Salame Gnocchetti

If I were cast upon a deserted island with but one animal to survive upon, I'd pass the cow and chicken in favor of my favorite domesticated animal, the pig. The porcine universe has so many bright stars, that it'd take years to count their numbers. Sausage. Bacon. Prosciutto. Pork Chops. BBQ. Salame...

I haven't cooked much with salame. Until recently, I'd just thought of it as a fatty lunch meat packaged with sliced ham and olive loaf. That is, until a visit to Jungle Jim's amazing market in Cincinnati brought me in contact with the artisanal salames of Columbus Salame Co, specifically their Artisan Cacciatore.

This salame is of exquisite texture, firm without being hard and with incredibly coarse texture (you can really get a sense of this if you expand the picture above) like I've never seen in my limited exposure to cured meats. When cut, the salame glistens gloriously in the light.

Now this isn't standard Weight Watchers fare. But I was determined to see if I could incorporate its big time flavor into an everyday dish without having to loosen my belt a notch or two.

It just so happens that during the same visit to Jungle Jim's I found a perfect partner in crime. I've written about Cucina Viva gnocchi before on this blog. Months later, it is still a favorite in our household for a quick weeknight dinner. I found a new version of our semi-light fix in a smaller form, dubbed "Gnocchetti". These are about 1/2 to 1/3 the size of the standard form and cook amazingly fast (just 2-3 minutes in boiling water). I just tossed the cooked gnocchetti with the salame, red peppers and onions to create a quick dinner for two, with enough left over for lunch the next day. The salame has so much flavor in it that I omitted all the salt, pepper and other herbs and simply garnished the dish with a bit of fresh basil and shredded Parmesan cheese.

The dish was awesome, filling and full of flavor without taking a huge bite out of my allowed points goal for the day. Sadly, I probably wouldn't use the same salame for this recipe. The salame used was a bit hard and chewy and didn't match well with the gnocchetti, texture wise. I'd substitute pancetta or shredded prosciutto for a better mouthfeel. I think I'll leave the delicious salames for wine and cheese parties. The texture and flavor are disrupted too much when cooked.

Salame Gnocchetti

4 oz. Salame, diced (Prosciutto or Pancetta can be substituted)
1 pkg. Cucina Viva Gnocchetti
1 small Onion, diced
2/3 Red Pepper, diced
1 oz. Parmesan Cheese
Fresh Basil as desired

Bring pasta water to a boil. You can prepare the other ingredients while the water is heating.

In a hot skillet, render salame until fragrant and until oils start to release from meat (if you're using a lower-fat meat, I'd add just a bit of olive oil). Remove meat from pan, reserving remaining fat. In the same pan, saute onions and peppers over medium high heat until the onions are translucent and the peppers are soft.

After completing the saute, add the gnocchetti to the boiling water and cook until gnocchetti float to the top. Skim off pasta and toss thoroughly with the onions, meat and peppers. Top with freshly chopped basil and shredded Parmesan cheese.

Makes 3 servings, 9 pts. per serving as prepared (12 pts. for 4 oz. of Columbus Cacciatore). Adjust accordingly for different meats.