Witty in the City

This gnocchi is delicious, and it is so much easier to make than traditional potato gnocchi. You can make this gnocchi without creating a huge mess, and it is fun to eat too. I loved everything about them, especially getting to experiment with different sauces. Sage is the best match for these flavors, and you can use it a couple of different ways.

I have found it easier to make gnocchi in smaller batches, so this recipe makes about 3 servings. You can easily multiply it to suit your needs. To start the gnocchi dough, combine 1/2 cup of cooked butternut squash (mine was steamed), 1/2 cup of ricotta cheese, 1 egg,  1/8 cup of grated parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of nutmeg.

Add 1 cup of flour to the bowl, and mix it to combine. Ultimately, you want the dough to be manageable, but still a little sticky. The less flour you add, the lighter your gnocchi will be. Continue adding 1/4 cup of flour at a time until the dough reaches that point. You shouldn’t need to add more than 2 cups total.

Rip off a half-tablespoon sized piece of gnocchi dough, and roll it into a ball. Then, push it into the backside of a fork to form ridges on one side and a finger dimple on the other side. Repeat this process until the dough is all used up. Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil.

Drop a few pieces of gnocchi into the boiling water at a time. You want the gnocchi to be able to float around without touching each other. At first, the gnocchi will drop to the bottom of the pot, but they will rise once they are cooked. Boiling should take about 2 minutes per batch. You can drizzle the cooked gnocchi with olive oil to keep them from sticking as you work on cooking the rest.

Now it’s time to choose your sauce. First, I pan fried the gnocchi in a brown butter and sage sauce. Melt a tablespoon of butter in a pan, drop the gnocchi in, and sautée them until they brown. Top them with fresh sage and salt. I liked this preparation, but it seemed more like an appetizer than a meal. For me, a cheese sauce was perfect for these gnocchi. First, melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a pot. Add 1 tablespoon of flour and whisk it together until it browns. Then, add 1 cup of chicken stock (or milk for a true, white cheese sauce), and whisk it until it starts to thicken. Take the pot off of the heat, and stir in 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, and stir in 1 tablespoon of minced sage. Pour the sauce over the gnocchi and enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from Simply Recipes.

Shopping list:

Gnocchi-

• Butternut squash- 1/2 cup
• Whole milk ricotta- 1/2 cup
• Grated parmesan- 1/8 cup
• Egg- 1
• Flour- 2 cups
• Nutmeg- 1 teaspoon
• Salt- 1 teaspoon

Brown butter and sage sauce-

• Butter- 1 tablespoon
• Sage
• Salt

Cheese sauce-

• Butter- 1 tablespoon
• Flour- 1 tablespoon
• Chicken stock or milk- 1 cup
• Shredded cheddar cheese- 1 cup
• Sage
• Salt and pepper