Gnudi: Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi

Gnocchi, from the Italian for "little lump," are delicious dumplings cooked like fresh pasta and then served with sauce or added to soup. Despite the name, gnocchi should not be lumpish, but light and fluffy, with an airy, fresh texture. The most common gnocchi are made of potato, but, while good, I love the less-common gnudi, which are made primarily of ricotta. How can you go wrong with a dumpling of cheese?

Gnudi: Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi

This recipe is for dumplings of spinach and ricotta. Light, fluffy, and cheesy, this is as tasty as it is easy to make. You can knock the whole preparation out in minutes, yielding a product not even comparable to store-bought gnocchi.

Makes four servings worth of gnudi.

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh spinach, stems trimmed and rinsed well
2 teaspoons plus 1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
2 teaspoons freshly-ground white pepper
1 cup ricotta, di bufala if possible, drained of excess water
1/4 cup plus 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup freshly and finely-grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, preferably stravecchio
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon freshly-grated nutmeg

Rinse the spinach one more time. Do not dry. In a saute pan with a lid over medium heat, add the wet spinach, two teaspoons of sea salt, and white pepper. Cover and cook until tender, about 4 minutes. Drain the spinach. Once it is sufficiently cool to handle, squeeze out as much water as possible.

Chop well the spinach. Set aside on paper towels to further dry. Let cool to room temperature.

Combining and mixing the ingredients

In a large mixing bowl, combine the spinach, ricotta, and 1/4 cup of flour. Stir well with a wooden spoon. Add the Parmigiano-Reggiano, egg yolks, nutmeg, and 1 teaspoon of sea salt. Stir together. Unless your immune system is weak, taste and adjust salt.

Forming the gnudi

Fill a small mixing bowl with the remaining 1/4 cup of flour. Dust your hands in the flour. Form the mixture into small oblate spheroids (slightly-flatted balls), about 1/2 to 3/4 an inch across. You do not need to roll gnudi across a fork, as they are already rather absorbent.

Lightly dredging the gnudi

Lightly dredge the gnudi in the flour, shaking off excess, so that they have a thin coat.

To cook: Bring a stock pot of heavily-salted water to boil. Add the gnudi in batches, about a half dozen at a time. Cook, gently stirring, until the gnudi rise to and remain on the top, about 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove to a colander. Continue with the remaining gnudi.

Tomato Sauce with Cream and Onions

This sauce builds on my basic tomato sauce to create a creamy pink sauce with sauteed sliced onions. A good alternative to the usual tomato sauce when pairing with gnocchi, gnudi, and fresh pastas.

Tomato Sauce with Cream and Onions

Makes 2-3 cups, sufficient for 4 servings.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large Spanish yellow onion, sliced
2 cups basic tomato sauce (recipe)
1/2 cup heavy cream
sea salt, to taste
freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Heat a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the butter. Once hot and bubbling, add the sliced onions. Saute until soft and translucent and just starting to brown, about 6 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper.

Add the tomato sauce and heavy cream. Stir to integrate. Lower heat to a simmer and cook 5 minutes, until warmed through and incorporated. Taste and adjust seasoning.

If preparing with pasta, remove pasta from water and add to sauce about one minute before al dente. Cook the pasta in the sauce for 60 seconds. Serve immediately.

A Note on 'To Taste'

When a recipe says to taste, and specifically when one of my recipes says to taste, the author does not mean add as much as you want. Instead, the recipe is calling on you to taste the food as it stands and add (more of) the ingredient until that ingredient is balanced and sufficient in the food.

What is the point of a recipe if not to specify quantities? Why do recipes say to taste? Generally, its for seasonings, most often salt, sometimes pepper, and the recipe author is not sure how much of the ingredient has already been added, or other details that effect the perception of the ingredient. For example, depending on the stock you used, or exactly how much you reduced down a liquid, or what type of salt you used, you may need more or less salt to finish a dish. Thus, to taste. In any case, the amount left unspecified is generally small—just a teaspoon or two.

Serving salt on our dinner tables has conditioned us to think of salt ratios as a preference, but there is an ideal, perfect balance with salt—as with all of the flavors in a dish. Most home cooks undoubtedly under-salt their food, although plenty of eaters then over-salt their food once it hits the table. Salt early, salt often, and remove the salt from your dinner table.

Bavette a L'échalotte: Bistro Steak with Shallots and Red Wine Jus

Bavette a L'échalotte, occasionally called Bavette a la Bordelaise, is a bistro-style beef steak with carmelized shallots and a red wine reduction. Juicy, served barely medium rare, this dish is satisfying and savory, despite its rustic pedigree.

Bavette a L'echalotte: Bistro Steak with Shallots and Red Wine Jus

Like most steak dishes conceived in the French bistro, this one is pan-seared with butter, but only on one side. We then flip the steak, top it with the caramelized shallots, and finish it off in a hot oven. The steak is served with a red wine reduction alongside a salad and, traditionally, cornichons. Although Bavette a la Bordelaise seemingly demands to be consumed with Bordeaux, I like this dish with the bold, ripe profile of a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.

Wagyu tri-tip

The bavette cut is traditionally a flank steak—bavette literally means bib or flap—but you should use your favorite pan searing steak. I prefer flank's close relative, the skirt steak, for this dish, but use what you like. In these photos, I am using a thinly-sliced Wagyu tri-tip.

Makes two servings, easily halved or doubled.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup red wine jus (recipe)
2 ten ounce skirt steaks, about 1 inch thick, trimmed of fat
1 tablespoon plus 2 tablespoons grape seed oil
4 shallots, sliced whole into rings
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, finely-chopped
sea salt, to taste
freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Delicious

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Let the steaks rest at least 30 minutes at room temperature. Season both sides with salt and pepper.

In a small saucepan, bring the red wine jus to a simmer. Keep warm.

Sauteing the shallot and garlic

Heat a saute pan over medium heat. Add one tablespoon of oil. Once hot, add the shallots to the pan, stirring, and saute until soft, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme, and one tablespoon of butter. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Lower heat to medium-low. Continue cooking until the shallots caramelize but aren't yet deep brown, about 10 more minutes. Remove from heat and seat aside.

Heat a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add two tablespoons of grape seed oil and one tablespoon of butter. Once the butter is bubbling well, add the steaks and sear for 2 minutes, until browned on one side.

Seared, flipped, topped with caramelized shallot, and ready for the oven

Flip the steaks. Baste the steaks in the pan juices. Spread the shallots over the steaks. Place the skillet in the oven and cook until barely medium-rare, 6 minutes.

Plated with cornichons and salad and ready to serve

For each plating, spread a small amount of red wine reduction on the side of a plate. Using a slotted spoon, plate the steak over the reduction, covered in shallot, with red wine reduction spooned atop and around the plate. Serve with a salad of watercress or arugula. Pairs well with a big, ripe Cabernet Sauvignon from California's Napa Valley.

Red Wine Jus

This red wine and beef stock reduction is wonderful over steaks and roasts. Unlike other recipes, this approach is simple, as I don't see the value in simmering more aromatics—your beef stock should already offer those flavors.

Makes about one cup.

Ingredients:

1 bottle (750 ml) Cabernet Sauvignon
4 cups beef stock
1 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
sea salt, to taste

Bringing the wine and stock to a boil

In a medium saucepan over high heat, combine the Cabernet Sauvignon, beef stock, and black pepper. Bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium and simmer until reduced to a syrup, about one cup.

Taste and adjust salt. Let cool. Use immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.