what's for dinner: gnocchi mac & cheese

CJ loves gnocchi, so I was excited to run across boxed gnocchi at the grocery store.  I had no idea what I was going to do with it (I guess serve it with regular spaghetti sauce?  Boring.)  So I was thrilled to run across this recipe for gnocchi mac & cheese on pinterest (yup, still in love).

My awesome photo skills are at work again, as you can tell.  I snapped this photo real quick as CJ was carrying it back to the table to clean it off.  So I guess I should be thankful I got a picture at all.

I will admit this recipe is a bit gratuitous, considering I've been trying to use up ingredients I already had on hand (because why should we have a pantry stuffed full of food when some people don't and also to save money).  It requires some different ingredients (you can find the cheeses at Target, so it's not like you really have to go out of your way).  And when I do make this one again, I plan to double the gnocchi so we have leftovers.

Gnocchi Mac & Cheese

From Cuisine at Home via The Cutting Edge of Ordinary

1 lb. gnocchi

2 Tbsp.  butter

2 tsp. garlic, finely chopped

1 Tbsp. flour

3/4 C. milk

1 tsp. Dijon

1/4 C. shredded Gruyere cheese

1/4 C. shredded Fontina cheese

Salt & pepper, to taste

1/3 C. shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Prepare gnocchi according to package directions.  Drain and place gnocchi in a 1-1/2 qt. shallow baking dish that you've sprayed with Pam.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Stir in garlic and cook about 30 seconds.  Whisk in flour until it thickens and bubbles, then whisk in milk and Dijon.  Continue to whisk until thickened, about 3-5 minutes.

Add Gruyere and Fontina cheese to milk mixture, stirring until melted.  Season with salt and pepper.

Pour over gnocchi and sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano.  Bake about 25 minutes or until gnocchi puffs and cheese  is golden.

Enjoy!

what's for dinner: spicy shrimp & mushroom pasta

Because I don't have anything else to do, I thought I'd share one of our favorite recipes, Spicy Shrimp & Mushroom Pasta, with you.  I first made this years ago when CJ and I were dating and I can't remember the source, but here it is anyway.  And I'll also mention that you might not normally pair these ingredients together, but it is good - promise.

Spicy Shrimp & Mushroom Pasta

10-15 shrimp

olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 C. fresh mushrooms

Spaghetti or linguine, cooked

For the white sauce:

3 Tbsp. butter

3 Tbsp. flour

1/4 tsp. each salt & pepper (or to taste)

1/4 tsp. cayenne (or to taste)

1 1/2 - 2 C. milk

I really need to learn how to take more appetizing photos, right?

Directions:

Heat pan and pour in 1 Tbsp. olive oil.  Saute shrimp, mushrooms, and garlic until shrimp is no longer transparent (7-10 minutes).  Remove from heat and pour in white sauce.

For the sauce, cook butter and flour until butter is melted.  Cook 2 minutes longer.  Gradually add in milk.  Add salt and peppers to taste.

Enjoy!

we're still here.

Hello.  Yes, I've been neglecting the blog.

Here's what you've missed in November:

CJ is about done with school.  He has his final Monday night and a few more clinicals to finish up and then we're home free!  He has to sit for his boards in February and then hopefully he'll find a part-time nursing job.

I'm here.  Nothing new or exciting is going on.  I've been trying to cook more (which is why I'll have plenty of recipes coming your way soon enough) and I've just been tackling this giant stack of fabric (i.e. what's supposed to become Christmas presents):

Stella has been overseeing my sewing:

And that, my friends, is it.  If you think of it, please do say a quick prayer for CJ -- that he will do well on his final Monday afternoon, that he'll pass his boards in a few months, and that a part-time job opportunity will open up for him.

Back soon with new recipes for all you faithful readers!

heath bar crunch cookie bars

This one's a mouthful -- Heath Bar Crunch Cookie Bars.

I'm going to admit that I'm not the world's biggest Heath bar fan.  Don't get me wrong.  If it's the only chocolate in miles and I'm desperate, I'll eat it.  It's chocolate, after all.  But, it definitely doesn't make my top 10 list of favorite candy bars.  I'm not sure what all does, but this one wouldn't make the cut.

My point?  I'm married to someone who likes Heath bars.  So I found this recipe on pinterest (Are you still not a member?  Really?), and they were a big hit.  CJ took a big risk in telling me that he liked these better than my chocolate chip cookies.

Anyway, I took a picture for you.  Because, you know, you've probably never seen cookie bars before or anything...

If you're not like me and do like Heath bars, head on over to Sweet Tooth Sweet Life for the full recipe...and enjoy!