Creamy Chicken and Pumpkin Lasagna

This fall I have been all about the pumpkins, and this was my favourite use: a layer of roasted chicken, kale and mornay sauce, another layer of roasted pumpkin purée and of course, cheese - bocconcini to be exact - all combined into one delicious lasagna. This dish is warm, comforting, and full of colour and flavour.

Creamy Chicken and Pumpkin Lasagna

Here is a list of all the ingredients:

• Fresh or dried pasta sheets - enough for one large pan. Follow instructions on box if you get the boil first variety.
• 1 pint of bocconcini, or more if desired, diced - you want a couple cups worth once diced
• 1 1/2 cups freshly grated Asiago
• 4 chicken breasts
• 8-10 one inch slices of sugar pumpkin
• 1 large onion, cut into wedges
• 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 large bunch kale, any variety that you prefer
• salt and pepper
• extra virgin olive oil
• Freshly chopped herbs - I used oregano and thyme
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 5 Tbsp butter
• 4 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 4 cups milk - I used 3%
  
  

My lasagna had three big layers: creamy chicken, pumpkin purée and bocconcini.

Pumpkin Purée:

• 8-10 one inch slices of sugar pumpkin
• 1 large onion, cut into wedges
• 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled
• salt and pepper
• extra virgin olive oil
• Freshly chopped herbs - I used oregano and thyme
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg

Arrange pumpkin, onion, and garlic on a pan, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 400◦ for about 30 minutes, or until pumpkin is soft and onions and garlic are golden brown. You will have to flip and maybe even remove the garlic and onions before the pumpkin is done to ensure they don't blacken. Let cool. Scoop pumpkin flesh from the rind and purée in food processor with the the onions and garlic, along with any juices, until smooth. Taste and add more salt and pepper if desired along with any chopped herbs and the nutmeg.

Creamy Chicken:

Once you have made each component, the instructions are listed below, mix sauce, chicken and kale together. Try not to drink the sauce - it's pure Heaven.

Sauce:

I used Mario Batali's recipe for Béchamel sauce, making it a mornay sauce simply by adding some grated Asiago - about 1/2 cup. You could go with either. The recipe is here.

Roasted Chicken:

• 4 chicken breasts
• Extra virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper

Place chicken breats on a pan, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle on some salt and pepper. Roast at 400◦ for 45-50 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Let it cool and cut into cubes.

Kale:

• 1 large bunch of kale, whichever variety you prefer, cut into small pieces with thick stems removed.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop in kale and blanch for about 2-5 minutes, or until kale is somewhat softened - I like mine to retain a bit of crunch. Drain and rinse with cold water.

To Assemble:

Now for the fun part! Most of your work is done by this point. Soon you will be enjoying the lovely aromas emanating from your oven.....

• A layer of pasta
• All the creamy chicken mixture
• A layer of pasta
• Most of the bocconcini - reserve about a quarter of it for the top
• A layer of pasta
• The pumpkin purée
• A layer of pasta
• Reserved bocconcini and the Asiago sprinkled on top

Place in a 375◦ oven for about 45 minutes. If top becomes too brown, cover it with foil. Remove from oven and let rest 10 minutes before serving. Cut into slices and enjoy!

Wine Pairing: We enjoyed a lovely Montepulciano d'Abruzzo with this creamy lasagna.

Gnocchi di Ricotta

Mmmmm...
gnocchi. Besides homemade chicken soup when you are sick or the odd box of KD (c'mon, admit it, most Canadians still love Kraft Dinner, even after they are no longer twelve!) there's not much that' s more comforting than a big bowl of saucy gnocchi. And so versatile! This version is features ricotta and is baked with Asiago and marinara sauce. I've done other versions too, such as herbed gnocchi using basil and oregano with a pesto sauce loaded with garlic. Whatever your mood there's a gnocchi for you!

Gnocchi should be light and airy and not heavy and chewy. Despite this, I don't find it very hard to make, just use a light hand and don't overcook it.


























As you can see from the pictures, after the dough is made you roll it into little logs that you then cut "pillows" from. At this point some would roll it down a gnocchi board or down the tines of a fork to give it perfect impressions. Well, instead of these methods I take the end of the handle of a wooden spoon and lay it across, making a little channel with a deep spot in the middle. This little impession will nicely collect a good dollop of sauce on your gnocchi, making each bite a as good as the next. Check out the picture of my "Army of Gnocchi" to see what I mean.


And now, for the recipe:

Gnocchi di Ricotta
Serves 4, with leftovers

• 1/4 cup durum semolina
• 3 1/4 cups flour
• 1 medium yellow potato
• 2 eggs, lighly beaten
• 1/4 cup grated Asiago or Parmigiano-Reggiano
• 1 lb ricotta
• 1/4 cup Asiago
• 1/2 tsp olive oil
• salt and pepper

Bake or boil the potato. When cooked and cooled peel and break up with a fork until you have tiny uniform sized bits. Add this to a medium sized mixing bowl. To this add the flour and stir to combine.

Next, add the lightly beaten eggs, the ricotta, Parmigiano-Reggiano and some salt and pepper. Mix the ingredients, using your hands (no rings!) to form a dough. Transfer to a lightly floured working surface and gently knead for a few minutes, gradually adding the durum semolina, until you form a nice soft dough that is slightly tacky but doesn't stick to your hands. I find that the gnocchi is easier to work with having a bit of the durum semolina added.

Divide dough into 4 peices. Roll each piece into a ball, roll into a log and cut into 1/2 inch pieces. You may find it easier if you divide the dough into more pieces as you will have smaller logs to shape.

Impress the end of a wooden spoon handle into each gnocchi making a little dent.

Preheat oven to 350° (if you are planning on baking the gnocchi). Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the tsp of olive oil and the gnocchi. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until gnocchi rises to the surface of the pot. Drain. At this point you can serve the gnocchi with the sauce of your choice or you can mix is up with your sauce, sprinkle with the Asiago and bake, uncovered for 10 minutes.

Serve this with a Dolcetto, Côte-de-Rhones or pinot noir and Enjoy!

Garlic Pasta

What stinky breath? Well, that' s exactly what this dish will give you! But, what does that matter when your stomach and tastebuds will be happily soaking up the garlicky goodness of this recipe? Besides, it keeps the vampires away!

Garlic Pasta

Ingredients:

• One whole head of garlic, or more


• About ¼ cup olive oil, maybe a bit more depending on how much pasta you are making. (You want to have enough oil in your pan so the garlic can brown, it does not have to be submerged.)


• Pasta (I like vermicelli or angel hair with this one)


• Freshly grated parmigiano reggiano


• Freshly ground black pepper


• Optional ingredients include: olives, capers, sun dried tomatoes, roasted peppers

Put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta.
Break up your head of garlic and smash each clove with a heavy knife to easily and quickly remove the skin. If the garlic cloves are huge cut them in half (the point is, you want more or less uniform sized pieces of garlic).
Pour your olive oil into a small or medium sized saucepan and add the garlic or any other optional ingredient(s). Cook this on low, and stir every once and a while.
Once you make this a few times everything should be done at the same time. Once the garlic is brown, turn it off! It will taste bitter if overcooked.
Drain the pasta and dump all the olive oil and garlic in and toss (you can do this through a strainer if you think there might be too much oil).
Grate some fresh parmigiano reggiano on top and sprinkle with pepper (fresh if you have it).

This recipe is so simple, but it’s great.

Stink away and Enjoy!