Creamy Meatball and Gnocchi bake – #hungrytohappy

I was recently sent some vouchers for Richmonds mini meatballs as part of the Britmums hungry2happy competition. The challenge was to make a new recipe using the meatballs. I love a recipe challenge and I was soon thinking up ideas. If you read my blog regularly you will know that most of the meals I make are proper family dishes, good hearty and mostly healthy meals which can be made cheaply and quickly whilst not compromising on taste. I kept this in mind for the challenge and came up with a dish that my family loved and that I know I will make again.

Gnocchi is one of my favourite foods, I love to make it from scratch but for a quick easy meal you can’t go wrong with the store bought packets. They normally cost less than a pound per packet and when combined with a few ingredients you could well have in your cupboard already then it can make a filling and delicious meal. I decided to make a Gnocchi and Meatball bake as I knew that this would be simple to create and cheap!

Creamy Gnocchi and Meatball bake

You will need:

1/2 packet of Richmonds mini meatballs
1 packet of Gnocchi
250g of Passata
3 tbsp of creme fraiche
1 shallot ( diced)
1/2 a pepper ( I used yellow, diced )
1 large tomato (diced)
1 squeeze of garlic purée or 1 clove (diced)
Fresh herbs ( I used basil – I love it ) dried would be ok too
Grated cheese ( approx 100g)
Olive oil
Seasoning ( if required)

Preheat oven to gas mark 4 (180)

Cook your meatballs as per packet instructions whilst you prepare your ingredients.

Heat some olive oil in a large ovenproof pan or cazuela and add your pepper, tomatoes,onions, garlic and herbs, cook over a low heat until softened.

Cook your gnocchi per packet instructions (normally approx 3minutes ) then drain and add to your pan with passata, creme fraiche and seasoning if needed. Stir well. Add your now cooked meatballs ( I chopped in half to make it toddler friendly) and make sure the sauce covers all ingredients. Add your grated cheese, top with more herbs if you like and bake for approximately 15-20 minutes until golden and bubbling.

Serve with a large green salad and if you like perhaps some garlic bread.

The verdict: it was absolutely delicious. The sauce is creamy and the meatballs are incredibly tender after being cooked that way … Yum.

You could adapt this in lots of ways, using up vegetables you have left in you fridge or cupboard. If you are calorie counting you could use just passata rather adding creme fraiche and you could certainly replace the grated cheese with herby breadcrumbs. You could also use pasta instead of the gnocchi but I think for this dish gnocchi is best.

*This post is an entry for BritMums’ Hungry to Happy Challenge sponsored by Richmond Mini Meatballs

Knocking up some Gnocchi

Being able to make the food you love from scratch has to be one of the best parts about being a foodie geek. I love Gnocchi and if you have read my blog over the past 6 months you will see at least 2-3 recipes pop up using the ready made stuff.

A while ago I was given a book from two of my lovely friends and its called Homemade and written by Yvette Van Boven. I’d never seen this book before and never actually seen it anywhere since but I’m sure you can find it online and it’s definitely one I recommended buying. The book itself is a bit mad and all over the place and it has recipes for all sorts of things from bread to ketchup and marshmallows to liqueurs and all from scratch. Imagine knowing that everything you served was made from scratch. So if you made a burger and the roll, the burger and the ketchup were all made by you .. Well that would feel kinda good yes? So whilst I’m not setting myself ANOTHER challenge as I don’t want to go overboard I do want to make more dishes entirely from scratch.

Gnocchi seemed a little scary to make but I don’t know why. As always being the disorganised chef I realised at the last minute that I didn’t have enough potatoes so I substituted with sweet potatoes and it worked. In fact it worked so well I don’t think I’ll be buying ready made again as it just doesn’t compare.

Ill give you a list of ingredients and a bit of a how do I but if you really want to know how I recommend buying the book as each step has a picture and well I just can’t do it justice!

You will need:

1kg (2lb) mix of potatoes and sweet potatoes or you can just do potatoes
1 egg
300g 00 flour (pasta flour)
Pinch of salt

Step 1

Boil potatoes in skin until soft, remove skin whilst still hot. Mash or use a potato ricer ( I don’t have a ricer – it’s in my want list)

Step 2

Tip onto a clean work surface and add your flour ( not all in one go – it gets messy) you may not need it all or you may need a tiny bit more. Also add your salt.

Step 3

Add a beaten egg ( again not all in one go ) and mix together with your fingers. Be prepared for mess and stickiness.

Step 4

Knead into a smooth dough, if needed add more flour or your egg.

Step 5

Roll out into a rope and divide into equal sections

Step 6

Roll the sections into smaller sausages.. Mine were quite long.

Step 7

Cut these sausages into small cushions and leave

Step 8

When they are all cut roll over the back of a fork ( or use a gnocchi board if you have one)

Step 9

Save under a clean tea towel until ready to use

Step 10

Or cook immediately, they are ready when they float to the surface

Cooked and ready for my bake

It’s worth noting that this recipe makes a lot of gnocchi! I divided into 3 batches and cooked one and froze two. I haven’t defrosted yet so can’t comment on how they coped with being frozen – I’ll let you know when I do!

Gnocchi and bacon cream bake

I placed my cooked gnocchi in a small cazuela (overproof pan) and poured on some single cream,chopped parsley, seasoning and cooked bacon. I gave it all a good stir and baked for 15 mins them sprinkled on a little cheese and cooked for 5 more minutes. It was delicious served with a salad and garlic breaded mushrooms – this recipe will follow later today.

