Jessica Merchant's Blog, page 391

Homemade Pear Cider.

[this post is in partnership with Harry and David. I’m creating some wonderful recipes with their royal riviera pears this season, starting with pear cider and I can’t wait for you guys to see what I’ve come up with! xoxo]

Pass the pear cider please!

I have the best best best warm and comforting drink that will keep your soul cozy this month. I might be slightly shifting my love of apples to pears (I mean, they ARE such an underrated fruit this time of year) right now in most predictable Jessica fashion, but I don’t hate it.

In fact, freaking out priorities may be shifting to pear cider over apple cider. WHAT.

I could not be more excited to develop some recipes for Harry and David this holiday season using their incredible pears. You might remember a few years ago when I went to the Harry and David headquarters and it still ranks up there as one of the best trips I’ve ever taken. To say I’m absolutely enamored with their pears would be a serious understatement.

It’s a nostalgic thing for me, of course. (um, hi, what isn’t?!) When I was a kid, my dad would usually get a box of pears or two from people he worked with as a holiday gift. And I remember the first time I had a GOOD pear. You know? Juicy, sweet, not mealy whatsoever? I fell in love. From that moment, my brothers and I basically fought over the fruit that would come each December. As the first born crazy person, I’d plot so I could get the gold wrapped one. It was all that mattered to my tween self. And that was BEFORE instagram existed.

So naturally, I knew that the first thing I had to make was pear cider because… up until making this, I had never even tasted homemade pear cider before!

OH

MY

GOSH.

New infatuation. Here I am. Hello.

First, lets talk about how AMAZING our entire house smelled the day that I made this. I love to make homemade simmering spices during the winter but this was, like, ten times better because we actually got to consume the deliciousness after it simmered on the stove all day.

Second, it was out of this world incredible. We’re talking four words: In. Cred. I. Ble. That’s necessary.

This was my first thought after tasting the cider: it tastes like winter. WINTER!  Which I absolutely loved, and here is why.

I’m a seasons freak. I love the shift of spring to summer to fall to winter. I could never live somewhere that didn’t have all four seasons – all four seasons dramatically, that is. I love to eat seasonally and enjoy every moment of what each season brings. And to me, apple cider tastes like fall. It tastes like October. Like bonfires and pumpkin patches and hayrides and days that still might reach 80 degrees. It’s fantastic, but it’s all crunchy leaves and pumpkin spice-like.

The pear cider? It reminds me of those moments from Thanksgiving to Christmas. Maybe it’s the cloves or the allspice. Maybe it’s simply the pears. It’s just different enough that it screams Thanksgiving turkey turned into snow and Christmas presents and twinkling lights. It’s warming and spicy but sweet. Hot or cold, turned into syrup, thrown in a cake – it’s a familiar enough taste that you’ll feel super cozy, but has that slight hint of… “these are pears!” And booooy do I love pears.

It’s absolutely lovely AND I don’t think it would suffer from a shot of bourbon either…

Homemade Pear Cider

Yield: serves 8

Total Time: 4 hours

Ingredients:

10 whole Royal Riviera Pears, cut in half, stems and seeds removed
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 cinnamon sticks
2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon whole cloves
1 vanilla bean pod, split open.



Directions:

Combine the pears, sugar, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, vanilla pod and allspice in a large stock pot and cover with water. You want the water to be about 2 inches higher than the pears. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce it to a simmer and cook for 1 hour uncovered. After 1 hour, you can mash some of the pears (they will just fall apart). Cover the pot and simmer for another 2 hours.

After 2 hours, let the mixture cool slightly. Strain it through a fine mesh sieve (I did so twice) to remove the solids. Some of the solids may remain. You can strain it through cheesecloth one more time before serving if desired. Serve hot with cinnamon sticks!

Store in a sealed container or jar in the fridge.

[adapted from allrecipes]

Be sure to follow howsweeteats on instagram and tag your recipes with #howsweeteats! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the howsweeteats facebook page. I appreciate you so much!

Give me a cup of this and turn on Love Actually and I’m SET.

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Currently Crushing On.

{via}

This entire week has felt off since Halloween was on Monday. I’m super glad it’s the weekend because it’s the weekend before my birthday and we’re doing all sorts of birthday related things!  What are your plans?!

If you’re a makeup freak like me, don’t forget that the Sephora VIB sale started yesterday. Eeeeep. I may have started my birthday a few days early with the sale…

This past week, I shared videos of our favorite weeknight chicken tacos and this incredibly delicious pumpkin ricotta gnocchi. Love both of those meals so, so much.

