Gnocchi Killers

On the menu last night for dinner was Gnocchi. Cicely has never made it before but was willing to give it a shot. One of our coworker friends tried to make the exact same recipe a week back and did not have any luck. She was drinking while cooking and figured that was the reason it did not work out for her as the recipe intended it to. We figured the same because she is known to be a good cook.

Last night we, well Cicely attempted the recipe and withing 6 minutes of the final part of the recipe - boiling the Gnocchi, I hear a "well fuck, this sucks" come from the kitchen. I went in to find out what was the matter and was immediately shown that our Gnocchi also met an ill fated, over boiled death. It no longer looked like the noodle type potato lumps that it started out as. Now it looked more like instant potatoes in boiling water that needed to be sifted out.

Holy crap, how could all of us have the same problem with such an easy recipe? My only conclusion is that the recipe and us are not accounting for cooking at a higher altitude or the instructions are simple flawed. Could be a combination of both of those things.

No matter we scooped it into the garlic, onion, and related mixture and mixed it all together. Then served and garnished with the thin cheese it called for (which is friggin' awesome if you like stinky Swiss like cheese as I do). It looked more like a mash but tasted wonderful. Our coworker friend did not use the Gnocchi after she had hers turn into a powder. Instead she put the mixture over noodles and tossed out the potato powder mess.

So if you ever attempt to make Gnocchi I would suggest boiling it very slowly and for much less time than recommended. Everything will appear to be fine until the moment you attempt to scoop or strain them. At that very moment you will know if you succeeded or if they will go to a powder state before your eyes - very disappointing!

Weather

Looks like we are in for more snow in the next couple days. The weather guessers said that we should be in the clear until Friday evening although the clouds started spitting snow this morning on the way into work then off and on most of the morning. Not enough to do anything, just enough to remind us all that winter has only just begun. On the bright side, if we get the bad weather Friday evening it's much easier to deal with over the weekend.

Shoveling and/or snow blowing to clear the driveway and sidewalks as well as the patio is much easier when you don't have to rush to do it before heading into work. Or worse, have to do it at 10:00 PM like I had to on Tuesday after work. We cant let ours dry up from the sun because of the direction the house faces. Our neighbors on the opposite side of the street rarely have to shovel unless the snow is really deep. I bet they get a kick out of all of us suckers shoveling while they are chilling inside watching some TV and having a warm drink.

Better Half

So I have to mention that my better half (Cicely) had an awesome conference call with a VERY well known game company today. I cant mention the name of the company but will say that they are as popular as that one bird game where they are really angry. Heck maybe even more popular now I honestly don't know. Anyway they may be interested in doing some licensing deals with her jewelry line. Not sure if it will happen or the details - not that I would list 'em here of course. Still super cool and I am so stoked for her. Whether it works out or not, the experience of talking to people and learning about things like licensing is valuable information.

Good luck to you Cizzle - I hope that this venture works out for you! No matter what, just like every other time that it has I will be there to help you through it!

Busy Busy

Staying busy whether working or shoveling snow is much safer for my checking account. Busy means that my mind does not wander and I start spending money on things I don't really "need" but do really "want". An example of something I "need / want" is this really cool arcade hardware with 188 games preloaded. While surfing around I stumbled upon it yesterday and they are selling for only $1800 shipped to your door and delivered inside the garage or house - just not up stairs without an additional fee added in. Yea I would friggin' love to have it in the garage or in the house - it would be a blast and I think baby would get a kick out of it too once she was a little bit older, maybe not! But speaking of which - with baby on the way I have to be a little conservative with my usual frivolous spending habits on the stuff I want. Trust me, there is a mile long list and not enough time in a lifetime to buy, use and enjoy it all unless I were retired in the next few years.

I already bought a new bad-ass quad-copter last weekend. I could not resist, it was 10% off for a Cyber Monday sale which knocked off $80. I was good and sold one of my other helicopters to pay for most of what it cost so don't fret, I am still being semi-responsible.

Actually wait, I am being very responsible because today we bought baby yet another item - a really nice bassinet. I know most feel they are a waste of money. I thought the same thing as did Cicely but once we determined the limited amount of space we have next to our bed for the pack 'n play we figured it was worth the money. In reality they are not "that much" if you don't go crazy. Plus they are easily donated or sold to someone that can use one once we are done with it.

Bye For Now

I think that will do it for today. Lot's going on at work although my game is starting to wind down a bit which is a great feeling. No sooner than it does, I am starting on another one tomorrow. I have a kick-off meeting at 3 in the afternoon. Wow, no rest for developers huh?

Photo: What Gnocchi is suppose to look like. Sorry, I did not think to snap a shot of the way ours turned out. I was too hungry from the awesome smells coming from the kitchen. It was essentially identical but with the Gnocchi broken up to the consistency of say the crummy Parmesan cheese that comes in a can then with all the other goodies mixed in.