Gnocchi with Tomatoes & Feta

Gnocchi. I haven't quite mustered the strength to make it by hand yet. So Sam's Club it is... They have packages with LOTS of gnocchi and for some odd reason, a box always gets thrown into my cart. I'm not sure how it happens... Reminds me of Target!
So, I also use leftover chicken, but this is optional (because I wanted to make it a vegetarian meal, but then I also needed to use up chicken, so whatever... leftovers...).
To make a quick and easy tomato sauce, chop a medium onion into small pieces. Bimmer Man isn't much of an onion person...
Then mince 3 cloves of garlic. Use less if you want to, but I LOVE garlic!
Chop the leftover chicken into 1 inch pieces and save for later - you'll eventually just nuke 'em. Don't toss it into the tomato sauce, you want leftover sauce for pasta for lunch tomorrow.
Sweat the onions. And then after they're clear and soft, add the garlic and one can of diced tomatoes.
I also added one can of tomato sauce because I wanted leftover tomato sauce for pasta for lunch. Cook once, eat twice. Right?
Let simmer for anywhere in between 12 - 15 minutes. You can let it simmer for longer if you like - sometimes I wash dishes while sauces simmer. I try and multi-task but sometimes I end up burning something or letting boiling water run over. Oops.
Gently cook the gnocchi. It's done as soon as they float to the top - they're just starting to in this picture. About 1 more minute and then they're done.
Drain and add half the gnocchi to a deep bowl.
Put your nuked chicken on top (or leave it out or add another leftover meat instead of chicken).
Then the pasta sauce.
Top with a good handful of feta.
Repeat the layers and top with fresh basil.

This works great for leftovers too. It's very versatile - you can use a sage butter sauce with parmesan cheese. Or just plain butter. Gnocchi is fabulous!

Gnocchi with Tomatoes & Feta

1 package gnocchi
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
2 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped finely
5 - 6 fresh basil leaves, julienned
1 cup feta
Leftover chicken (optional)

Sweat the onions in a large pan. After clear and soft, add in garlic, diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. Simmer sauce for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, boil water for gnocchi and microwave the leftover chicken.

When the water comes to a boil, drop the gnocchi in. As soon as they start to rise, let boil for one more minute and drain (but don't over drain).

Layer the gnocchi, leftover chicken, tomato sauce and feta in a deep bowl. Top with basil.

Serve with a salad and crusty bread to soak up the sauce.

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Oh yum... If I ever had to live on leftovers. Well, just give me BBQ sauce, bread and cheese because sammies are great! BUT, a leftover stuffed pepper? That's really great too!

So first, chop an onion.
And gather your other ingredients, like tomato sauce.
Bell peppers (I don't care what color but green ones were on sale for 79 cents at Kroger).
Sweet or spicy turkey sausage (I used sweet, but I LOVE spicy sausage).
Rice. (Do you know how to make rice already? Just bring to a boil 1 can of chicken broth, as soon as it boils, turn off the heat and add in 1 3/4 cup rice. Put a lid on it for 5 minutes. Voila! Rice!).
Italian seasoning.
Meanwhile, defrost chicken to make fake-out chicken parmesan.
Neatly cut out the center of the peppers.
Pull out the seeds and other gunk, because you can't stuff it if it's full with other stuff.
Brown the sausage and onion together in a very large pan.
Line up your three green soldiers.
Oh - I love green. I'm trying to collect mostly green kitchen things. But, well, it's hard!
After you've browned the sausage and the onion is nice and soft, clear and tastes sweet (um, I love onions so I'll eat them however you happen to cook them)...
Pour in the can of tomato sauce. Have you started the rice yet? DO IT NOW IF YOU HAVEN'T DONE IT YET!
Put the chicken around the bell peppers in the casserole dish to make sure everything fits well.
Yes, it looks like it does...
When the rice is done - add about half the sausage mixture to the rice. As soon is it looks pretty well mixed, then you're ready to stuff the peppers.
You may need to even out the bottom of a pepper before you stuff it. Not a problem, just carefully slice off one of the nubs until it's even.
Oh - I can taste the goodness already...
Here they are after 35 minutes in a 375 degree oven. (You can kinda see the fake Parmesan chicken, right? Just add one can on tomato sauce to the pan, after 30 minutes, top the chicken with mozzarella cheese and continue the baking process until cheese gooey, bubbly and melted).
Mmm... peppers....
My favorite! Use the leftover stuffing mixture to make enchiladas.

