Sweet potato gnocchi is a fall inspired twist on this classic, comforting pasta. It's a simple substitution of sweet potatoes instead of the russet potatoes but the result is slightly sweet gnocchi with a hint of sweet potato flavor.
Pierce the sweet potatoes with a fork a couple of times and wrap each one tightly with aluminum foil.
Place wrapped potatoes into a baking sheet and bake for 45-60 minutes until completely tender. Exact time will depend on the thickness of sweet potatoes.
Take them out of the oven and let them cool until you can handle them.
Sweet Potato Gnocchi:
When sweet potatoes are cooled enough to be handled, take off the skin and mash the meat with a fork. Don't over-work it.
Place sweet potatoes in a mound on the work surface and add flour and some salt. Make a well in the potato/flour mound and crack the egg in the middle.
Use a pastry scraper (or even a metal spatula) to work flour, sweet potatoes, and egg together, until incorporated enough to gently knead.
Gently knead the dough, adding a little more flour if the dough is too sticky, until it is no longer sticky but still moist and a little tacky. Don’t add too much flour, the dough should be moist but not sticky to where it stick to the hands and surface.
Sprinkle a little flour on the work surface. Split the dough into several, workable pieces and roll each into about 1/2 inch – thick, long rope-like logs. Cut each into about 3/4 – inch pieces.
You can use a fork to roll each piece of gnocchi with a design or leave it in a shape of little pillows as they are cut. (If you choose to roll the gnocchi, don’t push too hard, they are very soft and delicate.)
Cook gnocchi right away or freeze it.
Cooking Sweet Potato Gnocchi:
Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Drop desired amount of gnocchi in it, a few at a time so they don’t stick. Once they float to the top, cook for about 1 more minute and take them out with a slotted spoon.
Mix gnocchi with a sauce of choice or sauté.
To Sauté: right after boiling gnocchi, you can sauté it in butter and herbs if you wish. To sauté cooked gnocchi, preheat the pan over medium-high heat while gnocchi is cooking in water and melt butter in it. You can add aromatics like garlic and fresh herbs. Toss in gnocchi as soon as you pull them out of the water, toss and sauté until you see some browning.
Freezing Sweet Potato Gnocchi:
Line large cutting boards with parchment paper and spread a little bit of flour all over the bottom. Spread out uncooked gnocchi in one even layer (don’t crowd them) and freeze for about an hour or two. (Set a timer so you don’t forget.)
Once completely frozen, portion them into a freezer friendly, zip-lock bag.
Cooking Frozen Gnocchi: don’t thaw gnocchi before cooking, add them to the boiling water frozen. Cook the same way as fresh.
Notes
*Use gluten free all purpose flour if you need to make the sweet potato gnocchi gluten free. **You can cook sweet potatoes ahead of time and simply cool down and refrigerate in an air-tight food storage container for a day or two before making gnocchi.