Vegan Crab Cakes

UConn will be recognized during the Loyal E. Horton Dining Awards Luncheon, taking place on Saturday July 16 at 1pm in Anaheim, CA. The Loyal E. Horton Dining Awards is the ultimate professional tribute in college and university culinary arts. The award, named after a NACUFS founder, past president, and highly regarded innovator, celebrates exemplary menus, presentations, special event planning, and new dining concepts. NACUFS celebrates the innovative ideas and successful implementation of these programs. 

Find this recipe and others at dining.uconn.edu/recipes

UConn Dining Services has won the Gold Award for the Best Local Foods Recipe in the 2015 NACUFS (National Association of College and Food Service) Nutrition Awards contest! Open to all institutional members of the association, the goal of the Best Local Foods Recipe Contest is to recognize and encourage the use of locally produced foods in the menus of NACUFS member institutions. The winning recipe, served at Chuck & Augie’s, is “Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Applewood Smoked Bacon, Green Peas, Granny Smith Apples and Cremini Mushrooms”.

Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Makes 25 servings

6 pounds sweet potatoes (local)

6 pounds russet potatoes (local)

8 cups all-purpose flour

4 eggs (local)

1 cup maple syrup (local)

1 tablespoon kosher salt

Directions:

1) Place potatoes on sheet pan and roast in 400-degree oven until a fork easily pierces center, about 1 hour.

2) Scoop out potato flesh and press through ricer into large bowl.

(Working in half batches)

3) Spread ½ the flour onto clean work surface, and place riced potatoes onto flour.

4) Add 2 eggs, ½ cup maple syrup and half the salt.

5) Using your hands, mix together ingredients until combined into a dough.

6) Scoop dough into pastry bag and pipe out into ropes on floured surface.

7) Cut each rope into half-inch pieces, and using fork, mark sides of gnocchi. (Repeat with second batch of gnocchi dough ingredients.)

8) Store gnocchi on flour dusted baking sheet pan until ready to cook, or freeze on sheet pan, place in plastic bags and freeze for up to two weeks.

Shallot and Thyme Butter

Makes 5 pounds

• 4 pounds unsalted butter, softened
• 1 pound shallots (local)
• 1 cup fresh thyme (local)
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon coarse-ground black pepper

Directions:

1) Place shallots and thyme in a food processor and process until finely chopped.

2) Add butter, salt, and pepper, blending until combined.

3) Store refrigerated in an airtight container.

Prepare

7 Granny Smith apples (about 2 pounds), peeled, cored, and diced (local)

2 ¼ pounds green peas (local)

¾ pound cremini mushrooms, sliced thin (local)

¾ pound Applewood smoked bacon, cooked and chopped (local)

6 ounces Parmesan Reggiano cheese, grated

Directions:

(Bring large pot of water to boil over high heat. Add gnocchi and cook until it floats to top, remove with strainer and add to sauté pan in step 3)

1) Melt shallot –thyme butter in sauté pan over medium-high heat.

2) Add mushrooms and sauté until tender; add peas, bacon, and apples cooking until hot.

3) Add gnocchi and toss until ingredients are heated through.

4) Place on plate and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Chef Kyle Davis, from UConn’s Department of Dining Services, received a Silver Medal  at the Northeast Regional NACUFS Conference in Providence in March. Kyle competed against ten other chefs, representing different colleges and universities around the Northeast. His Silver Medal dish was a Baby Bella and Pinoli Nut Buffalo Flank Steak with Cipollini Goat Cheese Mashed Potatoes and Vegetable Medley.