Pork Chops with Cider, Mustard and Cream; Potato Gnocchi

The Economist' birthday was last week so we made a special dinner.

For the first time ever we made homemade potato gnocchi. Gnocchi has become sort of fashionable the past few years, but I don't think people usually make it themselves because it's quite intimidating. Having done it, I think it does take a bit of time to prepare; but it isn't difficult, the ingredients are few and simple, and most importantly they are really delicious, sort of sweet, a perfect foil for the DELICIOUS sauce.

The recipe for Potato Gnocchi came from the Silver Spoon, a classic tome of Italian cooking. The recipe for the Pork Chops with cider, mustard and cream comes from Nigella Lawson's Nigella Express cookbook, but is a French recipe with a classic combination of flavors. The pan sauce of cider, wholegrain French mustard and thick double cream is so delicious and divine, I can't explain it.

I will probably be making this recipe again very soon, and I will take full pictures. By the way, while I was chowing down on pork chops, the Economist was enjoying the gnocchi, served with mushrooms and the same sauce of cider, mustard and cream. Unfortunately, it isn't a knockout dish without the pork and I think the sauce needs some tweaking. Once I have it figured out, I'll give you the details.