This post originally appeared in my newsletter, The Sophisticate.
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Something to Try
As the weather gets colder and the sun sets earlier, it’s the perfect time to start thinking of cozy activities to enjoy indoors. Elaborate cooking or baking projects are always a good option, and today I’m recommend you try your hand at homemade gnocchi!
Gnocchi can actually refer to a few different dishes. Among the most popular are Parisian Gnocchi made from choux pastry, Gnocchi alla Romana made from a baked semolina dough, ricotta gnocchi which are sort of like little pillows of ravioli filling, and potato gnocchi, those fluffy little potato bites we are most familiar with in the US.
All kinds of gnocchi are worth trying out, but today I’m focusing on potato gnocchi. This recipe comes from Rosemary, a Canadian woman living in Italy and sharing her authentic recipes along the way. It’s beginner-friendly and well-reviewed.
For best results, be sure to use starchy potatoes rather than waxy new potatoes. Avoid over-kneading the dough, and add as little flour to the mixture as possible. Swap some of the flour for tipo 00 if you can find it!
You don’t need a gnocchi board (roll them across the tines of a fork if you want the ridges that help sauce adhere). You do need a potato ricer to get the right texture, and it’s important to rice the potatoes while they are still hot.
The recipe I shared includes a tomato sauce, but my favorite way to enjoy gnocchi is to toss them in a brown butter sage sauce like this one. Invite some friends over, open a few bottles of wine, turn on some Frank Sinatra, and have yourself a gnocchi making party!
Something to Know
Born in Paris in 1915, Édith Giovanna Gassion showed promise as a performer from a very young age. She came from an unusual line of acrobats and circus performers. Her mother abandoned her at birth, so when her father left to fight in World War I, she went to live with who grandmother who ran a brothel in Normandy.
After a troubled childhood of illness and poverty, her acrobat father returned and brought her on tour with him at the age of 14. She began singing in the streets of Paris, and at age 20 was discovered by nightclub owner Louis Leplée, who became her manager and gave her the nickname La Môme Piaf (the sparrow kid) for her short stature and nervousness.
Now performing as Édith Piaf, she quickly became one of the most famous singers and songwriters in Paris. In 1945, she wrote and performed her most famous song, “La vie en rose”.
Piaf led a complicated personal life. She had numerous affairs, suffered from alcoholism, and faced accusations of collaboration after performing for Nazis in Paris, though scholars generally suggest she quietly supported the resistance.
Though she leaves behind a complicated legacy, she is considered one of the most famous singers of the cabaret and modern chanson genres to this day.
In addition to “La vie en rose”, some of her most famous songs are “Non, je ne regrette rien” and “La foule”. Enjoy the best of her music on Spotify or YouTube.
Three Good Things
First and foremost, The Sophisticate is not in the business of trying to sell you things you don’t want or need. This section is meant to share three things that have improved my life, and a little bit about why you might like them too.
These will occasionally contain affiliate links. If you click one and ultimately decide to make a purchase, I may earn a small commission of roughly 5-10%. If you want to shop using my links, great! Easy for you, teeny tiny paycheck for me.
However, it’s very important to me that you trust that I’m not just pushing links to make money, so if you’d rather purchase outside of my affiliate link, I completely get it! To do so, just be sure to shop from an incognito browser and type the product name into search rather than copy and paste my link.
That said, I hope you’ll find that some of these recommendations may be the solution to a problem you’ve been having, or are simply a fun little luxury to add to your daily life.
A Gentleman in Moscow
I’m in the process of reading this book and have found it to be the most delightful fall read. If you love the aesthetics of glamorous old hotels, ballet, and gentlemen who know their way around a stemware collection, you will love this novel!
Provençal Oil Cruet
An olive oil cruet is such an elegant addition to your table. It controls the flow of the oil so you can drizzle on salads, breads, etc without accidentally pouring too much. Use it to store your nicest olive oil, not the bulk stuff you cook with!
Le Labo Hand Soap
Ahead of the holidays each year, I like to buy a totally over-the-top fancy hand soap for my guest bathroom. It’s a treat for me and a treat for my guests! You can’t go wrong with the rich spicy sandalwood of Le Labo’s most famous fragrance, Santal 33.
Recipe of the Day
The first time I went to Paris, I stopped by Pierre Hermé for a sweet treat before checking into my hotel. It was a salted caramel macaron, one of the giant ones that’s like 3 inches in diameter. The salted caramel filling was the most rich, deep, decadent flavor – nothing like I had ever had at home. I set out on a quest to recreate it when I returned, and the version from Sally’s Baking Recipes is the best I’ve found. Don’t be intimidated! Follow her recipe to the letter and this will become your baking secret weapon to add to cakes, cookies, brownies, ice cream, pies, and more.
Salted Caramel
Tasteful Living, As Told by You
One of the things that inspired me to create The Sophisticate was reading what other women online had to say about taste, style, and living well. This section is dedicated to tips and advice submitted by you, The Sophisticate subscribers!
Send us a message on Instagram @sophisticate.newsletter to share your favorite little luxuries, healthy habits, or other tasteful tips with us and we may include you in a future newsletter.
“All my most amazing accessories, coats, shoes, and jewelry have come from estate sales and online auctions. They just don’t make them like they used to. You can find solid gold, fur, silk, all these incredible things for bargain prices. I keep my actual sources a secret because I’m afraid they’ll get too popular!”
Maggie, 35, Boston
Letter from the Editor
I have been so enjoying hearing from you all about ways that you eat, drink, shop, dress, and live well. If you have ideas to share or suggestions for this newsletter to improve, please do reach out!
My goal with this newsletter was always to share the kind of information I would have loved to have a few years ago when I first started learning to cook, bake, decorate, host, etc. I’ve had so much fun researching, writing, and getting ideas from readers on what is most helpful to share that I’m working on compiling everything on a full website that will be launched with the newsletter rebrand! Thank you for reading, for supporting, and for inspiring me to keep improving!
Abbie Leonardi
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