Big faves of the week below! >>>

how insane does this creamy red potato soup look? whoa.

smoky tomato lentils in coconut milk. craving this.

love this one skillet gnocchi with brussels and chickpeas!

this speaks to me: trashy eclairs.

wow wow wow. look at this eggs florentine!!

definitely making this cornbread chicken and dumplings.

spaghetti squash lasagna boats sound so freaking good.

what a beauty: sweet potato chess pie.

fancy avocado toast that is right up my alley.

the most perfect pumpkin milkshake!

it’s a ! whaaaat.

a super stunning spice rubbed turkey with mole sauce.

pumpkin cheesecake with gingersnap crust. classic.

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Bacon and Egg Ramen.

Holy freaking flavor. I just put bacon and eggs in your ramen!

I don’t even know what else to say.

I have officially found my new favorite comfort food. The best part about said comfort food is that this barely takes any time at all. YES. It doesn’t take as long as other fabulous comfort foods, things like mac and cheese or pot roast or whatever.

This is only going to take you about 30 minutes! Maybe less. I need to go make a bowl right now because I can’t even stand to talk about it without consuming it again. IT’S SO GOOD.

I was actually planning on making a leftover turkey ramen for closer to Thanksgiving. And as I was planning that, I came across food52’s bacon and egg ramen and mentally and emotionally could not make one other recipe until I got this one out of my system.

Bacon and eggs? Ramen for breakfast? A handful of spinach for health? Really don’t even know what else I want.

NOTHING. I want nothing else. I’m hoping Eddie is cool with bacon and egg ramen for Friday night dinner.

And for the rest of his life.

But really, I have just been craving this every single day. It’s probably due to the lingering symptoms of a cold and the fact that the weather keeps dipping all over the place, but really it’s because it taste fantastic. Lots of flavor and lots of texture.

Oh and let’s talk about the BEST part of this dish: it’s acceptable to eat at any time. Sure, it probably leans a little more towards the whole breakfast for dinner trend (which I’m the queen of, hello!), but if you want this for breakfast? HAVE IT.

LOOK AT THE CRISPY BACON THOUGH.

Bacon and Egg Ramen

Yield: serves 2

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

6 slices bacon, chopped
2 green onions, sliced into 1-inch pieces
1 piece of lemongrass
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon minced ginger
6 cups low-sodium chicken stock
1 package of ramen (discard the flavor packet)
2 cups fresh spinach
a few pieces of nori seaweed
2 to 4 eggs (poached, soft boiled, fried, whatever you'd like!)
for serving: furikake seasoning, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, chili garlic pasta or sriracha



Directions:

Heat a skillet over medium-low heat and fry the bacon until crispy. Remove it from the pan and place it on a paper towel to drain excess grease.

Heat a saucepan over medium-low heat and add a tablespoon of the bacon grease. Add the garlic, ginger, green onions and piece of lemon grass. Stir and cook for 1 minute. Add the chicken stock. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cover. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes.

Break the ramen noodle block in half. Place each half in a bowl. Top it with a handful of fresh spinach. Pour the broth over top of each block so it just covers the noodles. Let the noodles sit for 2 to 3 minutes, then start to stir and move them apart. Add a few pieces of nori sheets to each bowl. Add the eggs over top. Drizzle with soy sauce and toasted sesame oil. Cover with sesame seeds and furikake. Add the crispy bacon. Taste and seasoned additionally if needed. I like LOTS of sesame oil on mine!

[To soft boil the eggs: Heat about 3 inches of water in a small saucepan pver medium heat until boiling. Once boiling, reduce the heat until it's barely a simmer, add the eggs gently and cook for 6 minutes. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and place in an ice bath. Let cool completely before peeling.]

[adapted from food52]

Be sure to follow howsweeteats on instagram and tag your recipes with #howsweeteats! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the howsweeteats facebook page. I appreciate you so much!

Quite possibly my dream meal.

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Pomegranate Orange Punch.

I made us punch! Spiked pomegranate orange punch to be exact. That’s reason enough to celebrate.

I just cannot get enough of these gorgeous autumn jewels. I want to decorate my house with pomegranate arils, I love them that much. It would probably look gorgeous aside from the potential murder scene appearance. Every time I slice one open it’s like I just walked into a Dexter scene.

