Butternut Squash Gnocchi Recipe

October is my salute to squash! Salute to seasonal vegetables in general! Possibly November as well, that's how excited I am about this salute!

Oh So Delicious Butternut Squash Gnocchi!

I love everything about Autumn, with frosty nights and nippy mornings and root vegetables all around. I find myself inspired by squash, and parsnips, and sweet potatoes, and possibly even pumpkin (though I haven't given pumpkin much of a chance in the past).

First on the roster: Butternut Squash Gnocchi.

My mother makes the most delicious butternut squash gnocchi, in a brown butter sage sauce, served usually as a primi piatto to a delicious turkey dinner - which means we had to wait all year to have these gnocchi. Not anymore mom! Today I learn to make gnocchi!

One thing that excites me about this gnocchi is that it's a totally vegetarian dish. It could even be vegan too, if you swapped out the butter for some extra virgin olive oil in the last step.

Take one butternut squash.

For starters, find a sexy butternut squash. Perfect specimens should weigh about 2lbs, and be nice and firm. Don't mind the jealous stares of the people at the grocery store - they probably know you are on your way home to create delicious things with that fabulous vegetable.

Butternut Squash Recipe

Ingredients:

One Butternut Squash

1/4 cup olive oil, plus extra for cooking

2 1/2 cups flour, plus lots of extra

Salt

Pepper

Fresh Sage, finely chopped

Oregano

Garlic Powder

Butter

Grated Parmesan (optional)

Take the butternut squash and chop it in half. I wish S was around for this part, because these squash are extremely firm and fairly tough to cut through. Scoop out the seeds and fibers and discard. Coat that gorgeous orange vegetable lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake face down on a baking sheet, in a 375F oven, for one hour. Squash should be knife-tender when you remove it.

Let cool slightly, then scoop out the innards into a bowl, leaving behind the tough outer skin. Mash with a potato masher (or some forks) until no lumps remain. 

Let squash cool for another 20 minutes or so, until room temperature (or nearly). Drizzle 1/4 cup of olive oil into squash, with approximately 1/4 tsp ground pepper, 1/2 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp sage, 1/2 tsp oregano, and a dash of garlic powder. Adjust spices to suit your particular tastes - I certainly tasted the mixture a few times as I was stirring!

Slowly add flour, mixing constantly until you achieve a soft dough ball. The consistency should be much like Play Dough. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp tea towel for at least 45 minutes to let the gluten in the flour become nice and sticky.

When my dough's time was up, I found the mixture had become insanely sticky again. To counter this, I poured a small mountain of flour on the cutting board so I could work it into the dough as needed. Roll small pieces of the dough into skinny sausages, approximately 3/4 inch in diameter. Notice how the beautiful orange colour goes away because of all that flour? Not to worry - it comes back in the cooking process. Chop the gnocchi into small bite-size pieces. For added gorgeousness, roll the tines of a fork over each individual gnocchi. I didn't do that step - I had much better things to do than spend all evening rolling hundreds of gnocchi over a fork just so they are a bit prettier.

                              

I taste tested the first dozen gnocchi I cut to see if the consistency was right. To do this, drop the gnocchi carefully into a pot of boiling water. Stir gently. Cook for several minutes, until they float to the surface. 

To store the gnocchi I wasn't going to eat immediately (anything you aren't going to eat that day) I spaced them evenly on a cookie sheet that was well dusted with flour, and I froze them all. It made servings enough for 8-10 people (depending on their level of hungry).

Cooking the gnocchi right away? Yum, I approve. 

Prepare a pot of lightly salted boiling water. Drop gnocchi individually into pot, stir gently to make sure none are stuck to the bottom. Cook for several minutes or until gnocchi float to the surface. Melt some butter in a pan, add some chopped fresh sage, oregano, pepper and garlic (or any combination that suits you). Remove floating gnocchi from water with a slotted spoon, deposit into pan. Stir to coat with butter. I like to cook them for several minutes in the pan, or until just firm on the outside. Sprinkle with parmesan and serve hot. 

Your lucky guests will beg for this recipe. It is great on it's own, or as a starter to a wonderful meal. Unfortunately it was midnight when I finished, so I didn't really bother making side dishes.

Cheers!

Delicious butternut squash gnocchi.

Crab Apple Pie Recipe

Things have been exciting lately in my little life. After a wildly successful interview, I've been accepted into the qualifying program for a master's of architecture program (yay!) To add to the excitement, S and I are moving all of our things across the province so I don't have to commute nine hours to school every day. Of course this means I'm surrounded by cardboard boxes, and sometime soon I have to figure out how to take apart my desk, and somehow I don't think S would find it funny if I decided to build a fort out of boxes rather than pack away all of my pretty shoes?

In the midst of all this chaos and upheaval (and guiltily admitting to my fiancé the three boxes of shoes I wound up packing) (in my defense, knee-high boots take up a surprising amount of space) anyway, in the middle of all this packing, I have been baking, painting, organizing, refinishing furniture, attempting to apply for jobs, and ... reading the newest book in the Game of Thrones series. I know, as if I didn't have enough guilty habits. 

I love fall apples - so here follows my fabulous adaptation of apple pie: Crab Apple Pie, courtesy of S's grandmother Lucille, who was lovely enough to provide us with a large bag full of crab apples.

I have to admit, I cheated on the crust. With all of my baking implements safely stashed away in boxes, and a dozen other things to do with my time, I really didn't want to take the time to make my own pie crust. Next time, I promise.

Crab Apples

Deep Dish Crab Apple Pie Recipe

5 cups Crab Apples, peeled and finely sliced
3/4 cup Granulated Sugar
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 Tsp Cinnamon
Dash of Salt
2 Tbsp Flour
Lemon Juice, to taste

Peel and slice the crab apples - depending on the size of the apples, this may take a while. I enlisted some kitchen help in the form of a willing fiancé who really just wanted to eat apple pie. Throw them into a large bowl, proceed to add remaining ingredients. This recipe created a pie that was a bit tart - add more sugar if you aren't a fan (or serve with vanilla ice cream).

Stir well until apples are well coated with remaining ingredients. Pour into prepared pie crust. I used Pillsbury Roll-Out Pie Crust. I know, I should have made it myself, but there just wasn't time. Still, I was impressed with this crust. It was flaky, delicious, and baked to a beautiful golden brown.

Cover edges of pie crust with aluminum foil to keep from over browning. Bake in a 450 F oven for 10 minutes, reduce heat to 350 F and bake for an additional 45 minutes. Remove foil about ten minutes prior to taking out pie.

Crab Apple Pie! Yummy!

Excuse me for not taking photos of it all cut up and covered with ice cream, I was far too busy enjoying some fabulous crab apple pie.