Instant Mashed Potato Gnocchi Al Forno

I was inspired to make this from watching the current season of Top Chef.  The world all-star chef won the day with instant mashed tater gnocchi.  I found a recipe here.  I tried once to make Ricotta and Parmigiano-Reggiano Gnocchi that did not work at all.  It turned into a big round blob of cheese while simmering and I haven't tried since...What I used today:

Raspberry Jam Oatmeal Bars

Son loves oatmeal anything and I had company company for dinner so thought this would accomplish a couple of things, dessert, breakfast and treats for everyone.  There were oodles and oodles of recipes online and I decided on this one.  What I used:

Falafel Waffles with Creamy Lemon Yogurt Slaw

As soon as I saw this on food t.v., I knew I had to make it.  I was surprised that I only had to soak the chickpeas, but I guessed the waffle maker would cook them hopefully.  What I used:

Cheesy Jalapeño Beer Bread

I saw this recipe and thought I'd make it since it looked so easy.  What I used:

Homemade Christmas Chex Mix

I made this for my neighbors and a few friends I'd be seeing up to the week of Christmas.  I looked at other people's recipes and additions and saw that most recommended upping the spices and butter.  I kept mine basic this year but if I was making it for ourselves, I'd choose spicier add-ins like Sriracha almonds and jalapeno bagel bites, etc.  What I used:

Bucatini Carbonara

I have never made this in life before.  I made this for my son after I talked him out of eating it on vacation.  I owed it to him.  😉

Prosciutto Pumpkin Jam Rosettes

A friend of mine recently returned from Portugal and brought me some pumpkin jam.  She showed me what she ate with it at a restaurant and I had to make it.

"Beef on Weck" Sandwich

In the 80's, a boy took me to the original place Buffalo wings started.  Wings are one of my fondest memories of back east and Buffalo from those days and I don't know why most of the world ruined them by dipping them in "Ranch" dressing?  It's real "Bleu Cheese" dressing ONLY with carrots and celery sticks...Wow did I digress, eh?  I always see "Beef on Weck" on t.v. now but never had it and wished I had while in Buffalo all those years ago.  What I used, based on this recipe:

Pit Boss: Pulled Pork

The nice weather remains so I still have my smoker ready to go.  My son/roommate came home sick from work yesterday and it turned out to be covid.  I await to see how I fare now... I'm waiting a couple days for symptoms before I rapid test, then I will anyway.  Before I knew the bad news, I was at Costco and they had $5 off whole pork shoulder blade roasts, so I paid $15 for a six pounder.  I was so happy to get a food deal on something, so I had to buy it!!!

Cinnamon Spiced Apple Pecan Bread

I was making three loaves today, two for friends and one for home.  I expected it but just regular "Granny Smith" and "Honeycrisp" apples were $9 for 6 apples at the grocery store and they weren't even organic!  OUCH.  I looked at slew of different recipes and liked this one so chose it.  I just tripled the recipe below: