Browned Butter Gnocchi with Broccoli

January 25, 2013 by

Browned Butter Gnocchi

Brown butta…say it with me now!

Is there anything better in this world than browned butter?

No, I didn’t think so.

Browned Butter Gnocchi

Brown butter is wonderful on so many dishes, but it is just ridiculously good on this gnocchi and broccoli. And another thing about browned butter is that because of that perfect nutty flavor, you really don’t need a lot of it for your dish to taste good. And then if you throw a bunch of broccoli on top, then that totally negates the brown butter all together. Right? Am I right??

Browned Butter Gnocchi

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Browned Butter Gnocchi with Broccoli

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Yield: 6 servings

Calories per serving: 368

Ingredients

  • 2 (16-ounce) packages prepared gnocchi
  • 5 cups chopped broccoli florets
  • 2 tbs. unsalted butter
  • 2 tbs. extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced (optional)
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 3 tbs. pine nuts, toasted
  • shaved or grated fresh pecorino Romano cheese or Pamesan

Instructions

  1. Prepare the gnocchi according to the package instructions. During the last minute of cooking, add in the broccoli. Drain and set aside.
  2. In a large skillet, heat the butter and olive oil over medium high heat. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the butter has browned, stirring constantly.
  3. Add in the gnocchi, garlic, broccoli, and black pepper. Toss until the gnocchi is well-coated in the brown butter sauce. Sprinkle some of the cheese on top and serve!

Notes

Recipe from Cooking Light

http://eat-drink-love.com/2013/01/browned-butter-gnocchi-with-broccoli/

Browned Butter Gnocchi
Filed Under: Entrees, Low-Fat, Vegetarian/Vegan · Tagged With: , , , , , 17 Comments

Spinccoli Pizza

December 27, 2012 by

I’m backkkk! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday with your loved ones! As I mentioned in my last post, my husband and I made the trek from Phoenix to Cleveland last week to spend the holidays with my family. After a long trip like that, a break was certainly needed. Sometimes it is so nice to just not touch your computer for a few days!

This pizza recipe is not holiday-ish…obviously. But, it is freaking delicious! This deep dish spinccoli pizza was inspired by the spinccoli pizza at Pizzeria Uno. It has been years and years since I have last been there, but I used to love their spinccoli pizza and I got a wicked craving for it last week. I have actually never tried making deep dish pizza. The filling was really good, but my only complaint was the crust. There was just way too much of it around the edges. So in the photos,  please ignore the thickness around the edges. I have cut down the amount of dough in the recipe.

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Spinccoli Pizza

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 60 minutes

Yield: serves 2

Ingredients

  • About 3/4 lb. pizza dough
  • 2 tbs. extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 cups chopped broccoli florets
  • 2 cups fresh spinach
  • 14.5-ounce can plain diced tomatoes, drained
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 3/4 cup tomato sauce
  • 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a 9-inch cake pan (or deep dish pizza pan) with parchment paper or grease and set aside.
  2. In a saute pan, heat the olive oil on medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Add the broccoli, spinach, and diced tomatoes. Cook until the broccoli is fork tender (about 7-8 minutes). Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat.
  3. Place the dough on a floured surface. Roll out into an even circle about 11 inches (about 1-inch thick). Place the dough into the cake pan and push down around the center and edges. Pull the edges up towards the edge of the pan and press against the sides.
  4. Pour the sauce onto the center of the dough and spread evenly. Sprinkle the cheeses over the sauce, reserving 1/4 cup of the mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup of the cheddar cheese. Spoon the broccoli and spinach mixture on top of the cheeses, Sprinkle the remaining cheese(s) on top of the broccoli and spinach mixture.
  5. Bake the pizza for about 30-35 minutes or until the crust is golden brown on the bottom and along the sides. Let cool for about 5 minutes, slice, and serve.

Notes

Recipe inspired by Pizzeria Uno

http://eat-drink-love.com/2012/12/spinccoli-pizza/
Filed Under: Entrees, Pizzas, Vegetarian/Vegan · Tagged With: , , , , , 14 Comments

Low Fat Broccoli Gratin

November 14, 2012 by

Hi all, sorry I didn’t have a new post for you yesterday! It was a long day of flying back to Arizona and I was just too dang tired to post!

Did you guys know that Thanksgiving is NEXT WEEK?! How is this possible?! So not ready! However, we totally started putting up Christmas decorations. I know, it’s early. But, see, I just don’t care! Ha! We are always traveling during the holidays so we figured it was okay to decorate early since we won’t be here to enjoy it!

Since Thanksgiving is rapidly approaching, I have another side dish recipe for you! Today, it’s the veggies. Broccoli to be exact. While potatoe gratin is just wonderful, it’s not very healthy. This recipe will satisfy your craving for cheesy and creamy goodness without all the calories and starch. I used just broccoli here, but you could also do a combo of broccoli and cauliflower!

