Gnudi and pie, go buy this wine

What a luxurious dinner we had and dessert we will enjoy. The mushroom lady at the FM today didn't have chanterelles but thought maitakes and creminis might be a good approximation. They were yummy but creminis throw off so much water, and as Nancy calls for nearly a cup as well, I think ultimately there was a bit too much. The end result needed a fair amount of salt, but the gnudi were wonderful, so light and airy, and I was happy for the baby spinach's inclusion.

A dear friend spent the day cooking a major birthday dinner for her husband. For dessert, she was making two of my lemon meringue pies, and I was very happy she did because her questions showed me that I needed to clarify the recipe. To do so accurately, I made a lemon fluff pie too! T is so excited!Lastly, I simply must tell you to go to www.lot18.com sometime in the next 11 hours and order some of the Leone d'Oro Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. We bought two bottles a while back and ordered 6 more today. It is so smooth and lovely, a great wine for this price-point!

Major haul, gnudi made

This morning was such a treat: a solo expedition to the FM, lots of insanely good produce, Marisa's canning demo (strawberry vanilla jam) and a perfect mix of sunshine and breeze. Just look at my haul, and this pic doesn't include the mushrooms for dinner tonight and several other items. Isn't the crazy mess of garlic scapes fun? When I returned home, I made the gnudi, as they want to rest for 6-8 hours before cooking. What are gnudi, you might be asking? They are pillowy dumplings made of ricotta, flour and egg: think gnocchi but ricotta stands in for the potato. There's a bit of nutmeg grated in, and the sauce will incorporate baby spinach and the mess of maitakes and cremini mushrooms I bought earlier. I've not made these before but I have never made a Nancy Silverton recipe that wasn't stunning, so I'm thinking we're in for a treat, especially with the preponderance of fresh and/or from-scratch ingredients used. Aah!

It seems that Oliver is napping for the second day in a row -thrilling! needed!- and I convinced (forced) Jack to go listen to a book-on-tape in his room as he desperately needs some rest but is unwilling to do so without something like a story or music. We're going to hit the playground later on, shell some favas and prep the rhubarb and strawberries.

Oh ricotta, where have you been all my life?

It's only been a month or so actually, but I was feeling its absence from my diet acutely so made a lovely pot of ricotta this morning. Comfort is gained just by looking at it. I'm also going to use it in making the gnudi tomorrow. Yesterday I came across some lovely fresh figs and am planning to make my coriander sugar-poached fig dish later today... Lats night's marvelous storm gave way to a glorious day today. I went to yoga this morning, and the boys and I just returned from a walk with Percy. They're resting in quiet time right now and both have a birthday party to attend this afternoon. A nice day all around. Hope you are having a good Saturday!