Italian Gnocchi

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4 med Boiling potatoes (about 2 lb) - salted water
1 Egg yolk; lightly beaten
1 Cup flour
Additional flour to knead

SAUCE

1 tb Butter
1 Clove garlic; very finely -minced
1 c Heavy cream
4 oz Gorgonzola
1/4 c Toasted walnuts; chopped


Take 4 medium boiling potatoes (about 2 lbs). Boil in salted water until tender. Drain and peel. Rice the potatoes as soon as you peel them(while still warm). Leave them to cool right down, fluff lightly with a fork once in a while to help the cooling off and to let all the air escape. Then proceed with the mixing. (You will find that with this method they are easy to mix as all the air has escaped. )

Mix in 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten, and about a cup of flour.

When well blended, turn onto a floured board and knead in flour (may take as much as another cup, probably more like 1/2 cup) until soft and pliable but not too sticky. Cut in 4 pieces and roll each into a rope about as thick as your thumb. Cut into 1" lengths. Hold a fork, tines down, on the board with the curved side away from you. Roll each piece against the tines to make the little indentations about 1/2 way round and curve slightly. Place on a floured baking sheet as you do them. Either cook right away or keep a few hours, uncovered, in the fridge.

Make Sauce: Melt 1 tbsp butter in a medium pan. Add 1 clove garlic, very finely minced. Stir a couple of times and add 1 cup heavy cream. Cook, stirring constantly, until reduced to about 3/4 cup. Add 4 oz Gorgonzola and stir until melted.

Now drop the gnocchi into boiling salted water and cook until they just rise to the top, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove to a heated platter with a slotted spoon or skimmer as they come up. Pour the sauce over them and sprinkle with 1/4 cup chopped toasted walnuts and serve at once.

Italian Sausage Fettucine

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7 Hot Italian sausage links
1 lg Onion
1/2 ts Black pepper
Salt to taste
2 tb Parsley flakes
1 pn cayenne
1 tb Garlic powder
2 tb Butter
2 tb Flour
2 c Milk
Fettucine


Make a white sauce with the 2 tbsp butter, flour, and milk. Set aside. In frying pan, squeeze the meat out of the sausage casings, and fry. Add onions and continue cooking until onions are translucent and sausage meat is cooked all the way through. Add the garlic powder, parsley,salt and pepper and cayenne to the sausage mixture. Mix thoroughly.

Meanwhile, start pot of water to boil for fettucine. Add cream sauce to the meat mixture in the frying pan, and simmer while fettucine is cooking. When fettucine is al dente, drain and rinse in hot water. Serve by ladling the meat and sauce mixture over top of hot fettucine.

Italian Spaghetti & Meatballs

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1 lb Ground meat
2 tb Plain dry bread crumbs
1 Egg
1/2 c Chopped onion
1 tb Vegetable oil
1 cn (15oz) tomato sauce
1 cn (14.5oz) crushed tomatoes - undrained
1 tb Grated parmesan cheese
1/2 ts Salt
1/2 ts Pepper
1 cn (6oz) tomato paste
1 1/2 ts Basil
1 1/2 ts Sugar
1/2 ts Garlic powder
1/2 ts Oregano
2 tb Grated parmesan cheese

Tip: try with 1/2 c dry red wine stirred into sauce after cooked

Hot cooked spaghetti In bowl, combine ground beef, bread crumbs and egg. Shape into 20 1-1/2" balls; place on baking sheet. Bake at 375F for 25 mins; drain. In large saucepan, saute onions in oil until tender. Stir in remaining ingredients except cheese and spaghetti. Simmer while meatballs bake. Add drained meatballs to pan; simmer, covered, an additional 20 mins. Stir in cheese and serve over spaghetti.

Easy Baked Italian Spaghetti

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1 lb Hamburger
1 Box elbow spaghetti
1 c Kraft Colby cheese, grated
1 sm Can diced tomatoes,drained
1 cn Tomato sauce

Garlic salt, pepper to taste Cook spaghetti until done, then mix with other ingredients. Do not fry the hamburger. Add a little of the juice from the tomatoes to make slightly moist. Mix some butter with cracker crumbs and pour over the top. Bake 30 minutes.

Chicken Salad Pasta Italiana

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4 (4 Oz.) Boneless, Skinned Chicken Breasts
2 qt Water
1/2 c Dry White Wine
4 cl Garlic
3 tb Thinly Sliced Basil
1/8 ts Salt
1/8 ts Pepper
2 tb Lemon Juice
4 oz Uncooked Rigatoni Pasta
1 tb Olive Oil
1 md Size Red Pepper Julienne
4 Ripe Olives thinly sliced


Bring water to boil in medium pot. Add wine, chicken and garlic. Reduce heat and simmer 15 min. or until chicken done. Remove chicken and garlic from broth, reserving broth. Let chicken cool. Cut chicken into 1/2 in. pieces. Set aside. Crush garlic in a small bowl, Add basil, salt, pepper and lemon juice.Mix well and set aside. Bring reserved broth to boil. Add pasta. Cook 12 min. . Drain. Rinse under cold water. Drain. Toss pasta with olive oil. Combine resrved garlic-lemon mixture, chicken, pasta, bell peppers and olives in a large bowl. Toss gently. Chill at least 1 hour.Spoon chicken mixture onto lettuce lined plates

