I have these moments when I hear TV chefs talk about a food, and I just have to break down and try it, even though I have no idea what it is or how to cook it.
Gnocchi is one of those foods.
It was probably a year or so ago that I bought a package of gnocchi at the store and decided it was high time I figured out what it tasted like and if I liked it.
And, let me tell you, it?s super delicious.
Basically, if you like pasta and you like potatoes, gnocchi is for you.
If you?re not familiar, gnocchi (pronounced nyo-key) is a potato dumpling from Italy. I did some research on them, and according to the website ?Life in Italy,? they?re often referred to as ?strozzapreti? or ?priest stranglers? in Italy. There?s a legend about a gluttony-fueled priest who tried to eat them whole and choked on them.
So I guess this is the moment I should issue a warning to our readers that?priest or not?you should definitely chew your food if you make this week?s recipe?even if it is good enough to want to wolf it down.
The recipe this week comes from the blog ?A Pinch of Yum,? and you can find the original at http://pinchofyum.com/crockpot-chicken-gnocchi-soup.
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Crockpot Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Ingredients
1 pound chicken breasts
1 small onion
1/2 cup celery, diced
1/2 cup carrots, diced
2 teaspoons basil
2 teaspoons oregano
salt and pepper to taste
4 cups chicken broth or stock
2 tablespoons cornstarch, dissolved with 2 tablespoons water
2, 12-ounce cans evaporated milk
2, 16-ounce packages potato gnocchi
6 slices of bacon
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup fresh spinach
Directions
Place chicken breasts, onion, celery, carrots, basil, oregano, salt, pepper and broth in a crockpot. Cover and cook on low for six to eight hours.
Remove the chicken from the pot, shred it, and add it and any collected juices back to the crockpot.
Add the cornstarch/water mixture, evaporated milk and gnocchi to the crockpot and replace the lid.
In a large pan, fry the bacon. Remove it and most of the grease and crumble the bacon into the crockpot.
Add the garlic and spinach to the bacon grease and cook until the garlic browned slightly and the spinach wilts. Add the garlic and spinach to the crockpot as well and stir to combine all ingredients.
If the soup is too thick, add water to create your desired consistency, and when everything is heated through, it?s ready to enjoy.
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I have a couple containers of this sitting in the freezer ready to enjoy again, and while this is definitely a sometimes food since it?s full of fat and starch, it most definitely stuck to the ribs.
If you?ve never tried gnocchi before, get adventurous and give this soup a try. You won?t be disappointed (as long as you remember to chew).
Lindsey Young is managing editor of The Clarion, the Kansas Publishing Ventures newspaper in Andale. She can be reached at lindseyclarion@gmail.com.