So let’s be real: I’ve been on a mission to create something non-apple flavored for Thanksgiving. And for other general November parties, things before Christmas and what not. Parties with cocktails where you’re APPLED out. I’ve completely overdone apple cider sangria, apple cider margaritas, even the apple old fashioned. I wanted something PINK!

Truth be told, I’m not the hugest fan of orange. The only orange recipe that I 100% love is the orange cinnamon pull apart bread I made a few years ago. And that’s probably only because it reminds me of Christmas morning and those cinnamon orange rolls that come out of a can.

(*covers face and runs away and hides*)

But in my non-apple quest, I wanted something a little sweet and citrusy, something that balanced the tartness of the pomegranate juice. We looooove pomegranate juice in this house and almost always have it on hand come the fall season. Eddie throws it in his smoothies in the morning and I can’t get enough of pomegranate margaritas.

The teeeeeniest bit of orange makes the pom taste really wonderful! Even I’ll admit it.

Into the pitcher also goes a bottle of champagne!

Shocking. I know.

Choose a champagne you love. I went with a semi-dry version because I still love a little sweetness but I didn’t want it TOO sweet. Because! The best part of this entire punch is the vanilla ginger syrup that gets added. I happened to have some leftover  in my fridge from making these cranberry margaritas last week.

That stuff is so freaking fantastic. I could drink it through a straw. You can absolutely add as much or as little as you’d like. It complements the ginger beer too and this entire flavor profile just WORKS.

Also – why yes I did add sparkly gold star sprinkles because HELLO it’s punch!

Pomegranate Orange Punch

Yield: serves 4 to 6

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

1 bottle semi-dry champagne
8 ounces pomegranate juice
8 ounces ginger beer
4 ounces orange juice
2 ounces vanilla ginger syrup
2 oranges, thinly sliced
1/3 cup pomegranate arils



Directions:

Combine all ingredients together in a large pitcher or bowl and serve over ice! Since we are using champagne here, I wouldn't make this the day or night before because the bubbles will go flat. You can make it about an hour before and you'll be good.

I like to put the orange slices on the inside of the glass before the ice. Fill with ice, then with punch and a sprinkling of pom seeds!

Be sure to follow howsweeteats on instagram and tag your recipes with #howsweeteats! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the howsweeteats facebook page. I appreciate you so much!

p.s. now let’s have a party.

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Sweet Potato Galette with Caramelized Shallots.

Have you ever seen such beauty? Let’s frame a sweet potato galette and call it art.

First, can we talk about how one of my Instagram friends thought that I was making a galette with BBQ potato chips?

I mean.

That might not be a terrible idea.

I should probably find out.

Right?

Second, this is the most perfect autumn dinner. MOST PERFECT. In my dramatic, way-too-predictable rambles I have to tell you that this tastes like the warm and comforting hug we all need once November rolls around.

Crisp and buttery crust. Studded with herbs and flavor. Inside we have caramelized shallots, like REAL caramelized shallots, that I caramelized for over an hour on very low heat. And goat cheese. Lots of tangy, creamy goat cheese.

OH! And on top! On top is the best part.

It’s essentially a pepita gremolata. Garlic, fresh parsley (I blasphemed the recipe and added a touch of basil too), olive oil, salt, pepper and crushed pepitas. It’s SO good.

And I think what makes it so good is that it’s brushed on the galette once it comes out of the oven and gives this hot, rustic dish a fresh bite. I cannot say enough good things.

A few years ago I become obsessed with this butternut squash galette. It thrilled me because it has a CHEESE crust (parmesan, what what) and is filled with crispy sage. However! This sweet potato galette is coming in at a verrrrry close second in my own personal galette race, possibly even first because you know how my always-bored millennial brain works. Always wanting something new, so here we go.

Also, can we say friendsgiving side dish? I think so.

But it can totally be dinner. It’s filling. It’s not horrifically bad for you. It’s not like I used lard for the pie crust (but since I didn’t Mother Lovett is rolling in her grave) and in fact, I think the butter was grass fed. All the justifications please. This, served with a big side salad of spring greens tossed in simple oil and vinegar is my heart right now.

It’s not Eddie’s heart. He loved this but he’d never eat it for dinner. With a side of chicken though, YES! Or a side of steak.

Typical.

It’s so many things. A side dish! A main meal! A breakfast when eaten cold from the fridge. A snack when you have leftovers two days later.

I love a meal that does quadruple duty.

