly)

This makes a LOT of lasagna, so either feed a party or a family or be prepared for leftovers.