I was shopping at Aldi recently, and as I was waiting in the never-ending checkout line, this older gentleman picks up a package of gnocchi and says to himself "what is this stuff?" Oh my . . . good thing my kids weren't with me (they would have died of embarrassment by what was about to happen next)!
I couldn't help myself . . . I proceeded to explained to the man what gnocchi is, how you prepare it, and a few ideas on what you can toss it with to make a quick meal. He was more than appreciative, and threw three packages in his cart.
My kids love gnocchi. Whenever my mother-in-law comes to visit us from Italy, she always makes sure that our freezer is stocked with zip-lock bags full of homemade gnocchi.
This month, I have the pleasure of working with Johnsonville Sausage again, as part of the Allrecipes Allstar program. I started searching the
Johnsonville Collection on
Allrecipes, trying to decide which recipes that I'd like to make this month. When I came across this one, using gnocchi, I knew that I had to give it a try.
Here is how I prepared it:
Here's everything that you will need. (The onions were not part of the recipe, but I had them left over, and needed to use them up, so in they went).
Saute the peppers, pea pods (and onions if you so choose) in the olive oil for about 4 minutes. Remove to a bowl and set aside.
Remove the Johnsonville® Sausage from the casings, and brown it off over medium heat, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks. I drained mine in a colander lined with a few paper towels to soak up some of the grease, then added it back to the pan.
Add the peppers and pea pods back in.
In the meantime, bring a pot of water to boil. Add the gnocchi and cook just until the gnocchi start to float.
Add the pesto and the light cream and mix well. Keep over low heat.
Remove the gnocchi from the water with a slotted spoon, and place directly into the pan with the sausage mixture. Gently toss until gnocchi is coated with all of that creamy pesto yumminess. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and serve immediately.
Usually when we make gnocchi, we dress it lightly with a red sauce or maybe some sauteed vegetables, and serve it as a "primi piatti" or first course. With the addition of the Johnsonville Italian Sausage, this made for a quick and easy, weeknight main course dish that my family loved.
Buon Appetito!