Anything But Corn-Fed: Healthy College Cooking in Rural Iowa

I have been cooking up a storm but haven’t updated for a while. I feel like I should be able to offer more insights into food than simply listing recipes. My insight here is that this is really good! Haha. I feel cool/talented when I cook it because there is a chemistry and transformation of ingredients that goes on. I made it for my Valentine as a pre-Valentine’s day treat.

Gnocchi in a Sun-Dried Tomato Bechamel Sauce

1 lb gnocchi

butter for cooking

1 yellow onion, diced

1/2 cup parsley, minced

handful of sun-dried tomatoes, ready to eat (I think the more the better!)

1/4 cup white wine

salt, to taste

2 cups bechamel sauce

For the bechamel sauce:

3 tbl butter

3 tbl flour

2 cups whole milk

salt an any combination of herbs, nutmeg, or cayenne

Melt the 3 tbl of butter for the bechamel sauce in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour, stir, and cook for about 3 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk and bring to a boil, stirring the whole time. Let the sauce simmer on low heat for about 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Add salt and any herbs or spices that you like.

Melt the butter over low heat in a skillet. Cook the onions and parsley for about 10 minutes over medium heat and sprinkle with salt. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and wine and cook until the wine has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the ingredients to the bechamel sauce and mix well. Cook the gnocchi according the directions, drain, and mix in with the sauce.