Sweet Potato Galette with Caramelized Shallots

Yield: 4

Total Time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

crust (makes 2 large galette crusts. keep one in the freezer!)

4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
3 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoond dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried sage
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1/2 cup ice cold water
1 1/2 cups cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces (3 sticks or 24 tablespoons)
for brushing: 1 egg + a few drops of water, beaten together

filling

2 shallots, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon brown sugar
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly on a mandolin
6 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

pepita gremolata

1 tablespoon roasted pepitas
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley
2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil
1 garlic clove, minced



Directions:

crust

Add the flour, sugar, herbs and salt to a food processor and pulse just until combined. In a small bowl, whisk mix together the egg, vinegar and water. Add the cold butter pieces into the food processor and pulse until small coarse crumbs remain. Sprinkle the water/egg mixture over the flour and pulse again until the dough comes together.

Remove the dough with your hands and wrap it in plastic wrap. This dough makes enough for 2 galette crusts, so you can either separate it into 2 sections now, or separate it after it's refrigerated. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

filling

Heat the butter in a skillet over low heat. Once melted, stir in the shallots with the salt. Cook on low heat, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are caramely in color, about 35 to 45 minutes. Stir in the brown sugar and cook for 10 more minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside. You can do this while the crust is chilling in the fridge!

Slice the sweet potatoes into paper thin rounds using a mandolin. You can truly have as many sweet potatoes as you want in the galette!

Remove one of the crusts from the fridge. (The other is good for another week or so, or it can be frozen.) Roll one of the pie crusts into a... "rustic" shape - no shape necessary really - until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Place the dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Add the sweet potatoes in the center, alternating layers between sweet potato rounds, caramelized shallots and crumbled goat cheese, leaving a 2-inch+ border of crust. I also like to sprinkle the layers of sweet potato with salt and pepper as I go. Once the filling is added, fold the crust over top of the squash. Brush the crust with the beaten egg wash. Bake the galette until the crust is golden, about 45 to 50 minutes.

Remove and let cool slightly before brushing it with the gremolata and serving.

pepita gremolata

Add the pepitas to a food processor and pulse until crushed. Add in the remaining ingredients and pulse until combined. Brush over the galette.

[inspired by ottolenghi]

Be sure to follow howsweeteats on instagram and tag your recipes with #howsweeteats! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the howsweeteats facebook page. I appreciate you so much!

Craving.

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Tuesday Things.

1. That is pumpkin creme brûlée. In a pumpkin. The cutest! I need to recreate this for Thanksgiving right?

2. Why are sock booties a thing? I just cannot.

3. Moscow Mules made from scratch with ginger beer concentrate. I can’t wait to do this.

4. Last night I thought i was being SUPER cool by passing out glow sticks with candy for trick or treaters. Um, every kid that came to our house already had like 17 glow sticks. I’m so out of touch.

5. The Walking Dead was sooo boring to me but I needed it after last week. I seriously can only watch by peeking through my hands that are covering my face. Masters of Sex made me so happy but I hate that I know the real life story, so it makes it less enjoyable. I’m definitely still the only one watching right? And I’m so freaking excited for The Affair to come back on in a couple of weeks.

6. I will forever love Ina.

7. Friendsgiving. Are you doing it? What are you making? For me, Friendsgiving is the time to make crazy, untraditional dishes and Thanksgiving Day is the time to keep it classic.

8. Speaking of, I absolutely want this to be my centerpiece. OMG. Not classic.

9. November 1: are you the crazy person listening to Christmas music? I won’t decorate until after Thanksgiving, but I looooove me some Christmas music. Here’s my favorite holiday playlist if you would like to partake.

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Pumpkin Cider Beer Bread with Bacon and Cheddar.

Happy Halloween! Since it’s a holiday this Monday I give you full permission to put bacon, cheddar and beer in your bread. YESSSS.

Why can’t every week start out this fantastically?

I’m no stranger to beer bread. Though growing up, we always had it made from some sort of prepacked mix. It was still such a treat and tasted incredible when we ate it with soup. But also just slathered with some butter. And I was never a bread and butter kid. I was actually… WEIRD… about butter. As in, I didn’t really care for it.

I credit my brother with scarring me for life, because when I was around eight years old I walked into the kitchen to find him eating a full stick of butter off of a plate. PLAIN BUTTER.

I still reel from the thought.

However… if it was brown butter? I might be able to understand. Just maybe.