Just ready for the oven:

And just out of the oven:

My verdict: it was slightly fiddly and messy but I enjoyed and the end result is more than worth it!

Give it a go x

Feeding the family – cheese, bacon and broccoli gnocchi bake

Sometimes it’s hard to work out what to cook that we can all eat. For the most part these days Izzy eats the same food as us. It means that I have to think twice about what I put in our food.. Throwing in handful of dried chilli flakes may not be the right thing to do anymore. If I can I will make the same meal but in a separate pot/pan so that if needs be ours can have a little extra spice.

I am going to try to post some recipes occasionally of meals which are entirely suitable for ALL the family. The following is one of them. I only started using Gnocchi at home about a year ago, it was one of those ingredients that I just never thought to base a dish around. Now I love it. A lot. I make a tomato based gnocchi bake at least once a month and we all enjoy it – it’s one of Izzys favourites.
You can find the recipe here .

Today’s recipe came about from wanting to get Izzy eating more broccoli. I know it’s one of those vegetables which children can begin to get fussy about so I’m trying to stop that from happening.

So anyway here is what you will need:

1 500g pack of Gnocchi – I use Il pasteio ( around 70p at Asda)
1 – 1/2 pints of prepared cheese sauce ( recipe link here ) I didn’t measure!
A squirt of garlic paste or crushed garlic clove
3 rashers of smoked bacon ( fat removed and diced)
2-3 handfuls of cooked roughly chopped broccoli
1 cup of breadcrumbs ( I blend mine with herbs and freeze ready for such dishes)
1 tbsp of chopped rosemary ( fresh or dried)
Pepper

Cook your gnocchi as per packet instructions and drain. Brown your bacon with the garlic and set aside. In an ovenproof dish ( I use a large cazuela) mix your gnocchi, bacon, herbs and broccoli together before pouring over your cheese sauce ensuring everything is covered then sprinkle with freshly ground pepper and cover with breadcrumbs. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for 20-25 mins until golden and crispy on top.

Serve with salad. Delicious.

This went down a storm with all of us. Tasty and comforting. Izzy certainly approved.

““This post is part of the #FaveFamilyRecipes Competition with BritMums and Tilda Rice. Every pack sold will provide a meal to an expectant mum in need in support of the World Food Programme’s Mothers Helping Mothers initiative in Bangladesh.”

Meal planning week #1

Last month I bought a week planner blackboards and I have started making good use out of it.

This is the second week I have meal planned and it makes life a little easier and definitely means less waste! I am not regimented about it and if I feel like a change then of course I will change it but I like the structure and knowing what I’m cooking later that day.

In case you can’t read my chalk scrawl this is what this week looked like:

Sunday : Spaghetti and meatballs
Monday : Beef stew (slowcooker style)
Tuesday : Griddled spiced chicken on a bed of cabbage and mashed sweet potato/potato with a mushroom cream sauce
Wednesday: Gnocchi and meatball tomato bake
Thursday: Beef stroganoff Pheasant au vin with cabbage,peas and boiled potatoes
Friday: Sausage and Bean stew
Saturday: Thai takeaway treat 😉

As you can see this week has already had one adjustment, Andrews Dad gave us half a pheasant and well I was eager to experiment with it – I’d never tried pheasant before and it was a pleasant (see what I did there) surprise. The sauce that I made to accompany it which is loosely based on the River Cottage Cock pheasant au vin recipe was delicious and rich.

I think I’m pretty good at using up leftovers and not overspending (most of the time) but I was still finding myself wasting a lot of vegetables and on occasions meat. It makes me angry at myself so this is a new way to try to stop that.

I am also finding that now most days Izzy will eat what we eat. This makes life so much easier.
I adapted a few of our dishes to suit her, in particular the meatballs in tomato sauce which we had with gnocchi on Wednesday I instead covered with mash from Tuesday and baked for her ..wow she loved it even pointing and wanting more.

As much as I love cooking sometimes it’s nice to take a break and order in, we are lucky to have the most wonderful Thai takeaway just minutes from our house so I’m excited to eat that tomorrow. Massamam curry is a big favourite in our house.

Eating well on a budget- simple suppers

The nights are getting colder and I want to create more warm, inviting dinners but without spending a fortune. I will try to post recipes as and when I use them to give you some tips for cheap and cheerful meals that all the family can enjoy.

Tomato and bacon gnocchi bake

500g Gnocchi – I use Il Pastaio Gnocchi which is a bargain 78p in Asda
400ml Passata – I typically use the value range from Sainsburys or Asda which is around 30p.
4 or 5 rashers of smoked bacon diced- roughly £1.50
75g of cheddar grated – approx £1
2 garlic cloves diced finely -approx 20p
1 glug of Olive oil -from cupboard
Any fresh herbs you have (dried at a push)
Sea salt
Black pepper

Cook gnocchi to packet instructions and set aside.
Heat olive oil in a small cazuela or ovenproof pan and sauté garlic and bacon until bacon is golden, add your gnocchi and passata. Stir well adding your herbs and season. Sprinkle over grated cheese and place in your oven for 15 minutes until golden on top and bubbling.

Serve with a large leafy salad.

Serves 2 hungry adults with a little leftover.

A beautiful tasty meal for around £4.