I came up with this recipe some years ago, while I was tossing about, trying to find something good to eat in the cupboard. I’m sure it could be jazzed up with a homemade marinara, but at the time, I only used the jarred tomato sauces, and this is a great way to make a jarred sauce sing. And don’t let the olives in the recipe scare you. Even people who say they don’t like olives like this recipe.
2 lbs. ground turkey
1 large onion, chopped
2 T olive oil
2-3 packages of frozen gnocchi
1 large jar of your favorite pasta sauce (32 oz.)
10-20 green olives with pimento, sliced thin
1 T. fennel seed
Bring enough salted water to boil for the gnocchi. Brown the turkey and the onion over medium heat in the olive oil. Add the olives, fennel seed and tomato sauce to the turkey onion mixture. Simmer 20 minutes. While the sauce is simmering, start the gnocchi going, but undercook them a little bit, and drain. After they’re well-drained, put them in with the sauce and the meat, and let them finish cooking there (about 5 minutes). Serve hot. Makes enough to feed a small army. It tastes even better reheated the next day.
