Fifth Edition

Happy Thursday! 

Read on for recipe inspo and photos from our recently finished guest room!  

Breakfast

Sour cream and onion biscuits

• Full Recipe here

• I found this video helpful to understand how to fold the dough

• My first time making biscuits from scratch and have already made them several times since. So much easier than you think! 

• These are fantastic on their own but also work perfectly as the bun for your favorite breakfast sandwich 

Lunch

Chicken Tortilla Soup

• Full recipe here 

• Highly recommend topping with avocado (in addition to tortilla strips, of course)

• Easiest way to shred chicken breasts is to throw them in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or use a hand mixer)

Dinner 

Homemade Gnocchi!

• As someone who has made homemade pasta numerous times, I was shocked at how much less work homemade gnocchi was for equal (if not better) results 

• We followed the recipes in this video for both the gnocchi and brown butter sage sauce. We also tossed some gnocchi in our favorite bolognese sauce from Forno, one of our favorite local Italian restaurants

  • Try calling your favorite restaurant and see if you can buy some of your favorite pasta sauce!

• We made three different kinds of gnocchi - potato, sweet potato and ricotta

Potato Gnocchi Recipe

• Ingredients: 

  • 3 russet or sweet potatoes 

  • 300 g all purpose flour (plus more for dusting)

  • 3 large egg yolks

• Steps

  • Stab potatoes with a fork all over. Bake on a rimmed baking tray at 375 for 1 hour or until fork tender 

  • When cool enough to handle, remove skins from potatoes 

  • Finely grate potatoes into a large bowl 

  • For every 500 grams of potato, add one beaten egg yolk and 100 grams of sifted all purpose flour 

  • Gently combine to form a dough ball then dump onto floured surface

  • Knead just until smooth (keep in mind → more kneading = tougher gnocchi) 

  • Divide dough into 4 even increments then roll each increment out into 1 inch thick rope 

  • Cut rope into your individual gnocchi using a bench scraper 

  • Optional - change the shape by rolling each into a ball, making a small dimple in the middle, or rolling on a fork 

  • Dust gnocchi with flour to keep gnocchi from sticking together

Ricotta Gnocchi 

• Ingredients: 

  • 450 grams full fat ricotta 

  • 3 oz grated parm 

  • 1 large egg 

  • Pinch of nutmeg 

  • 150 grams all purpose flour (plus more for dusting)

• Steps: 

  • In a large bowl, combine ricotta, parmesan, egg and nutmeg 

  • Add sifted flour and gently fold mixture together using a spatula. Add more sifted flour as needed until the mixture is no longer sticking to your hands or spatula. Dump dough ball onto a floured surface 

  • Knead gently until no flour streaks remain (again, careful not to over knead) 

  • Divide dough into 4 even increments then roll each increment out into 1 inch thick rope 

  • Cut rope into your individual gnocchi using a bench scraper 

  • Optional - change the shape by rolling each into a ball, making a small dimple in the middle, or rolling on a fork

  • Dust gnocchi with flour to keep gnocchi from sticking together

• To cook gnocchi, add to boiling salted water. Gnocchi are done when they float to the surface (it doesn’t take long!). Toss in your favorite sauce and enjoy! 

• You can also freeze gnocchi for later - they may just take a few more minutes to cook

Guest Room

• Serena and Lily Sconces - these were a splurge that we caught on a good sale, but there are tons of similar cheaper options available, like these from Home Depot or these from Amazon 

• The sheets are Casaluna from Target - if you’re in the market, keep an eye on these! We got them during a 40% off sale

• The picture frame above the bed is from Home Goods - featuring a photo Erik took while we were in Italy 

• The green pillow on the bed is Studio McGee from Target 

• The Green velvet pillow cover is from Amazon and the pillow insert is from Ikea (they have the best down inserts!)

• The small wooden stool is also from Target. I can’t find it online but still occasionally see them in stores 

• Rug is from World Market - I can’t find the color I have online

The headboard I made using fabric and a kit from Michael’s years ago. This was the headboard I used in my room until we recently upgraded to this bed from Living Spaces, which we have been loving so far. We also got this mattress from Costco and have been very happy with it!

Thank you so much for continuing to read and share!

As always, I’d love any feedback, pictures of things you make, or what you want to see in future editions!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Christina ❤️