Jung's Weblog

Was just thinking of posting this recipe when Emily asked me for it on FB — I knew I have to share it. This is a recipe that I concocted after reading about 10 or so mushroom sauce recipes for Gnocchi. None of them was exactly what I really wanted, but I learned some crucial technique regarding cooking mushrooms that made this possible, and my god, it was soooo good that even I ate it (I don’t usually eat my non-vegan dishes).

GNOCCHI:
a package of store bought gnocchi or make it fresh

Charlie Trotter’s gnocchi recipe has the fluffiest texture that I adore, it is better than any other recipe I have ever tried:
1 egg yolk
1 large Idaho potato (about 8 ounces) peeled, cooked and riced
1/2 to 3/4 cup flour
Salt and pepper

Mix the egg yolk into the potato and knead in enough flour so that the dough is not sticky, season to taste with salt and pepper. Roll it out into a long cigar shape and cut the roll into small pieces. Use a gnocchi board to shape if you like it pretty, and it holds the sauce better

Nathaniel (Yangco) got mine for me, I miss him, RIP…

MUSHROOM SAUCE:
olive oil
about 2 cups of mixed mushrooms, finely chopped (I used a combination of White Bottom, Portobello, and Porcini Mushrooms)
1/2 medium sized yellow onion, finely chopped
1 garlic, minced
2 cup of chicken broth
handful of sage julienned
1 tablespoon of butter
1 tablespoon of truffle oil
Salt and Pepper
Parmigiano Reggiano

Heat a saute pan over high heat. When hot, add oil, and then sprinkle in the mushrooms. DON’T STIR! Let the mushrooms sizzle and caramelize for 7 to 8 minutes. Stir and season with salt and pepper (watch for the amount of salt if your stock is salty). Add garlic and cook, stirring for about 1 minute to release its fragrance. Add the 1/2 of the julienned sage and onion and cook until they release their fragrance, add broth, reduced it by at least half. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and stir in the butter and truffle oil.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil while you are making the sauce. Add a little olive oil to the water and the gnocchi. They are done about 1 minutes after they float to the surface. Lift them out with a skimmer and mix them well with the sauce. Sprinkle with the rest of the sage and grate some fabulous aged Parmigiano Reggiano on top. ENJOY

Practiced soooo hard, learned Bach-Busoni Chaconne in D minor and a bunch of transcriptions of Bach’s violin pieces, listening to lots of violin tracks over and over… Then finally I am at my favorite island, Nantucket, once again for a recital. The whole process and the end result made this a wonderful first part of the summer

[Show as slideshow]

outside of my window right now

and remembering Nathaniel Yangco…

Finally got a moment to fix my all messed up database (users were unable to post comments on this blog). If you had an user account before, I am sorry that I didn’t import the user data from the old database — please feel free to post comments.

xxoo,

Jung

Haven’t seen Linda for ever, so happy she is here today for brunch. And HuaHua is spoiled rotten with all the new toys from her and Michael

My tradition of roasting two Peking Ducks for the Chinese New Year’s Eve party continues this year, grateful that I have so many friends to celebrate it with

Happy Chinese New Year! It is in soooo many ways, a whole new beginning of my life

Found my dream dog on a breeder’s site in NC two Saturdays ago (one of the millions of breeders I track for a while in search of a black and tan long hair chihuahua with the mask around her eyes). Her scheduled flight was canceled last Thursday because of the major storm we just had, but all went smoothly today. What a trooper, her entire journey was about 14 hours long, and she showed no signs of agitation! Haven’t lived with any animal for more than a year, this is going to be a big and happy change.

Welcoming my new HuaHua, Black and Tan with White, Long Hair Chihuahua girl, born October 1st, 2010. Arrives January 31st, 2011.

HuaHua

Wardrobe ready

Judging a competition in Bridgeport, CT today. Didn’t really like the idea that I had this much power over some poor kids for a few hours in their lives, but made it fun anyway. Bridgeport is one gorgeous place! Had a ball even after, toro and sake and all the Japanese goodness… Thanks, Ben

Bridgeport, CT, view from the University

The finalists awaiting the announcement of the winners

Bacon Wrapped Date Stuffed with Smoked Almond

Shrimp Burgers with Mango Avocado Salsa

Raw Vegan Ginger Carrot Soup

Chicken Yakitori

Tuna Tartare with Spicy Mayo

Seafood Paella

Raspberry Creme Brulee

Just some little things I did in the kitchen, and finally put up those little magnets of Magnetic Poetry — need my buddy Arman to make up some twisted lines for me

Quite nice, aren’t they?

(All the art work on the fridge is from my cutest pupil Zoe)