Pesto Cauliflower Gnocchi with Lime Broiled Salmon
Joe and I have a few staple meals that we always turn to in our apartment when there are nights where we just straight up don’t feel like cooking. Now I know we are not alone there. For us, one of the meals we constantly turn to is the Trader Joe’s cauliflower gnocchi. The item that seriously took the internet by storm and was the hottest thing to get your hands on in all of NYC (no joke, the Chelsea and union square stores are sold out within minutes of a restock and some people know exactly what hour the stores reload). Although it took me a decent amount of time to finally get my hands on the gnocchi, once I did I realized why everyone was such a fan. As someone who is gluten free, this is seriously the best gnocchi option I’ve had sans gluten. Plus, it is still delicious for all the people out there who can tolerate gluten. **For those who aren’t familiar, gnocchi are small Italian “dumplings” that are traditionally made from color and cooked potato. Once they are rolled and cut into small pieces, they are quickly cooked in boiling water to give them that fluffy “pillow” characteristic. Gnocchi is said to have originated in Northern Italy, where the colder climate was better for growing potatoes than grain, and thought to have come from the word “nocca”, which means knuckles (a word that implies the shape of gnocchi that we know). As there are many different pairings to be made with this dish, every region in Italy has its own variation and specific sauce or serving style. For more information on the history of the dish, check out this post over on dellalo.
At home in NYC, Joe and I usually cook ours with some spicy red meat sauce and sautéed spinach or kale (especially in the winter time). While quarantining in Florida, we decided to make a more “warm weather” variety of this dish. Currently trying to mix our meals up with fresh ingredients, when available, and freezer items, I decided to do an FF Do That Ish episode focused on mainly freezer ingredients. For this one, I’m using the Trader Joe’s frozen cauliflower gnocchi, frozen kale, Butcherbox salmon (that we stored in the freezer), grape tomatoes, the Trader Joe’s vegan pesto, and some feta. If you are a TJ fanatic, this meal is for you.
Along with the obsession of the cauliflower gnocchi comes lots of debate on the ideal way of cooking them. When the gnocchi first hit the shelves, people were a little let down by the result when following the ingredients on the back of the bag, which instructs you to add water while cooking. Trust me when I say, do not do this! If you want the perfectly crisped exterior and soft pillow-like interior, I recommend following this method: hot skillet with some avocado oil or butter, toss the gnocchi on there straight from the freezer, and crisp on either side for ~5-7 minutes per side. Another method that people love, myself included, is cooking in an air fryer for ~15 minutes with some avocado oil. I have my Ninja Foodi Grill, which you all know I’m obsessed with by now, and love the result of using the air crisp option when cooking this gnocchi.
For the salmon, I suggest using my tried and trusted method of broiling in the oven. For me, while I love a crispy salmon skin that you can get from cooking it on a skillet, the stench that lingers in my apartment is never worth the result of this method. To broil the salmon, preheat the oven to 425 degrees and then, once preheated, turn the oven temperature off and turn on the broil mode. This way, the salmon will cook from the general heat of the oven but also have a nice crispy top from the broil setting. However, you have to be careful the first time using this method and be sure to keep an eye on the oven; everyone’s is very different!
Once the gnocchi is cooked and the veggies are sautéed, simply throw everything together, mix in the pesto, and serve alongside the salmon for a deliciously light and flavorful meal.
Pesto Cauliflower Gnocchi with Lime Broiled Salmon
Ingredients:
- Grape tomatoes (1 cup)
- Lime (1)
- Salmon (4 individual filets)
- Cauliflower gnocchi (1 ½ bags)
- Frozen, or fresh, kale (2 cups)
- Pesto sauce (1/4 cup)
- Feta (1/4 cup)
- Avocado oil (1 ½ tablespoons)
- Red pepper flakes (1/2 teaspoon)
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
- Place the salmon on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and season the salmon with the juice of 1 lime, ½ teaspoon of red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper
- Once the oven is pre-heated, turn it off and turn on the broil function
- Place the salmon in the oven and cook on broil for around 5 minutes (this seriously varies with each oven so watch it closely)
- On a hot skillet, add 1 tablespoon of avocado oil and then add the cauliflower gnocchi straight from the freezer to the skillet
- Allow the gnocchi to sear on one side, without touching, for around 5-7 minutes
- In a separate skillet, add ½ tablespoon of avocado oil and then sauté the frozen kale and grape tomatoes
- Once the gnocchi has seared on one side, toss them around to sear the other sides for around an additional 5-7 minutes so that they are crisped on the exterior and a soft pillow like texture in the inside
- Add the sautéed kale and tomatoes into the skillet with the cauliflower gnocchi and add in the pesto sauce
- Mix the gnocchi and vegetables in the sauce and then mix in the crumbled feta
- Serve the gnocchi alongside the salmon and enjoy!
- Gluten Free
- Soy Free
- Pescetarian
** after a lot of self-reflection and doing the work of Layla F Saad’s Me and White Supremacy (a book I highly recommend everyone reads) and Rachel Rickett’s Social Activism 101 & 102 courses, I realized the cultural appropriation that was occurring on my website when it came to recipes. I was modifying recipes deeply embedded in oppressed cultures without paying any respect to the history or original ingredients used. After realizing this, I went through and made changes to many of my recipes. This section is part of what was edited and included.