Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Sweet potatoes, like pumpkin, have become a huge obsession of mine. I'm more than willing to try anything pumpkin or sweet potato (or, to be frank, both combined sound pretty good too!). I also have this huge obsession/love for making homemade Gnocchi. I've already tried making pumpkin gnocchi in the past, which turned out like dessert for dinner, sinful! However, in the past few weeks I've discovered the art of Sweet Potato Gnocchi, placing them at the top of my Gnocchi list (no that doesn't actually exist, but maybe it should...)

I've been incorporating sweet potatoes into my diet for their great lasting energy benefits and as a source of good carbs and fiber, plus, lets face it, they are simply delicious. A while back I was in Trader Joe's and noticed that they started carrying sweet potato gnocchi in their freezer section. Being a gnocchi addict and it being all I will order at Italian restaurants given they are made in house, I have made it a rule that I will no longer buy prepackaged gnocchi when I can easily make them from scratch. Fresh is always better, in my opinion. That being said, I have probably made sweet potato gnocchi using this recipe about 4-5 times within the last month or so. They are a bit time consuming, but definitely worth it, and if you make a large amount you can divide them up and have enough for the rest week. This recipe is just as good cold, topped with a bit of goat cheese, and great for on the go or to take to work.

Goat cheese is a simple topping and very delicious, but they also taste wonderful drizzled lightly with a brown butter sage sauce.

Tips: I chose this recipe for it's simplicity without detracting from flavor, but there were a few things I struggled with initially..

1. Baking the sweet potato to puree/mash. The various sizes of sweet potato can cause hiccups in the process, and may extend the time it takes to make these pillows of joy. I recommend paying attention to the ones you choose when at the store. Try to pick ones similar in size and length so they cook at relatively the same speed. If you choose the longer skinnier potatoes they will cook more thoroughly in a shorter amount of time. I, regrettably, did not do this the first time around. I made the mistake of just grabbing a few, one long and skinny, one fat and short, threw them into the oven on a cookie sheet and ended up checking them every 5-10 mins after the initial 30 for about an extra 20-30 mins because the fatter one just wasn't cooking thoroughly. I still ended up with a half soft, half uncooked potato that made my gnocchi chunky. They still tasted great, flavor-wise in my opinion, but they weren't that pillow-y soft texture you normally expect in a gnocchi. I also don't have a ricer which may have made a huge difference, but if you are careful, in this way, this recipe is completely do-able by hand.

2. Checking for a done potato. The recipe suggests cooking the potato until soft to the touch. This is also where I went wrong and wound up with potatoes that I couldn't puree by hand. I recommend poking the potatoes a few times with a fork to allow heat to get to the center, and also as a means to check the softness at the center. The first few times I attempted this recipe I pulled out and began peeling and cutting the potatoes because they felt soft only to discover they were still hard in the center. Deceiving.

3. Flour to preference. I wanted to use less flour, but still maintain a dumpling-like texture. I have yet to perfect the whole wheat gnocchi, and until I do I want to try to minimize the amount of white flour I use. I discovered in my most recent and most successful attempt that you really don't need all that much flour. Depending on the amount and size of the potatoes used you can get away with a fairly small amount of flour. This recipe calls for 2 cups of flour with 2 8oz. potatoes. However, in total (flour for dusting and rolling included) I probably used about 1-1 1/4 cups. I added flour in 1/4 cup increments, and as soon as it became workable I used what remained for dusting and rolling, so essentially the outside was floured but the inside remained sticky. I believe this made for a more creamy less dense dumpling, which I quite enjoyed.

4. (Optional) Let them rest in the cold. This most recent batch was made from two potatoes that I had baked the day before, and stuck in the fridge for about a day and a half. This, I believe, made them much more malleable and less stringy. Although this step is optional, I feel it contributed to a softer gnocchi. Being in the cool climate after being in the oven allowed moisture to absorb back into the potato.

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