Hello everybody! I cannot wait to tell you about the dinner that I ate last night! Kara made a gnocchi and chicken soup that was out of this world. I was in potato heaven and didn't ever want to leave. Kara said that she had this dinner at an Olive Garden not too long ago, and wanted to try making it herself. So last night she did and it was awesome! To go along with this soup, we munched on some soft and warm buttery garlic bread that was warmed in the oven, as well as an Olive Garden-like salad that had pepperoncinis, black olives and croutons. This was the perfect dinner for a Sunday evening after a great Thanksgiving break.
After dinner we had a fun dessert too! Kara and Juli found a recipe for a no-bake cake recipe that allows you to microwave a personal size cake in a mug! You gotta try this. I have never seen anything like it, and it was pretty good too. Slightly dry, so I would recommend cooking it for less time, or adding more caramels, but nonetheless it hit that sweet tooth spot.
And while Juli and I were helping Kara in the kitchen, we decided that it was appropriate to play some Trans-Siberian Orchestra Christmas music. It's not too early right? Well I know you're probably wanting to see the recipe for the gnocchi and chicken soup, so here it is! (www.food.com). Definitely one you need to try.
Ingredients
3-4 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups half & half
1 stalk celery, diced
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/2 carrot, shredded
1/2 onion, diced
1 cup spinach, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon thyme
salt and pepper
16 oz potato gnocchi
1 tablespoon cornstarch (optional)
Directions
1. Saute onion, celery, garlic and carrot in oil over medium heat until onion is translucent.
2. Add chicken, chicken stock, half & half, salt and pepper and thyme. Heat to boiling, then add gnocchi. Gently boil for 4 minutes, then turn down to a simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Add spinach, cook another 1-2 minutes till spinach is wilted.
4. Serve hot.
A perk about this dinner is that it was super fast to make, so if you don't have all the time in the world to make dinner I would suggest this. However I would also suggest it just because it is tasty. And the buttery garlic bread we had with it was soft and chewy on the inside and crusty on the outside.
For the bread, I just sliced an Italian loaf in half and used one half. Then I cut that chunk in half the long ways, but not all the way through. Just enough so I could open it up and put all the goods inside and then close it back up again to bake. I spread some butter on the inside and sprinkled some garlic powder, basil and oregano and then wrapped it up in some foil and popped it in the oven at 350 for about 10-15 minutes or until the butter is melted and the bread is warm.
As for the salad, it was just like I was in the Olive Garden. It was a mix of romaine and spinach that we put pepperoncinis, black olives and croutons in. There was the spice from the pepperoncinis and the crunch of the croutons, and the downright goodness from the olives. Something that might have been good too would be a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese right over the top.
Badadada....and for dessert! We had these amazing little cakes that you microwave. They are individual size because you put them in a mug, so it's fun to have your personal cake. I was surprised at how good they were. The only thing I had an issue with was that it was kind of dry. So my suggestion would be to not put it in the microwave for as long, or add more caramels to it. Something I tried was I put a scoop of ice cream in it, and that seemed to help with the dryness once the ice cream started to melt. But it was really fun to eat and it's worth trying! (http://blogs.babble.com/family-kitchen/2011/11/12/2-minute-chocolate-salted-caramel-mug-cake/#more-63636)
Ingredients
4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar (mine had 2 and was still good)
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
3 tablespoons skim milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 salted caramels (maybe more)
Directions
1. Into a small bowl add: flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, salt, egg, milk, and vegetable oil. Mix to combine.
2. Pour mixture into a regular sized coffee mug. Drop caramels into center of mixture one at a time.
3. Microwave on high for one minute and 30 seconds. If needed {if cake batter is still gooey}, microwave on high for up to an additional 30 seconds.
This mug cake was a fun little treat to end the evening. It was something I have never had before or even heard of, and if you're feeling adventurous give it a try!
Tonight's dinner: cilantro lime chicken tacos! Stay tuned!
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