Author: Queenkv

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Magic and Pasta

“Life Ñ–Ñ• a combination οf magic аחԁ pasta” – Federico Fellini

So Good, So Homemade
I’m still in awe of the fact that we made these pasta noodles inside our Cow Town kitchen. They tasted firm, delectable and paired nicely with the pesto sauce from the Nugget.

Before this night, the idea of making pasta intimidated me. I enjoy scarfing down a yummy plate of pasta with savory sauce, vegetables, cheese and meat. So – I didn’t want to screw-up a good Italian dish with my crappy noodles.

A few months ago, our Bay Area friends showed us that it’s possible to do handmade pasta without killing your guests. So, while we shopped for semolina flour for our pizza dough, we found a recipe for pasta dough. That was enough to convince us to take on the idea of making noodles from scratch.

Bring it on!
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Mamma Mia!

My life of leisure has led me to some amazing culinary adventures at home. I poured a lot of my energy into tackling intimidating recipes. All the creative juices I used for crafting succinct ledes and teases inside the newsroom are now being used to build up tempting flavors and aromas inside my Cow Town kitchen.

So now – I’d like to introduce you to my first pizza.
My First Pizza
My freelance video shoot for James David Cellars inspired me to tackle this NY/Chicago/Italian foodie icon. David Cole showed me how easy it was to pile on the toppings and bake it on a pizza stone.

Super Bowl: Making Pizza from Kris Vera-Phillips on Vimeo.

Back in Cow Town, my hubby and I spent about $10 on the stone and another $10 on the ingredients.

Nobody said my life of leisure had to be a pricey one.
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Rollin’ Gnocchi

I got hooked on gnocchi nearly a decade ago in Berkeley. One of my favorite lunch treats: Chicken and Gorgonzola Gnocchi from Gypsy’s on Durant. The potato dumplings tasted so light and paired so nicely with the sharp cream sauce.

When we moved into our first house in Richmond – I decided to make gnocchi. At the time, online recipes called for boiling the potatoes before mashing them up with flour and eggs. It wasn’t bad, but it could have been better.

About seven years later in Las Vegas- Mark ordered the best gnocchi entr̩e Рever. Imagine airy pillows of potatoes, sauteed in butter and melting in your mouth.

Finally – 2010 – I decided to try making gnocchi again. Our potato dumplings made me and my belly quite happy.

Making gnocchi #fb
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