Last Minute Emergency Gnocchi

I had quite the culinary dilemma today, as I got home late from work, had to do more work at home and eat somewhere in between too.  Another issue was that I had absolutely nothing good in the house, and had no time to grab my favorite take-out.  On the verge of being extremely grumpy (no doubt influenced by my hunger), I started to really rack my brain for what we had in the fridge and whether I really could create something out of nothing.  "Tomatoes, blue cheese, garlic, parsley...Hmmm...," it was definitely enough to work with.  I also remembered I had some store bought gnocchi in my pantry that could certainly go well with those ingredients.

I first started to chop my tomatoes, then some red onion I found in the fridge too.  Next came the garlic and wha la, I was on my way to making a homemade tomato sauce.  Getting another idea to further reduce this sauce with good quality red wine that we also had on hand, I created a rich, earthy reduction that tasted like it took hours to prepare (but actually only too about 10 minutes).

Finishing the dish off with crumbled blue cheese, fresh parsley and toasted pepitas, it was really an exceptional surprise.  I was pretty proud of myself to create it on the fly like that, and after the long day I had, I guess I needed some unabashed self-encouragement.  Here's the recipe:

Fooditka's Last Minute Emergency Gnocchi:

Ingredients (serves 2)
1 package of store bought gnocchi (frozen or dry)
2 1/2 medium roma tomatoes, chopped
1/2 sweet red onion, diced
2 small garlic cloves, diced
Small handful of fresh parsley, chopped
Handful of crumbled blue cheese
Generous handful of toasted pepitas
1/4 cup of red wine or two generous glugs
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Cook gnocchi according to the directions on the packaging.

Pre-heat a non-stick medium skillet and coat it with olive oil (about 1 1/2 tbs or eyeball it).  Let the oil get really hot and then drop in your onions and garlic.  Let cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes and keep stirring it so it doesn't burn.

Lower the heat and add the chopped tomatoes and a pinch of salt.  Keep stirring occasionally.  Lower the heat and add your wine, letting it reduce for a few minutes (about 5 minutes).

Combine the cooked gnocchi with a little pasta water, if needed to thin it out.  Garnish with fresh parsley, cheese and pepitas, and freshly ground black pepper.