For my beer, I didn’t actually use a real beer. I used a hard pumpkin cider that was full of spice and flavor, but acts just the same as beer. You can use whatever beer you’d like here – or use another flavor of hard cider instead! As long as it’s a beer or cider that you enjoy drinking. Then you’ll certainly enjoy eating it.

The other wackadoodle thing I did was spread it with some leftover pistachio butter. Whaaaat. That’s not necessary, but it sure was delicious.

Beer bread has SO much texture. It’s chewy but soft and the outside is almost crunchy. I knew that adding bacon and cheddar would make for an even more delicious loaf and I couldn’t help myself. Plus some pumpkin spice, in a non-gross way? I’m all over it.

Also.

Why must I add cheese to EVERYTHING? That is the question.

Seriously. Last week I taught a cooking class and we focused on small bites for the holiday season. Like easy entertaining ideas, things you can make ahead of time, apps for a holiday party.

Well. It wasn’t until I was there setting up that we realized every single recipe was FULL of cheese. Like completely full. I usually try to be mindful when I’m making a chunk of recipes because I know some people can’t tolerate dairy, but when I wrote out this menu six months ago, I clearly was on another planet. I mean, all of the recipes were delicious but they were… full of cheese!

Oh well. Twist my arm.

Would you hate me if I tried to make a beer cheese bread grilled cheese? OMG. Why am I just thinking of that right now? DINNER TONIGHT!

Pumpkin Cider Beer Bread









Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
6 ounces white cheddar cheese, freshly grated
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
12 ounces pumpkin cider or beer
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted



Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9x5 loaf pan with nonstick spray.

Over a large bowl, sift together the all-purpose and whole wheat flours. Stir in the baking powder and the salt. Pour in the beer and stir until a batter forms. It will be thick. Stir in the grated white cheddar and crumbled bacon. Spoon the batter in the greased loaf pan. Pour the melted butter over top.

Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown and set in the middle. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool for about 30 minutes. Slice and serve.

[from my white cheddar beer bread]

Be sure to follow howsweeteats on instagram and tag your recipes with #howsweeteats! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the howsweeteats facebook page. I appreciate you so much!

Not even kidding.

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october sundays.

Here’s a few of the gorgeous scenes we have seen while out and about this month. Pennsylvania is stunning in the fall. 

the best season. xoxoxo

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Pumpkin Gnudi with Vanilla Brown Butter.

[this post is brought to you by Rodelle, who I’m partnering with in 2016 to make all sorts of delicious recipes! as always, I only work with products that I 100% love and use in my own kitchen. thank you for your support!]

I made us some pumpkin pillows!

And they sure aren’t the kind that you sleep on.

Delicious, savory and pillowy pumpkin ricotta gnocchi swimming in a brown butter sauce. With fried sage. It’s like the epitome of fall. And I can’t get enough. THIS is how pumpkin should always be!

Ever since making this ricotta gnocchi this past spring, I’ve been dreaming of using pumpkin or squash and making a fall version. And using it in conjunction with the ricotta. Not instead of. Cheesy pumpkin ricotta gnocchi is all I really need in my life.

Pumpkin or squash or even sweet potato gnocchi isn’t anything new around here. One of the first recipes I ever made for the blog, back in 2009 (hello, horrifying) was a sweet potato gnocchi – which turned into a pumpkin gnocchi. I love squash more in savory recipes than I do in sweet, so any time I can find a ravioli or gnocchi or any sort of pasta that incorporates it, I’m alllll over that.

BUT. It’s going to get so much better.

Because I stirred vanilla beans into my brown butter. Whaaaaat.

Look at those little bean flecks! Brown butter bits AND vanilla beans. This is probably what my heaven will look like.

All year I’ve been working with Rodelle to share some delicious recipes with their madagascar bourbon vanilla beans (vanilla bean chocolate ombre frosted cake! chocolate cashew coconut summer tart!) and I’ve been ridiculously excited about this savory version for months. I almost always stick to desserts when using my vanilla beans, because they are just so PRECIOUS. It’s like… if I’m going to make something fantastic with luxurious vanilla, it better be an indulgent dessert that I can share with my friends.

I decided to live a little though. And use up one of my vanilla bean pods for this gnocchi that I could also share with friends. It’s dreamy. I promise.

Here’s the thing: it’s not like the vanilla makes a savory recipe super sweet. It’s just the rich beans, the strong scent of vanilla, a hint of extra flavor that borders on caramelization. It might work better in brown butter than any other ingredient I’ve ever tried. EVER.

