Happy Sunday beautiful cats! How are you? Earlier I went for a walk with a friend and her dog: it was so nice to chat with her while enjoying the relatively fresh air. I was feeling pretty negative about Christmas and I think that my parents, especially my mom, don’t feel that great either as it will be the first Christmas without Grandma: I know it will be a bit heavier and a lot sadder. At the same time, for one reason or another, this year has been a lot on a personal level and I am not sure how I am going to deal with visiting all the relatives. On the other side, I feel like I am being selfish and unreasonable: so many people would like to have a day with the whole family and they won’t be able to have it, while I have it and I struggle with it. I firmly believe that Christmas is overrated especially for those who are not religious: it has lost a lot of meaning, becoming a consumer holiday. I also realise that it is a great excuse for gathering all your relatives that you might not be able to see during the year, to meet in one place on one day. Which I understand well. My friend made me realise that it’s okay to not like the holiday and also the fact of seeing all the relatives together, but also I go for my parents, I am there for my parents. And to be honest, that’s the very minimum I can do. So, having said all this: I started off feeling negative about December and worrying about the upcoming days, when I should focus on appreciating all these other days, and when Christmas arrives, I should appreciate that day too and the people around me.

To being more serene! And on this note, few things make me happier that those delicious potato pillows also known as gnocchi. And since I had a lot of potatoes stored away, I had to make gnocchi. Didn’t have white flour so I followed this recipe for Whole Wheat Gnocchi by Nutriciously and it was delicious!

Ingredients

• 2 lbs Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes (900 g)
• 3 cups whole wheat flour (360 g)
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Place the washed whole potatoes into a pot, unpeeled. Cover them with water and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let them simmer for around 30 minutes or until potatoes are cooked.
2. Once they have become soft, drain the potatoes and let them cool for a few minutes, then peel them. 
3. Place the peeled, warm potatoes in a bowl and mash them until smooth. This works best with a masher or a fork. Don’t use a food processor or blender!
4. Add the whole wheat flour incrementally to the mashed potatoes and start kneading until you get a nice homogenous dough without overworking the potatoes. Don’t forget your pinch of salt! 
5. You should end up with a soft, not too sticky dough and all of the flour should be absorbed by the potatoes. Depending on the potatoes you use and how well they were cooked and mashed, you may need a little bit more or less flour.
6. Cover the bowl with a towel and let the dough rest for about 10 minutes. Then, divide the gnocchi dough into 4 parts. 
7. Thoroughly flour a clean workspace and your hands, then grab one of the changes and roll it into a long rope, about 1-inch in diameter. Repeat with the rest of the gnocchi dough.
8. Cut each rope into 1-inch long pieces to create your gnocchi pillows. You can cook them like that or use a fork to create the traditional ridges.
9. Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in a large pot. Add about half of the gnocchi and boil them for 2-3 minutes until they start floating to the top.
10. Remove the cooked gnocchi with a slotted spoon and put them into a bowl or on a plate. Add the rest of the uncooked gnocchi to your boiling water for 2-3 more minutes.
11. Once all of the whole wheat gnocchi are cooked, divide them into bowls and serve with your favorite sauce.

Enjoy!

TVCL xx