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A close-up of creamy gnocchi in a skillet, mixed with spinach, cherry tomatoes, and fresh herbs, all enveloped in Melissa Jo's Signature Cream Sauce. The rich orange sauce coats the gnocchi generously as it’s scooped up with a spoon.
Melissa Jo

Melissa Jo's Signature Cream Sauce

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I am giving out all my secrets today, this blog is going to contain my back pocket recipe for my Signature Creamy Sauce. The possibilities are endless, once you master this sauce you are going to be able to add whatever protein you want or customize it to create your own signature sauce. Add a little bit of this, omit a little bit of that and then boom you have your own signature sauce! You can add any protein you want to this cream sauce, for example, if you would like to add shrimp here is what you would do: in the same pan you will make your sauce; add the shrimp before you add in any of the other listed ingredients. Season and brown your shrimp, once they are cooked all the way through remove them from the pan, and then in the same pan without cleaning it out start creating your sauce with the ingredients listed below within the recipe card. Once your sauce is done add your shrimp back in with all the accumulated juices and boom you have your own signature sauce with your own signature protein!
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 4 people
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Calories: 542

Ingredients
  

Method
 

  1. In a cast iron add olive oil, tomatoes, crushed red pepper flakes, and salt & pepper. Saute that for a few minutes on medium-high heat.
  2. Next, add in the red onion and butter, saute that for a few more minutes. While it is sauteing, smash about ¾ of the tomatoes down gently with your spoon.
  3. Then add in the minced garlic and saute for a few minutes until fragrant.
  4. Add in the lemon zest of half a lemon and the tomato paste, and saute that for a few minutes to brown the tomato paste.
  5. Then squeeze in the juice of 1 lemon to deglaze the pan.
  6. Pour in the chardonnay, bring the pan to a boil, lower it to a simmer, and let that simmer for about 5-7 minutes, so the alcohol can burn out.
  7. Next, pour in the heavy cream, give that a stir, and bring the pan back up to a boil. Once it comes to a rolling boil, add in the gnocchi and the freshly shaved pecorino romano. Give that a stir and let that boil for about 2-4 minutes or according to package directions until the gnocchi is al dente.
  8. When the gnocchi is almost done cooking, add in the chopped fresh spinach and basil. Serve & Enjoy!

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Nutrition

Calories: 542kcalCarbohydrates: 47gProtein: 8gFat: 33gSaturated Fat: 16gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 66mgSodium: 558mgPotassium: 203mgFiber: 4gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 1324IUVitamin C: 18mgCalcium: 138mgIron: 5mg

Video

Notes

  • If you don't want to use wine you can substitute the wine for chicken broth.
  • Layer the salt & pepper as you go, after each step (if needed).
  • If your sauce isn't at your desired creaminess add more heavy cream.  
  • If you don't want to add the spinach, just add something else that is green (like basil or parsley).

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