Something that makes a dish so wonderful is when you love each separate component so much that you could easily eat it alone. And when all of those incredible components are combined, and the dish tastes out-of-this-world, it’s mind blowing. Any day of the week you could find me consuming the pumpkin gnudi, plain fried sage, brown butter through a straw (I mean, I’m sort of joking, but not) and parmesan shavings alone.

Perhaps the BEST part of this meal though? It’s easy. You mix everything together in the bowl, pat it into a dough ball, roll it out and cut it. Boil the fresh pasta and drizzle it with butter that tastes like it was sent from the heavens. Cover it with butter-fried sage… does that even need an explanation?

I think not. Hello my most favorite fall bowl!

Pumpkin Ricotta Gnocchi with Vanilla Brown Butter

Yield: serves 2 to 4

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

8 ounces ricotta cheese
4 ounces pumpkin puree 
1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1 1/2 to 2 cups all-purpose flour
1 large egg + 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
for serving: shaved parmesan cheese

vanilla brown butter

8 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped

fried sage

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 handful fresh sage



Directions:

Place the ricotta on a triple layer of paper towels. Cover it with another triple layer and press down, releasing liquid from the cheese. Scoop the cheese into a bowl and weigh out exactly 6 ounces for the gnocchi. If there is any leftover, use it for another dish! (or spread it on bread. mmmm.)

In a bowl, stir together the ricotta, pumpkin 1 1/4 cups of the flour, cheese, eggs, salt and pepper until just combined - using a rubber spatula. Add the remaining flour 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough comes together, form a ball. Press it into a disk on a floured surface and cut it into four equal pieces. Take each piece and roll it into a log about 16 to 18 inches long. Cut 1-inch pieces with a sharp knife.

To cook, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Once it's simmering, add the gnocchi and cook about 2 to 3 minutes, until it floats for about 30 seconds. Remove with a large slotted spoon or sieve to drain.

Toss the gnocchi with the brown butter, fried sage and shaved parmesan. Serve immediately.

vanilla brown butter

Heat a saucepan over medium heat and add the butter. Immediately begin whisking. Stir as it bubbles, and after 2 to 3 minutes or so you should see brown bits appear on the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat immediately and add in the vanilla beans. Continue to whisk for another 30 seconds.

fried sage

Place the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Once melted and sizzling, add in the sage leaves and cook for 30 seconds on each side. Remove them and place on a paper towel to drain excess butter.

Be sure to follow howsweeteats on instagram and tag your recipes with #howsweeteats! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the howsweeteats facebook page. I appreciate you so much!

I even tricked Eddie into eating it. I did!

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Currently Crushing On.

HIII!

I return to you from the land of the worst cold ever. Since I’m finally feeling better, I can’t wait to do fun Halloween things this weekend like carve our pumpkins and maybe take Max to a parade. Speaking of, the verdict is still out on what exactly he will be. Because he refuses to wear hats, anything on his head, or any part of a costume that isn’t like clothing (i.e. a cape), so I’m hoping we don’t look like the deadbeat parents who didn’t bother dressing up our kid. I might just draw some whiskers on our faces and call it a day?!

Also, v important: WHAT ARE YOU BEING FOR HALLOWEEN? I’m being a generic millennial who is already getting excited for Christmas. No need to dress up!

Fun things: I started an awesome holiday eats pinterest board if you’d like to follow along! And, I made a video of my favorite holiday cocktail, these cranberry vanilla ginger margaritas. Plus, tomorrow? You need tomato soup shooters with grilled cheese.

Last night, I shared my October favorites and things for the Sephora VIB sale! Can’t wait to see what you’re giddy about.

favorites around the internets:

30 (!!!) whole 30 snack ideas. this is pure gold.

this weeknight tamale pie sounds SO good to me right now.

in case you need the ultimate halloween playlist.

pumpkin sheet cake with greek yogurt frosting. HELLO.

why yes i do need an easy galaxy manicure tutorial.

buttery roasted squash with quinoa stuffing. craving that.

so super adorable white chocolate marble dipped cookies.

popcorn polenta. yes. you heard right.

how absolutely stunning is this chocolate beet cake?!

needed: super green turmeric bloody mary.

this ombre chocolate cake! OMG.

yes yes yes nutella pumpkin chocolate chip bread!

so fun: magic vegan pumpkin pie fudge.

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