Category Archives: Dinner

Creamy Seafood and Gnocchi Bake

Creamy Seafood and Gnocchi Bake

Effortless comfort food, perfect for warmer days. Light and very easy to make.
The great thing about this little casserole is that you can add any type of seafood you fancy, as long as it is firm and more or less cut in the same size.
I used Cod, Tilapia, Shrimp and fresh Tuna. And with fresh Tuna, I mean fresh from the freezer (LOL), not from a can. Although that would probably work too.
For the vegetable medley, I used the classic leek, carrot and peas combo, because I always have them in de fridge/freezer. That goes for Gnocchi too.
I think it took me maybe five to ten minutes to prepare this dish, chopping the carrots into cubes was the “hardest” part, so effort level 0.5
You make a béchamel sauce with herbs, mean-while boil some carrots, peas, leeks and Gnocchi.
Cut the fish and assemble. A little cheese on top and voilà, all done.

Prep time : 5-10 min
Cooking time : 20 min
Serves : 4
Square / round pan / baking dish
INGREDIENTS:

• 500 gr. / 16 oz. mixed seafood and firm fish* see note below
• 2 cups chopped fresh or frozen vegetables, carrot cubes, leeks, peas, celery, corn, onion…
• 1 pack Gnocchi
• 3 tbsp. butter
• 2 tbsp. flour
• 250 ml. / 1 cup milk
• 1 glass of dry white wine
• Dash Worcestershire sauce
• White pepper to taste
• 1 stock cube, chicken or fish
• Chopped fresh herbs, parsley, chives, dill
• ½ cup grated cheese

METHOD:

Bring a pan of water to the boil and season with plenty of salt. Have your chopped carrots and vegetables ready.
Meanwhile heat up a small sauce pan and melt the butter, add the flour and stir to cook for a minute. Gradually (slowly) add the milk, whisking constantly to avoid lumps. As soon as it’s creamy add all the milk, stock cube, white wine, Worcestershire sauce and white pepper. Let it cook slowly for five minutes then remove from the heat and let cool a bit.
Pre heat the oven to 200 C / 400 F.
Throw the veggies into the pot of boiling water, as soon as the water boils again add the Gnocchi as well. Cook until they float, about three minutes. Remove from heat and drain everything very well, let cool slightly. Prepare baking dish, spread a little butter in the bottom of the casserole dish.
Cut the fish into 2.5cm/1 inch cubes and place together with the gnocchi and vegetable into the casserole dish. Stir the fresh herbs through the creamy béchamel sauce and pour over the casserole, sprinkle over the cheese and place in the middle of the oven. Bake for 20 minutes.

Enjoy!
*NOTE: firm fish/seafood are Hake, Cod, Tilapia, Swordfish, Tuna, Sea bass, Shrimp, Lobster, Salmon…

If you make these Creamy Seafood and Gnocchi Bake, be sure to leave a comment! I’d love to hear from you and if you love it, pin it. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! @thecookingspoonblog or hashtag it #thecookingspoonblog

Our most popular Christmas recipes

2 Replies

With Christmas just around the corner we thought it time to do a little Christmas recipes round up.

Our favourite and most popular recipes for Christmas all in one place.

We have or favourite Christmas Granola, Chrisstollen , Stuffed Roast pork or (one of the most popular recipes on the blog) Duck breast with Cherry sauce all lined up. There’s something delicious for everyone.

In our home we will start the day with some sort of cinnamon roll, then followed by Chrisstollen or Bundt cake and coffee.

For dinner we love a Shrimp cocktail as a first course followed by The Duck breast in cherry sauce, it’s easy and everyone goes crazy over it. Served with Dauphinoise potatoes and some veggies.

We usually serve a few desserts and one of them will be the Tiramisu profiteroles Christmas tree. I hope you wiil find some inspiration for a fantastic Christmas feast.

BREAKFAST;

French Crepes

Chrisstollen

Spelt Cinnamon rolls

Creamcheese cranberry chocolate rolls

Churros

APPETIZERS:

Warm Melted Grilled Cheese dip

Classic Shrimp Cocktail

Velvety Broccoli cheese soup

MAIN;

Oven Roast Salmon

Earl grey Duck Legs

Duck breast with Cherry sauce

Pecan Cranberry stuffed Roast Pork

Roast Turkey breast

SIDES;

Quinoa salad with pomegranate

Gratin Dauphinois with Gruyere

Bacon Pomme Duchesse

DESSERTS AND SWEETS;

Cherry chocolate Bundt cake

Tiramisu Profiteroles

Vegan Chocolate squares

Truffle Chocolate tart

Zombie Brain Meatloaf

30 Replies

This is such a fun Halloween dinner, I know it’s a bit creepy, but isn’t that the point? Kids love it, especially the lucky one who get’s to stick the knife in the brain.

