Blue Pear Gnocchi

A good Port and a cheese platter have long been a favored dessert. Fruits like Pear, Apples and Grapes have always found their way onto those plates as a balancer of the fatty strong tastes of the Cheese. This dish combines the strength of the sweet Pears with all the goodness of a cheese platter.

The softly baked Garlic give it the kick it needs to melt into a dish on its own instead of a “toss together”. Just a little heat sweetens the Pears and when the sharp contrast with the Bleu Cheese is softened by the Port and silken softness of the Gnocchi you can almost taste what home feels like. A dish done in almost no time and a real homely feeling in a bowl. All in all this dish is a surprising sweet and still elegant dinner choice that is really suitable after a long day of work.

INGREDIENTS (serves 2) 500 gr Gnocchi 3 Pears Olive Oil 2 cloves of Garlic 65 grams Blue Cheese 125 ml Crème Fraiche half a glass of Ruby Port

1. Start boiling the water to cook the Gnocchi. Usually this is done in only 2 or 3 minutes. So only start cooking the Gnocchi just before you need it. 2. Wash and core the Pears, slice them in small chunks and bake them in the Olive Oil on a medium heat. While the Pears bake, take the time to prepare the rest. Stir the Pears every now and again to prevent them from burning. 3. When the Pears start turning brown toss the Gnocchi in the boiling water. Then grate the Garlic over the Pears, give them a quick stir and add the Blue cheese and Cream Fraiche. 4. Keep stirring the sauce and make sure the Blue Cheese melts away. When the sauce starts to become more liquid add the Port and turn the fire a bit up. (Not the highest setting) 5. By now your Gnocchi should be done and start floating. Scoop out the floating Gnocchi and throw them in the sauce. Repeat until all the Gnocchi is in the sauce. 6. Stir firmly to cover all the gnocchi in the sauce. The heat should have made the sauce thick enough to stick. 7. Turn off the heat and serve in whatever bowl or plate you can keep close under your nose. You don't want to miss that smell while enjoying this.