Heavenly Cheese of Goats

I love all things goat cheese, so when I saw a recipe that combined gnocchi (awesome) and goat cheese (awesomer), I had to have it. The original recipe calls to serve the goat cheese gnocchi in a browned butter sauce, but considering the fact that the main element of the dish is cheese I wasn't too keen on making it even fattier with butter. Instead, I tossed it with sun-dried tomatoes and a little olive oil. It came out amazing! Don was admittedly anxious about the gnocchi, but ended up loving it. We housed the entire thing in one sitting. For the recipe (adapted from The Kitchn), see below.

giant and delicious gnocchi

Goat Cheese and Chive Gnocchi with Asparagus and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
(serves 2)

4 ounces goat cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup fresh chives, chopped
1 1/4 tsp salt

flour (1/2 - 1 1/2 cups)
1 lb. asparagus, washed and chopped into 1/2" pieces
1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, chopped (dry or oil packed; we used dry, so if you use oil-packed it might be yummy to use some of the tomatoey oil in place of some of the olive oil)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
olive oil (a few times around the pan)
red pepper flakes to taste

In a small mixing bowl, combine goat cheese, Parmesan, egg, 1/4 cup chives and 1 teaspoon salt. Mix with a fork until smooth. Add flour a spoonful at a time until dough comes together but is still a little wet.

Lightly flour a work surface and line a small pan with wax or parchment paper. On the floured surface, knead dough for about a minute. If it's still a little sticky, add some flour as needed, a spoonful at a time.

Divide dough in half. Flour hands and roll into each piece back and forth until it becomes a rope about 1/4-inch thick (the original recipe says 1 inch, but the dumplings turned out to be ginormous so I suggest going much smaller). Cut each rope into 1/4-inch pieces (recipe says 1 inch; up to you). If desired, roll each piece against the back of a fork to add texture (this was just asking too much of me). Place gnocchi on parchment/wax paper-lined pan and refrigerate for 10 minutes.

Bring a pot of water to boil for the gnocchi.

When water is boiling, salt generously. Add gnocchi and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until they rise to the surface. Toward the end add the asparagus so they cook for a quick minute. Drain and set aside (reserve some of the pasta water in case).

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook for about 30 seconds then add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring often, then add the asparagus and gnocchi. Remove from heat and toss to combine. Feel free to add some pasta water and/or olive oil to get the consistency of sauce you want (I actually added some chicken broth).

Voila!