Enjoy!

Bagels: Take 2

Finally. I got bagels.
I also used bread flour instead of regular all purpose flour.
And I only made 10 bagels instead of 12 so that way they'd be bigger.
Yum! And look at my make-shift baking rack... Pretty funny, right? Don't worry - I ordered actual baker's racks so no more of this crap!
And - here's the MONSTER!!! He still likes to hang out in the kitchen while I bake (well, until I use the food processor!).
And after baking. Only for 25 minutes at 400 degrees - nice and chewy on the inside with a great crust on the outside.
Yum...
Oh man... I'll have to make different batches of bagels every week after this!

Enjoy!

Basketball. For Kids.

Green Cleaning With:

Vinegar, Baking Soda & Castile Soap

Oh - the list is endless of what you can do, home cleaning solutions, etc... with these natural products.

First, baking soda is a natural mild abrasive and it also has a balanced ph level, which is how it deodorizes so well (that's why you keep a box in the fridge and by the garbage can).

Second, vinegar is a very weak acidic. It's a great natural cleaner (click for more tips) and amazingly enough - it tastes great in salads too!

And I can't forget castile soap - it's made mainly of vegetable oil, but it can also be made with several different types of oils - like olive oil or even hemp oil. It's very gentle, you can use it to shampoo your hair or even wash your floor (yes, you can!).

So here's my my mixtures:

General all-purpose solution:
2/3 warm water
1/3 vinegar
Few drops of Dr. Bronner's

Mix all together in a spray bottle - shake before using. You do not have to add the Dr. Bronner's, but I do to cut the smell of the vinegar.

Bathroom Cleanser
Baking Soda
Warm water from tap

Drain Unclogger
1/2 - 1 cup baking soda
1 - 2 cups vinegar

Pour the baking soda directly over the clogged drain. Pour the vinegar over the baking soda and watch it fizz! Rinse with hot water after the fizz has been done for a few minutes.

Sprinkle the baking soda over the sink and tub, then scrub with a damp microfiber cloth OR sponge. Rinse well with warm water to bring out the shine.

For the OTHER bathroom necessity to clean - I use the general all-purpose mixture. I still have a bottle of 409 with bleach that I'm trying to use up. So when I run out of that, I'll let you know what I use.

Also - whenever I use the bleach 409 in the bathroom, I cough and gag. Blech - chemicals! Green cleaning is cheap, simple and much better for you and the environment.

Awesome Kitchen Gadgets

Poach Pods, Set of 2 $8.70 Oh - I really want these. Super easy and very cute. They look like they'd be fabulous for a Sunday brunch or a quick weekday breakfast.


Pepper Grinder $24.98 How cute is this? You just squeeze the ears to grind your pepper. It also comes with matching salt Salt Grinder!

Popcycle Maker $15.99 This takes me back to my childhood - with uneven homemade popcycles made of orange juice, Kool-Aid and lemonade, what could be better than bringing back the homemade popcycle? This time - the stick is flat and even, no more splinters in your lips! Just don't forget the sticks to go with!

Happy Thursday!

Soon to be posting: Bagels, Gnocchi with Tomatoes & Feta, Stuffed Bell Peppers

I Can't Believe I Still Laugh At This

But I just can't help it!!!

BWAHAHAHAHA!!??!!!

Ok, that's enough now.