Gnostic Gnocchi

Post work time usually includes spending a large portion of time with my friends. And it's usually a quick and easy fix to say, let's meet for dinner, or let's meet for drinks, which usually turns into dinner, and unless we plan to go somewhere really fun or stellar or somewhere we have always wanted to go, the dinner place turns out to be a less than memorable experience and you don't remember half of what you are eating because you are making so many dinner dates with people that sooner or later, in an attempt to really listen to what your friend is saying, all the food starts tasting the same and you spend a pretty damn penny at a trying-too-hard-to-be-trendy restaurant. Whew. I say, skip all that and do something really NICE with your friends, something you'll remember and something where you'll learn something, or get exercise or participate in something together.

Last night, Sebastian and I cooked together! It was so lovely. We met at his gorgeous abode, and headed to Gourmet Garage, where we picked up all things white truffle-related. Sebastian has been telling me about his speciality, something he made for his partner Michael, (who sadly was in India, and unable to attend our gourmand feast) white truffle gnocchi. We had once tried to make it at my house, but unfortunately, one of the hobs was out of whack and we realized that it would take a lifetime to boil potatoes, so we made it with penne. It was amazing, but the gnocchi was so much more fun to make and so much more delicious.

Sebastian is a firm believer that if you're making a white truffle sauce, you should be using as many thing white truffle as possible. So we had on hand: truffle flour, truffle butter, truffle stock, truffle oil and truffle paste. He sauteed shitake mushrooms while boiling the potatoes. Once the potatoes were done, he peeled them quickly and mashed them up with equal parts of pastry flour and an egg to bind it. Then he showed me how to form the gnocchi, which I think mean "pillows" in Italian, but don't quote me on that! you take a scoop of the potato/flour mixture, roll it in your hands and into a thin rope onto the marble countertop (I know, what these countertops were originally built for!) You have to make sure all the 'ropes' are of equal or more or less the same size, and then cut them into inch and a half length pieces and toss them in cornmeal, though we were fancy and used flaxseed meal. So much better for you anyway. He and I are both trying to cut back with foodwise, though tonight proved to be the exception for both of us. The decadent cream sauce that usually accompanies the gnocchi, mushrooms and sauteed chicken was made a touch healthier by using less cream and more water. We must refind our figures, now! But one would never be able to tell. It was phenomenal. Though we used wheat flour (the horrors), which gave it a grainer texture, it turned out extremely well and was so incredibly tasty that I wished I wasn't watching my stupid figure. We had a bottle of Moet to accompany it as well as a chopped salad (Romaine lettuce, pinenuts and a finely chopped granny smith apple) with Sebastian's secret vinaigrette ( I *know* the secret!) Such a lovely, classy dinner with candlelight. Candlelight truly makes all the difference.

So classy are we that we had Tasti-Dlite for dessert. And talked til midnight. A perfect evening.