The great thing about this recipe is that it’s so easy to make, it’s basically just a shaped meatloaf and everyone will love it.

Serves 6 – 8

Needed:

Rectangular Dish, 7 by 5-Inch,

Wilton 12-Inch Featherweight Decorating Bag

Wilton Tip No. 6

INGREDIENTS BRAIN:

2 lbs. ground beef
1/2 C. Panko Bread Crumbs
2 eggs
1 tbsp. Ketchup
2 tsp. prepared Dijon Mustard
1 tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
1 clove of garlic, peeled and grated
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped very fine
1 1/2 tsp Himalayan Pink Salt, Fine
freshly ground Black Pepper
1 tsp. Oregano
1 tbsp. fresh chopped parsley

INGREDIENTS BASTING::

2 tbsp. Ketchup
2 tbsp. Conimex Ketjap Manis, (Indonesian Sweet Soy Sauce)

DECORATING:

1/4 C. Ketchup

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine ground beef, and the remaining ingredients for the brain in a medium sized mixing bowl. Using your hand, incorporate everything into the meat. This only takes 30 seconds or so, you do not want to over mix.

Transfer meat into a large baking tray lined with parchment paper, press it down and shape into a brain. With the handle of a spoon go alongside the entire brain to make a ridge in the middle, then make indentations with your fingers tips all over the brain to create an uneven surface.

Mix ketjap manis with ketchup and baste brain with half the basting sauce. Baste again after an hour.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 20 minutes

Remove from oven and drain off excess grease. Let stand for 5 minutes, put 1/4 cup of Ketchup in a pastry bag fitted with the No. 6 tip, and pipe the motive (see picture) onto the brain.

Enjoy!

One pot Summer Quinoa salad, Tahini-Orange dressing.

3 Replies

A quick Summer Salad that is made all in one pot. It can be served straight away (aka warm), at room temperature, or cold. We like it best cold, but that’s completely up to you of course.
I mean, what’s not to love about a salad that can be made all in one pot right?
You start by heating some olive oil in a large pot and cook some onion, garlic and veggies. Then you add the Quinoa, add the rest of the ingredients and like magic, 15 minutes later you have the best Summer Quinoa salad of your life. Perfect for lunch or dinner over a bed of some greens, or as a side.
The Tahini Orange dressing takes the recipe to a whole new level
Before you know it, you’ll be making this one pot Summer Quinoa Salad, all Summer long.

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium chopped onion
1 medium carrot, peeled and chopped
1 cellery stalk, chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
1 medium tomato, green top removed, chopped
1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups hot vegetable or chicken stock
1/2 cup chickpeas from can, drained
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup fresh corn, removed from ear or frozen

Tahini Orange Dressing:
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup orange juice, about one
Juice from half a lemon
1 heaped tablespoon tahini
1 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
2 teaspoons Coconut aminos
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
A dash or two of franks hot sauce

1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1/2 cup basil leafs, torn or chopped
1/2 cup chopped pistachios
Chili flakes
Extra orange or lemon wedges for serving

INSTRUCTIONS:

Place a medium pot over medium heat. Add two tablespoons of olive oil, add onion and cook until glossy, about 4 minutes. Add the remaining vegetables in the order mentioned above stirring while doing so. Carrot, cellery, garlic, bell pepper and the tomato. Season with salt and pepper. Stir for two minutes and then add the quinoa, give it a stir and combine well with all the vegetables in the pan.
Now add the hot stock, bring to a simmer. Lower the heat to medium-low, cover and cook for 13 minutes. Turn off the heat and let rest uncovered for 5 minutes. Tip the Quinoa into a large serving dish. Add the fresh herbs and carefully spoon thru to combine.
Sprinkle with the chopped pistachios and decorate with orange or lemon wedges if desired. Serve with the Tahini Orange dressing .
To make the Tahini orange dressing, simply combine all the ingredients in a small jar and shake to mix. This dressing is delicious on all sorts of salads, so I advise you to bookmark it. Enjoy!