Cooking together makes memories last forever

When we arrived at La Casereccia ristorante in Ischia for our cooking experience, I expected to pick up new recipes and techniques. I even came prepared with a notebook to jot down the recipes. However, that never happened; once my cookbook exchanged hands the atmosphere became familiar as we shared life stories while cooking all this wonderful food. It’s fortunate that I, like Senora Colella cook by instinct rather than the written word. I left there with several new dishes and not one word written to refer to when the time comes to make the dish.

To date, I have made Tagliolini al limone, Misto Pasta Primavera, and Gnocchi di patate from the Ischia Region. I promise I will share all my newfound Italian recipes as soon as I perfect the recipe. I watch Senora Colella make the gnocchi tossing together potatoes, flour and egg to make the dough. She cooked whole unpeeled yellow potatoes in salted water until they were tender. Then peeled the potatoes while warm and riced them into a bowl, she added flour, made a well and tossed in the egg mixed it together to form the dough. When I tried it at home the first time it was a disaster, I needed to consult some recipes for the correct measurements. I decided to try the recipe once again, this time paying close attention to the measurements.

Since my niece, Jade and her two daughters, Iszabella and Emily were coming over it was a perfect time to try again. I had made the dough and left it resting under a dish towel, just waiting for my assistant to arrive. Iszabella is six years old and she has helped her mother, her Nonna, and I in the kitchen on occasion. We believe in teaching our children to cook young in my family. Hands washed, aprons on, and a stool for Iszabella to stand on, we were ready the Gnocchi making commenced. We rolled out the ropes of dough and cut them into 1/2 inches pieces, and together Bella and I used our forks to finish the pasta. Jade took photos to document the process. Jade has been instrumental in helping me start a blog.

I am pleased to announce that I am officially a blogger. If you would like to check out my blog for the photos that go along with my stories of France, Italy and the gnocchi; just go to www.mangiawithmicheline.wordpress.com You can also sign up to receive an email when I publish a new story. Who knows maybe I’ll progress to a live cooking lesson on YouTube? Then you can tell all your friends, that you knew me when!  Here is the recipe for Gnocchi di patate. Serve with a sauce of your choice.

Gnocchi di patate Potato Gnocchi

2 Yellow potato

2 cups flour

1 egg

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add potatoes to the pot, cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain, cool and peel.  Rice or mash the potatoes, measure out 1 cup. Combine the cup of mashed potato, flour and egg in a large bowl. Knead until dough forms a ball. Shape small portions of the dough into long “snakes”. On a floured surface, cut snakes into half-inch pieces, like pillows.  Holding a fork toward you, using two fingers gently roll the piece of dough down the tines of the fork. This will open them and add lines to catch the sauce.  You can also leave them like little pillows. Gently toss in a little flour to keep them from sticking.  Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Drop in gnocchi and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until gnocchi have risen to the top; drain and serve. I served the gnocchi with a light tomato sauce made with fresh tomatoes.