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Low Fat Broccoli Gratin

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

  • 5 cups broccoli, trimmed
  • 3 tbs. unsalted butter
  • 2 tbs. flour
  • 3/4 cup skim milk
  • 3/4 cup reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 3/4 cup panko bread crumbs (can use more if you would like)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a large pot of lightly salted, boiling, water, cook the broccoli until just tender (be careful not to over cook the broccoli!). Drain and set aside.
  3. In a saucepan, melt the butter on medium heat. Stir in the flour with the butter and stir until well-combined. Add in the milk and cheddar cheese and whisk until smooth. Stir in the garlic powder and salt and pepper.
  4. In a 9x13 baking dish, add the broccoli. Pour the cheese mixture over the broccoli and mix to coat. Evenly distribute the panko bread crumbs over the top. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
http://eat-drink-love.com/2012/11/low-fat-broccoli-gratin/
Filed Under: Sides, Vegetarian/Vegan · Tagged With: , , , , , 14 Comments

Spicy Sausage and Broccoli Pasta

March 5, 2012 by

Being a grad student, we don’t usually get “breaks”. The days of enjoying a nice summer vacation or winter break are long gone! This week is spring break and I am thrilled that my advisor told us to take the week off! Although I still have a lot of writing to do this week, not having to get up super early just to get a stupid parking space on campus is going to be wonderful! I am going to sleep in everyday this week and nobody can stop me!!! Ha!

So this onto this pasta…This recipe comes from my sister-in-law and mother-in-law and is in the cookbook my friends and family gave me for my bridal shower (yeah, remember that book?! I haven’t forgotten about it!)! My mother-in-law made this for us when we were visiting over the holidays and it was quite yummy! And as goes with many of the pasta dishes I post, this one can also be pretty versatile. You can change up the protein and you can change up the veggies you use!

Spicy Sausage and Broccoli Pasta

Serves 4

Ingredients:

– 1/2 lb. pasta (penne, rotini, or farfalle work well for this)

– 2 cups broccoli florets

– 3 tbs. extra virgin olive oil

– 1 lb. spicy pork sausage, casings removed

– 3 garlic cloves, minced

– 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

– 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

– salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, place broccoli in a steamer basket. Place in a saucepan over 1 in. of water; bring to a boil. Cover and steam for 4-5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain the pasta, but reserve 1 cup of the liquid.

2. In a skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking up into small pieces until the sausage is browned, about 8 minutes.

3. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute for about 30 seconds. Add the broccoli and toss to coat.

4. Add the pasta and reserved cooking liquid 1/4 cup at a time. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Serve.
Filed Under: Entrees, Low-Carb, Low-Fat, Pasta, Pork · Tagged With: , , , 23 Comments

Broccoli and Feta Pizza

May 27, 2011 by

My mom started the tradition of making homemade pizzas every weekend back when I was in high school. Instead of eating at the dinner table, we put a big tablecloth on the coffee table in the family room and eat in there while watching a movie together. Now as an adult, I still enjoy making homemade pizzas on the weekend. This broccoli and feta pizza is one of my favorites! My husband and I very rarely order pizza because we much prefer the taste of our own pizzas compared to the popular pizza chains out there and because we can control the ingredients (and the grease!)!

When it comes to the dough, I don’t usually make my own. My grocery store (Publix) carries raw pizza dough in their bakery and it is much easier (especially on a Friday night!) to just buy it ready-made. It tastes the same as if I would have made it myself without all the fuss! But, if you want to make your own, I love the Olive Oil Pizza Dough recipe from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. I originally found it through another food blog that I like to read, My Baking Addiction. You can get the recipe here.

Broccoli and Feta Pizza

Ingredients:

Serves 4

– 1 lb. chilled pizza dough
– 1 1/2 cups cooked broccoli, chopped into bite-size pieces
– 1 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
– 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
– 1/2 cup reduced fat feta cheese (crumbled)
– 1 Tbs. garlic, minced
– 1/2 tsp. salt
– 1/2 tsp. black pepper
– 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare pizza stone or pizza pan by brushing a thin layer of extra virgin olive oil onto the stone or pan.

2. Coat dough and hands in the flour so that the dough does not stick to your hands. Roll out the dough until it is approximately 1/2 inch thick.

3.Using a pastry brush, brush the extra virgin olive oil all over the rolled out dough. Brush garlic evenly over the pizza. Sprinkle salt and pepper evenly. Spread cheese evenly over the pizza. Sprinkle broccoli* and feta cheese.

4. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown on the crust and the bottom . Once the top is a light golden brown, I like to slide the pizza off the stone or pan directly onto the oven grate so that the bottom of the pizza can get nice and brown.

5. Remove pizza from oven and let cool for about 5 minutes. Cut it up, pour yourself a glass of wine, pop in a movie, and you have yourself a perfect Friday night!

*Notes: In order to cook my broccoli, I usually steam it over the stove or in the microwave in a bowl of water. Before you put the broccoli onto your pizza, make sure that it has been drained, otherwise your pizza might be watery. I like to squeeze out the water by putting the broccoli onto a paper towel.

Filed Under: Entrees, Pizzas · Tagged With: , , , 6 Comments