Friends I love Trader Joe’s! There are so many lovely meal starters to work with there. This is very helpful during the week when I don’t have usually more than 30 minutes to throw dinner together. This post is an ode to TJ’s. You can get all the ingredients there. This has an amazing combo of flavors and is so easy to make. It’s going into the weekday rotation for sure and perfect for a Meatless Monday.
As I am a carb fiend I am always looking for ways to make my favorite kinds of dishes with less carb filler. I found these Cauliflower Gnocchi and had a disastrous first few attempts cooking them. They stuck to the pan every time and didn’t get crispy like gnocchi should. I found a hack that ignores all the instructions on the bag and very simply you just bake them at 425 for 20 minutes on a sheet pan. I tossed them one time in the middle and they were perfection! Crispy and didn’t stick to the pan at all. They didn’t even need oil.
While the Gnocchi are baking heat up a pan and slice up some mushrooms, I am using Cremini mushrooms, they are nice and meaty and perfect in a meatless meal. I usually coat the pan with some olive oil and ghee if I have it. If you follow my recipes you’ll soon realize I am a big mushroom fan. As Julia says, “Don’t crowd the mushrooms” in the pan and that is my motto every time! Once you see the liquid start to seep out of the mushrooms they are ready to flip and will be perfectly golden brown. Once they are done remove them from the pan and set aside.
Next up zucchini. I came to appreciate zucchini late in life. But now I can’t get enough of it. I like my zucchini to be grilled or baked in the oven and pretty much every time I will toss it with some garlic salt add a some red pepper or cayenne.
Now it’s time for the shallots. Shallots can seem fancy, but really they are milder onion. Dice them up nice and small and toss them in the pan with some olive oil. Once they have softened a bit add in the garlic. I like to smash it and then use my Pampered Chef garlic press to avoid mincing. Mincing garlic is a total pain in my opinion. In the cast iron pan the shallots got caramelized and crispy.
Add the gnocchi back into the pan along with the mushrooms and zucchini. I added 2 nice pats of butter and salt and pepper to taste. Toss with some parsley in the pan and when the butter is nice and melted.
It smells amazing at this point but it’s not done yet. Now grab that other TJ’s marvel… Quattro Formaggi. Sprinkle it over the top and put it under the broiler on low until the cheese gets a little crispy. I use this cheese on pizzas, stromboli’s and calzones. It’s a common staple in my fridge.
It will turn into this amazing concoction. Crispy gnocchi, savory mushrooms and zippy zucchini all covered in amazing butter and crispy shallots. Bon appetit!
Recipe
Serves 2-3
- 1 Bag of Trader Joe’s Cauliflower Gnocchi
- 1 1/2 Cups sliced Cremini Mushrooms
- 1/2 Cup sliced Zucchini
- 1 Shallot
- 3 Garlic Cloves
- 2-3 TBS Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
- 1/4 Tsp Crushed Red Pepper
- 1/4 Tsp Garlic Salt
- 1/2 Cup Trader Joe’s Quattro Formaggi
Instructions:
- Bake Gnocchi at 425 for 20 minutes.
- Sauté the mushrooms until golden brown in some ghee or olive oil. Remove from pan.
- Sauté the zucchini in olive oil and toss with crushed red pepper and garlic salt. Remove from the pan.
- Add 2 TBS of olive oil to the pan and sauté the shallot until its softened.
- Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Don’t let it burn!
- Add the gnocchi, zucchini and mushrooms back to the pan with 2 TBS of Butter.
- Salt and Pepper to Taste
- Sprinkle the cheese over the top and broil on low for 2-3 minutes until the cheese starts to brown.
Enjoy friends!