Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Sage
Use up those potatoes or sweet potatoes in your larder with this vegan dish typical of northern Italy. It's not hard to see why gnocchi means "little lumps or knots." The sweet potato option makes for an especially colorful and nutritious plate. (Photo credit: Alex Loup)
| Yield: serves 4 | Time: 35 minutes |
Recipe adapted from Pasta Based
Ingredients
1 medium sweet potato (or white potato)
1/4 cup non-dairy milk or water
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons parmesan or nutritional yeast
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Optional add-in: sage
Topping of your choice:
olive oil, lemon juice, vegan parmesan cheese
Preparation
Peel the sweet potato and cut into 1 inch chunks. Add to a medium-sized pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil. Boil for 15-20 minutes, or until fork tender.
Alternatively, you can prick the sweet potato all over with a fork, wrap in a damp paper towel, and microwave until soft (about 7 minutes).
Once the sweet potato is done, drain water and add sweet potato to a large mixing bowl. Add almond milk, nutritional yeast, salt, black pepper, and nutmeg. Using a masher or hand mixer, mash until very smooth.
Add flour. Using a large spoon, stir to combine. Knead with your hands just until the flour is fully incorporated, not a moment longer. If your dough is getting too sticky, then you are probably kneading too much.
Place dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Using your hands, roll out sections of the dough into long "snakes". With a sharp knife, cut into 1-inch "pillows". Roll the pillows on a fork to form ridges in the dough.
Bring a medium/large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop 10-15 gnocchi at a time into the water. Once they start to float, boil for an additional 2 minutes (about 5 minutes total).
Using a slotted spoon, remove boiled gnocchi. You can add cooked gnocchi directly to a pan with heated olive oil to crisp or you can serve them soft.
Serve warm with desired toppings and/or sauce.