Taiwan for the Holidays

Hi Readers,

I'm headed off to Taiwan this holiday season to eat my way through the street scene. I'll be back with more photos and personal essays of where I go, where I eat and who I meet.

Hopefully, this culinary tour will allow me the opportunity to put together a tome on Taiwanese street food culture, published for consumption in the States.

Stay tuned...

It's Halloween with Indian Summer Wrapped Up in One

1 lbs. of fresh gnocchi
10 sage leaves, thinly sliced
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 clove finely chopped garlic
1 kabocha squash, peeled/deseeded/cubed
1 cup heavy whipping cream
10 dried shitake mushrooms, rehydrated with hot water (save 1.5 cups of mushroom water)
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Freshly grated gruyere cheese

Boil 4 quarts of water, salt to taste. Add 2 cups of water to rehydrate shitake mushrooms. Set mushrooms aside.

Heat olive oil in large frying pan on high heat, add butter until bubbling and slightly turning brown. Toss in garlic and squash. Let squash cook until light brown color appears, then turn heat down to medium and add mushroom water to squash. Cook until liquid evaporates and squash is slightly soft to the touch.

Slice rehydrated mushrooms, making sure the stems are cut off and thrown away. Put mushrooms and sage in pan with squash and add 1 cup cream, stirring frequently to prevent further browning. Stir until squash is cooked to extremely soft consistency, add cracked pepper and salt to taste.

Place gnocchi in boiling, salted water and cook until the gnocchi float. Drain pasta and toss with 1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil.

Plate one cup of cooked pasta and sprinkle with grated cheese. Set aside.

Using electric hand blender, puree the squash mixture until squash is smooth and silky, with mushrooms mostly intact. Scoop a half cup dollop on pasta, and top with more grated cheese and freshly ground pepper.

It's a hearty, wintry/autumn meal, best enjoyed with a spicy pinot or syrah.