pasta Archives - NY Foodie Family

Winter is all about comfort food and nothing says comfort like some homemade mac and cheese. As we try to eat less meat we are always looking for ways to incorporate more vegetables into our dishes. Since mac and cheese is a favorite among the kids we knew they’d eat this. We cooked the cauliflower to a point where it wasn’t too crunchy or too mushy. The sour cream gave the dish an extra creaminess. And we were correct, the kids did indeed eat all of their dinner!

Macaroni and Cauliflower Cheese Bake
Recipe adapted from The Art of Food adapted from Jamie Oliver’s Jamie’s Food Revolution

Ingredients:
1 head of cauliflower, chopped into bite-size pieces
8 oz. shredded cheddar
4 oz. grated parmesan cheese
1 pound macaroni
1 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Grease 9×13 inch baking pan.

2. Cook macaroni according to package, adding cauliflower to the same pot of boiling water.

3. Place heat-proof bowl over the boiling pasta pot and add cheeses and sour cream.

4. Stir mixture until smooth and melted.

5. Season to taste with salt and pepper and remove bowl from pot, setting aside.

6. Drain macaroni and cauliflower in colander and reserve 1 cup of the cooking water.

7. Pour pasta and cauliflower back into the pot. Add cheese mixture stirring to combine. Add reserved cooking water in small amounts as needed, if too thick.

8. Pour mixture into greased baking pan. Place pan under broiler until golden.

We hate wasting food and are getting better about using up leftovers. When we ended up with a ton of leftover mashed potatoes after a family gathering, an aunt suggested that we make gnocchi. We have made ricotta gnocchi before, but had never tried making them with leftover mashed potatoes. We found this recipe and realized how easy it was! After cooking the gnocchi in the water, we sautéed them in some butter until they turned golden brown. Sprinkled with some parmesan at the end, these were soft, pillowy bites of deliciousness that we all gobbled up!

Leftover Mashed Potato Gnocchi
Recipe adapted from Food & Whine

Ingredients:
2 cups mashed potatoes
1 cup flour (approx)
1 egg
1T butter
1T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Combine mashed potatoes, flour and egg in a large bowl until it forms a ball of dough. Add more flour if dough is sticky. Turn dough out onto a well-floured surface and divide into 3 sections. Roll sections into long snakes with about a 3/4″ diameter. Cut each snake into 1″ pieces. Take a fork and press down on the tops of each piece to create ridges. Place gnocchi one at a time into a large pot of boiling water until they rise to the top. Remove from water. Cook with butter/oil in a large fry pan until browned. Serve with your favorite pasta sauce or simply with some shredded parmesan cheese.