Cauliflower Gnocchi Pomodoro

Maybe I should just turn this blog into a quarterly newsletter, since never will I ever be able to keep up with being consistent!

In my defense, I haven’t been home at for more than a few days since mid November, so can you really blame me for the lack of posts? And though I ate and cooked very, VERY well during my recent trips to Costa Rica, Florida and Vegas, I was whipping up a lot of the same old, same old, or just literally didn’t have the energy to create an actual post or do anything more than just take a photo or two.

And I don’t know about y’all but I am just feeling extremely BLAH these days. Between the winter cold, the seemingly never-ending pandemic and overall depressing state of this country, my inspiration, positivity and motivation is low. Most days it seems easier just to lounge in bed, make the same old breakfast sandwich and smoothie every day, rather than muster up the energy to meal plan, grocery shop and do dishes. Which is ironic, considering I still LOVE doing that for other people! Typical me, I am realllyyyy great at rallying and taking care of others, and not giving myself the same treatment.

ANYWAYS. Onto some good news. There’s a Trader Joe’s here in Memphis! Somehow, I hadn’t realized this until I started going to yoga next door to one. Yes, their produce kind of sucks, but I love their prices and all their frozen, jarred and packaged foods are pretty unique and delicious. And their vegan options are better and better PRICED than almost anywhere else. One of my favorite TJ’s finds is their cauliflower gnocchi. Now, I loathe the fact that we have tried to make cauliflower into a million things it should NOT be, but for whatever reason, I really dig their gnocchi. It’s simple, really filling and is extra delicious when paired with a really fun sauce. I usually gravitate more towards pesto with gnocchi, but this cream-cheese based pomodoro sauce was SO tasty.

1 bag frozen cauliflower gnocchi

1 tbsp olive oil

1 16 oz jar organic tomato basil sauce

4 oz vegan cream cheese (Kite Hill or Tofutti are the best)

1/2 cup nutritional yeast

2 tbsp tomato paste

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp all-purpose seasoning (my favorite is also from TJ’s-the 21-seasoning salute)

1 cup chopped greens (I crumbled frozen kale into it)

Salt and pepper to taste

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees
• Toss frozen cauliflower with tbsp of olive oil and lay on a parchment paper or silpat lined baking sheet
• Bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes, turning halfway through
• Meanwhile, add tomato sauce jar, tomato paste, cream cheese and nutritional yeast into a blender and blend until smooth and creamy
• Once the gnocchi is done cooking, add a little olive oil to sauté pan and cook garlic for one minute
• Add cooked gnocchi, AP seasoning, salt and pepper and cook for 3-5 more minutes
• Add sauce, stir well, and bring to a low boil
• Add chopped greens and let simmer for five minutes
• We served ours over gluten-free pasta because we love our carbs!