How to Make Sweet Potato Gnocchi
Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Sage
It’s the perfect day for making comfort food – cold and wintry… maybe something warm and hearty… a buttery and delicious sauce perhaps!? My mind wanders to gnocchi, that Italian primi piatti that simply begs for a rich, hearty sauce like the one you will find here. I used to love making and eating gnocchi, and I missed making them since I don’t eat potatoes anymore.
Sooooo…. I decided to make sweet potato gnocchi instead! Problem solved! Recipe improved, even!! My recipe only has five ingredients: mashed sweet potatoes, cassava flour, arrowroot flour, egg, and nutmeg. This gnocchi is the perfect way to spend a relaxing, rainy spring day in the kitchen with family and friends. Making gnocchi is a lot of fun… you’ll see!
To start, you’ll need to cook your sweet potatoes, without the skin, until soft… but don’t overcook them! Let cool and mash them in a food processor. I love doing this in the food processor because they become very silky and we want this kind of consistency.
Once you have the sweet potatoes mashed, it’s time to make the gnocchi. Transfer the sweet potatoes into a bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Mix everything until a soft dough forms. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts. Set aside.
Sprinkle a cutting board with flour and transfer one portion of the dough to the cutting board. Roll the dough out into ropes, sprinkling with flour as needed if sticky, and cut into cute little balls of gnocchi (about one inch in diameter). They don’t have to be perfect, no need to stress about it! They are going to be delicious! Roll each piece over tines of a fork to indent. Transfer to a baking sheet.
Now, before you boil the gnocchi, let’s make the sauce. It’s a mix of golden brown butter, cinnamon, maple syrup and sage to give the sauce a delicious flavor.
Melt butter in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Cook until butter solids are brown and have a toasty aroma, swirling the pan occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add cinnamon and maple syrup and whisk.
Add chopped sage (mixture will bubble up). Turn off heat. Season sage butter with salt.
Now, let’s boil our gnocchi! Bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil; add one tablespoon of salt and return to boil. Working in batches, cook the gnocchi until tender, 5 to 6 minutes – they will float to the top of the water when ready. Transfer gnocchi to a baking sheet and let cool.
Transfer half the sage butter to a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add half the gnocchi. Sauté until gnocchi is heated through, about 6 minutes.
The gnocchi is light, and the sauce is sweet and buttery — a perfect bowl of homemade gnocchi. I just know you guys will love it!
SAUCE INGREDIENTS:
5 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
GNOCCHI INGREDIENTS
2 medium sweet potatoes (about 6 cups once mashed)
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups cassava flour
1 cup arrowroot flour
nutmeg to taste
1 teaspoon Himalayan salt
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Boil sweet potatoes without the skin until soft. Let cool and mash them in a food processor. I love doing this in the food processor because they become very silky and we want this kind of consistency.
2. Transfer the sweet potatoes to a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Mix everything until a soft dough forms. The dough should be sticky. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts. Set aside. Sprinkle cutting board with flour and transfer one part of the dough to the cutting board or countertop, roll the dough out into ropes, sprinkling with flour as needed if sticky, and cut into cute little balls of gnocchi (about one inch in diameter). Roll each piece over tines of a fork to indent. Transfer to the baking sheet and dust with flour.
You can keep the gnocchi covered in the fridge for up to 1 day, and then boil just before you are ready to eat. Or boil right away.
3. To make the sauce.
Melt butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Cook until butter solids are brown swirling the pan occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add cinnamon and maple syrup and whisk.
Add chopped sage (mixture will bubble up). Turn off heat — season butter with salt.
6. Bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil; add one tablespoon of salt and return to boil. Working in batches, cook the gnocchi until tender, 5 to 6 minutes – they will float to the top of the water when ready. Transfer gnocchi to a baking sheet and let cool.
7. Transfer half the sage butter to a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add half the gnocchi. Sauté until gnocchi is heated through, about 6 minutes.
Did you make this recipe?
Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #thetastesoflife
Ingredients
- 2 sweet potatoes medium, (about 6 cups once mashed)
- 1 egg large
- 1 1/2 cup cassava flour
- 1 cup arrowroot flour
- nutmeg to taste
- 1 tsp salt
- 5 tbsp butter grass-fed
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Boil sweet potatoes without the skin until soft. Let cool and mash them in a food processor. I love doing this in the food processor because they become very silky and we want this kind of consistency.
- Transfer the sweet potatoes to a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Mix everything until a soft dough forms. The dough should be sticky. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts. Set aside. Sprinkle cutting board with flour and transfer one part of the dough to the cutting board or countertop, roll the dough out into ropes, sprinkling with flour as needed if sticky, and cut into cute little balls of gnocchi (about one inch in diameter). Roll each piece over tines of a fork to indent. Transfer to the baking sheet and dust with flour.You can keep the gnocchi covered in the fridge for up to 1 day, and then boil just before you are ready to eat. Or boil right away.
- To make the sauce.Melt butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Cook until butter solids are brown swirling the pan occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add cinnamon and maple syrup and whisk.Add chopped sage (mixture will bubble up). Turn off heat — season butter with salt.
- Bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil; add one tablespoon of salt and return to boil. Working in batches, cook the gnocchi until tender, 5 to 6 minutes - they will float to the top of the water when ready. Transfer gnocchi to a baking sheet and let cool.
- Transfer half the sage butter to a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add half the gnocchi. Sauté until gnocchi is heated through, about 6 minutes.