Italian Antipasto Salad

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6 oz Artichoke hearts
8 3/4 oz Garbanzo beans, canned; -drained
8 3/4 oz Red kidney beans, canned; -drained
6 1/2 oz Light tuna in water; drained -and flaked
1/2 Sweet red onions; thinly -sliced
3 tb Italian salad dressing
1/2 c Celery; thinly sliced
6 c Lettuce; red leaf, iceburg -or romaine
2 oz Anchovies; drained
3 oz Dry salami; cut in thin -strips
2 oz Fontina cheese; cut in 1/4" -cubes
Pickled red and green peppers for garnish


Mix artichoke hearts and their marinade with garbanzo and kidney beans, tuna, onion, and 2 tablespoons of the bottled dressing. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or longer to blend flavors.

In a large salad bowl lightly combine the marinated mixture with celery and salad greens. If needed, mix in a little more bottled dressing. Over the top arrange anchovies (if used), salami, and cheese. Garnish with peppers. Serve at once.

Greek New Year's Cake

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1 c Unsalted butter, room temp
1 3/4 c
1 TB sugar
3 Eggs, separated
2 Eggs, whole
2 tb Water
2 ts Vanilla extract
3 c All purpose flour
1/4 ts Salt
1 quarter (25¢ piece) washed,wrap in foil
1/2 c Blanched slivered almonds
2 tb Sesame seeds


Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 325F. Grease and flour 10x4 in tube pan. Using electric mixer, cream butter with 1 3/4 cups sugar in large bowl until fluffy. Gradually beat in 3 egg yolks, 2 whole eggs, water and vanilla. combine flour and baking powder in small bowl. Gradually mix dry ingredients into butter mixture (batter will be very thick).

Using clean, dry beaters, beat egg whites with salt in medium bowl until soft peaks form. Add remaining 1 tablespoon sugar and beat until stiff but not dry. Fold egg whites into batter. Pour batter into prepared pan. Press coin into cake. Sprinkle with nuts and sesame seeds. Bake until toothpick inserted near center of cake comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Cool completely in pan on rack. Run knife around pan to loosen. Invert onto plate. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Wrap tightly and store at room temperature). (Greece)

Kouradiedes - Greek Cookies

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1 lb Sweet Butter (room temp)
3/4 c Powdered Sugar
2 ts Vanilla
2 ts Brandy
4 1/2 c Flour
1 c Blanched Almonds or Walnuts -finely chopped
4 c Powdered Sugar (addition for-dusting)


Whip butter until light and fluffy. Slowly add powdered sugar, vanilla and brandy. Gradually add flour, 1 cup at a time and fold in nuts. Use a teaspoon amount and shape into balls, ovals or cresents. Place on ungreased cookie sheets (will not spread). Bake 20 minutes in a preheated 350oF oven. DO NOT BROWN. Sift powdered sugar on plate and coat cookies completely while warm.

Greek Christmas Bread

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1 pk (or 1 tablespoon) Active Dry -Yeast
1/4 c Warm Water (110 to 115 -degrees)
1/3 c Sugar
1 ts Ground Cardamom
1/4 ts Salt
1 Egg
1/4 c Milk
1/4 c Vegetable Oil
1 1/2 c Whole Wheat Flour
1 c All-Purpose Flour
1/4 c Golden Raisins
1/4 c Walnuts, chopped


Dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Combine the sugar, cardamom, salt, egg, milk and oil in a large bowl. Mix well. Add the yeast mixture, flours, raisins and nuts. Mix well. Add enough extra flour to make soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Shape into a round loaf. Put the dough into a lightly-oiled 8-inch-round cake pan. Cover with a damp towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Bake in a 350F oven 35 to 40 minutes, or until brown.

Bobota: Greek Corn Cakes/w Syrup

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1/2 lb Butter, softened
6 tb Sugar
6 Eggs separated
2 Boxes,8.5oz each of corn Muffin mix
1 1/4 c Milk
2 ts Baking powder
Dash salt
1 1/2 ts To 2 of almond extract

Syrup

2 1/2 c Water
3 c Sugar
3 Lemon slices
1 Cinnamon stick

Almonds/ marachino cherries

This recipe uses a box mix which modern Greek ladies use to make this delicious but unsual corn/bread/cake dessert. Cream butter and beat in sugar well.Beat in 6 yolks and add and stir in muffin mix, milk, baking powder, salt and extract.Fold in stiffly beaten egg whites. Pour into a greased 10 x 14 pan and bake 350F for 40 minutes or done. Remove to oven and cool to warm. cut into squares on the diagonal.

Pour over the hot syrup which was previously boiled until thick for about 20 minutes. Sprinkle with almonds and garnish each piece with a marachino cherry.Note: for a richer cake prepare the above recipe but only use 1 box mix and 1 cup milk, plus remaining ingrdients. Pour into a 9 x 13 pan and bake 35 to 40 minutes.