Gnocchi with Pumpkin Cream Sauce
This homemade, grain-free gnocchi is crispy and buttery on the outside, and pillowy soft on the inside. Nestled in a creamy, deliciously savory, dairy-free pumpkin sauce that is so flavorful for the ultimate comforting Fall meal.
Ingredients
For the gnocchi
- 2 lbs russet potatoes, to yield 540 grams of potato flesh
- 25 grams almond flour
- 10 grams tapioca flour
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tablespoon dairy free butter (for sautéing with)
For the sauce
- 200 grams pure pumpkin
- 200 grams vegetable broth
- 150 grams cashew cream
- ½ large shallot
- 2 tablespoon dairy free butter
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Step 1: First, you are going to cook your potatoes until nice and soft. I cook mine in the microwave until they are soft all the way through. It is important to get them completely soft and cooked so the dough has the correct texture. Cooking them in the microwave is the lazy girls way, but it saves time, produces the desired outcome, and doesn’t add moisture to the potatoes so it is my preferred method!
- Once soft, peel the potatoes completely.
- Now it’s time to “mash” the potatoes. You need to thoroughly mash/rice the potatoes. I use a serrated muddler and it works perfectly. You will not be able to use a regular potato masher like you would for mashed potatoes, as you will not be able to get the dough smooth enough. You could try placing your potatoes in a food processor or use a potato ricer if you have one. You will know you are getting the texture smooth enough when the potatoes are starting to become dough-like just upon mashing.
- Once completely smooth, add in the yolk and flours and mix together well. The dough should hold together well at this point. If it is still sticky, add a tablespoon of more flour at a time until it holds together, but is not crumbly.
- Pat the dough into a disk, then divide the dough into 4 equal sections.
- Roll each section into about 10 inch long strips/logs that are about an inch thick in diameter. Now, cut the strips into individual “pillows” about ¾-1 in thick. They don’t need to be perfect, just aim for getting them similar in size.
- Now for cooking the gnocchi. Get a large pot of water heated to a gentle boil. You don’t want it aggressively boiling or it will disrupt the gnocchi’s structure during cooking. Working in small batches, using a slotted spoon, gently place the gnocchi in the water and let them boil for about a minute. They will float to the surface when they are done cooking. Once they have floated to the surface, gently spoon them out and place them on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
- Once they have all been boiled, get a large skillet warm over medium heat.
- Working in batches, you are going to fry/sauté the gnocchi. This is what creates the buttery, crispy and delicious texture and flavor to them. Place 2 tablespoon of butter in a skillet and cook the gnocchi until golden and crispy on all sides, adding more butter if needed. Once all the gnocchi are golden and crispy on all sides. Set the gnocchi aside.
- Lastly, it’s time to make the sauce. Add a tablespoon or 2 of butter to the skillet and sauté the shallot until fragrant and soft.
- Add in the cashew cream, vegetable broth, pumpkin and spices. Stir and heat the sauce until warm.
- Lastly, add the gnocchi to the sauce, then serve immediately.