Pepin the genius!

I haven't posted in some time, but I have been cooking. Most things have been off the cuff and overall pretty good, but nothing particularly note-worthy. Last night, I threw a few things together a la Jacques (Fast Food My Way) that I had in my pantry, and in fewer than 10 minutes, I had a damn good meal.

Gnocchi, Egg, Truffle for 2

Supermarket Potato Gnocchi (I used 1/2 bag of the minis ~ 8 oz)

2 large eggs, whisked

1/4 cup ricotta

4 scallions, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced

1 T butter

2 T olive oil

1/2 tsp chili flakes

fresh ground black pepper

white truffle oil and parmesean for finishing

Bring about 2 quarts of water to a boil and aggressively season with salt, meanwhile melt butter in oil over medium low heat in a non-stick pan until the butter starts to brown. When the water has boiled, toss in the gnocchi and boil until they float (about 2 to 3 minutes tops) and remove ASAP to avoid overcooking. While the gnocchi cook, saute the scallions and garlic, taking care not to burn the garlic (will become too bitter). When the gnocchi float, transfer directly to the pan with a slotted spoon and saute until the water has evaporated and the gnocchi begin to brown. Toss in the chili flakes and saute for about 30 seconds. Remove pan from the heat and quickly stir in the eggs taking care to break up any large curds (don't want scrambled eggs here). After about 30 seconds, stir in the ricotta (creme fraiche or mexican crema would be dynamite as well), salt and pepper to you liking. Transfer to bowls, drizzle with truffle oil and dust with the cheese.

Time from conception to table, approximately 15 minutes. As good as anything I've made in weeks :) Next time, I may add some crumbled pancetta or bacon...though I'm not sure if more would be less.