Chances are you’ve eaten gnocchi before, but this homemade whole wheat SWEET POTATO GNOCCHIÂ is a healthier version perfect for fall!
Have you ever had gnocchi? I’ll be the first to admit that I have no idea how to even properly pronounce the word. All I know is that I had it recently and have been craving it ever since.
I’ve been trying really hard to eat well lately. I cut out (for the most part) added sugar, I cut out (for the most part) white flour, and I cut out (for the most part) empty starches. I’ve tried really hard to stick to healthy whole grains and things like sweet potatoes versus standard white potatoes.
I made this recipe with whole wheat flour. Do I think it would have turned out better with all-purpose flour? Yes. Did I feel better about using whole wheat flour? Yes. I will tell you one thing – when you toss these bad boys into the boiling water, don’t walk away. I thought they would have to boil much longer than they did. Again, if I had used all-purpose flour it may have been perfect, but I wrote the recipe exactly as I made it. If you experiment, do come back and let me know!
Now, plain boiled gnocchi ain’t anything to write home about, but as soon as you brown up some butter with some crispy ribbons of fresh sage, you’re in for a real treat! I served these up for dinner with some grilled pork chops and butternut squash mash. YUM!
Ingredients
- 3 medium sized sweet potatoes yams
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese about 3 ounces
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- 2 1/2 cups about whole wheat flour*
- 1/2 cup 1 stick unsalted butter
- 8-10 fresh sage leaves sliced thin
Instructions
- Poke holes in sweet potatoes with a fork. Microwave on high for 5 minutes, rotate, then cook for another 10 minutes. They should be soft at this point. If they are still hard, cook for another 5 minutes. Allow to cool enough to handle.
- Remove skin from sweet potatoes and mash flesh. Ideally, you want about 2 cups of mashed sweet potato.
- In a bowl, combine mashed sweet potato with ricotta and parmesan cheeses along with brown sugar, salt, and nutmeg. Add flour in small amounts until a sticky ball forms. You may use less than the recommended amount.
- Once the dough is formed, roll a small amount of dough on a heavily floured surface into a thick rope that's about 3/4 inch in diameter. Cut into 1 inch long pieces.
- Boil heavily salted water. Working in small batches, add cut gnocchi pieces to boiling water. Once they float, remove them with a slotted spoon and continue with remaining dough. This only takes a few minutes. Set aside to cool. This process can be done ahead of time.
- To serve, melt butter over medium heat while stirring occasionally until brown solids begin to form and it smells wonderfully nutty. Add sage leaves and cook for a couple minutes. Add cooked gnocchi pieces and saute until heated through, 3-4 minutes, gently tossing occasionally. Serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition
If you love sweet potatoes as much as I do, you’ll love this Sweet Potato Quick Bread:
Or this Sweet Potato and Bacon Frittata:
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