Pumpkin & ricotta gnocchi with burnt sage butter

This is a beautiful dish created using simple ingredients. While this is a recipe which takes a bit of time it is rather easy to make and is well worth it.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of puréed cooked pumpkin
• 1 cup ricotta
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 3-4 cups flour
• olive oil
• black pepper to taste
• Burnt sage butter to serve

Method:

Gnocchi dough

Mix the pumpkin puree, ricotta, parmesan, eggs and salt together in a large bowl. Add 2 cups of the flour and mix well with your hands. The dough should be very sticky, impossible to work.

Add another half cup of flour and mix that in — you want the dough to still be pretty sticky, but pliable enough to shape into a large log.

If it’s not, keep adding a little flour at a time until you can get a soft dough that will be rollable. It should never require more than 4 cups of flour. Cover the dough with a damp towel.

Bring a pot of salty water to a boil: Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then add enough salt to it so that the water tastes salty. Let this simmer while you make the gnocchi.

Roll out the dough and cut the gnocchi: To make the gnocchi, spread some flour on a large work surface and have more flour ready. Cut the dough log into four equal pieces.

Take one piece and cut it in half. Roll the dough into snakes about 1/2 inch thick, then cut it into pieces about the width of a fork.

Use the back of a fork to create indentations in the gnocchi.

Cooking

Using a metal spatula, gently pick up a few gnocchi at a time and drop them into the hot water. Increase the heat to a rolling boil.

Boil the gnocchi until they float, then remove them with a slotted spoon.

Lay the cooked gnocchi on a baking sheet and toss with a little olive oil so they don’t stick together.

Repeat. It’s important to boil gnocchi in small batches so they don’t stick to each other.

In a pan sauté gnocchi in butter or a dash of olive oil. Add enough gnocchi to the pan to cover it in one layer. Do not let them stack up on each other. Let them fry undisturbed for 90 seconds. Toss and cook for another minute. Repeat with the remaining gnocchi.

Turn into a bowl and add the warm burnt sage butter, I like to keep it simple and only add enough butter to coat the gnocchi though you might like to add more. Stir to combine.

Serve as soon as they’re all done, dusted with black pepper.