Pillowy soft homemade Pumpkin Gnocchi, golden brown on the outside and bathed with a simple, stunning Sage Butter Sauce…. an EASY homemade gnocchi recipe, this is the stuff food dreams are made of!
Homemade Pumpkin Gnocchi
The first gnocchi I ever made turned out black. Wait – not even black. If it was black, you might get away with claiming that it’s exotic, or coloured with squid ink. Mine were grey.
I had slaved over them for hours. Made the classic way using mashed potato, I painstakingly followed every step in the lengthy recipe. I could envisage how impressed my family would be when I serenely placed the gnocchi in front of them, how they would praise me and exclaim how perfectly pillowy they were.
My vision did not come true. They were grey and they were hard. I am sure I remember my brother trying to bounce one off the table like a rubber ball.
Oh – just for clarity, this was back when I was in school. Did you think it was last week? 😉
Classic gnocchi made with potato is a recipe for more capable cooks. And while I have actually made it successfully since my first dismal effort, I’m still not always happy with the way they turn out.
Enter: the EASY way to make gnocchi. The secret? Ricotta!
Yes it really is this easy to make Pumpkin Gnocchi: just use a wooden spoon to mix mashed pumpkin, flour, parmesan, ricotta and egg, turn it out, no kneading, roll into ropes then cut.
And if you want to make your gnocchi look like what you get at restaurants, all you have to do is use a fork to press lines onto the cut side of the gnocchi. Worth the effort? I think so. It creates ridges which = more crispy golden surface + the butter sauce clings to it better.
Plus, it just looks pro, doesn’t it? 🙂
I shared a plain Ricotta Gnocchi recipe a couple of years ago. I really wanted to take the basic gnocchi up a notch so I decided to make this a pumpkin gnocchi.
I wasn’t 100% sure I could make it work, and truth be told it took quite a few batches to get it exactly right. I even dragged my mother in for recipe testing.
I am so glad we persevered though, because in all honesty, the pumpkin totally makes this gnocchi. Besides making it a beautiful bright orange colour that looks so spectacular when tinged with golden brown, it adds sweetness and moisture into the gnocchi. You can’t actually taste the pumpkin – much like you can’t actually taste potato in classic potato gnocchi – but you know it’s there. You can’t miss it!
The little trick I found that really makes a difference is to extract some moisture out of the pumpkin simply by putting in on paper towels in a colander for a few minutes. Doing this reduces the amount of flour required by almost 1/3 cup which = softer gnocchi.
As for the sauce….well, I could have gotten more creative but the fact is, Sage Butter Sauce is always my first choice for gnocchi. It’s simple but luxurious, and let’s the Pumpkin Gnocchi shine through.
And if we’re going to make homemade gnocchi, let’s make sure we do it justice by making the sauce using a great quality butter. Hands down, my favourite butter has always been Lurpak. It is without a doubt the best butter that is sold at supermarkets here in Australia. In my humble opinion. ❤️
I almost fell off my chair when I was asked if I would create a recipe for them. I started babbling with excitement, exclaiming how Lurpak has always been my butter of choice. The ideas just rolled off my tongue, I just kept saying I couldn’t believe this was happening, it was meant to be!!
I worked really hard on this recipe, and I truly hope I’ve done Lurpak proud. I’m certainly proud to have been selected to work with them, and I’m really proud of this recipe.
Oh! And just one more thing I want to mention – you don’t need an insane amount of butter to make the sauce for this Pumpkin Gnocchi. In fact, I think you’ll be surprised how little is required. Just enough to coat the gnocchi and have some drizzled on the plate. You don’t want the gnocchi swimming in butter – it’s just too rich.
One more thing I remembered – THIS FREEZES GREAT. The gnocchi cooks from frozen in about 1 1/2 minutes and takes about 5 minutes to pan fry and make the sauce.
Just think – the next time you’re cooking to impress, can you imagine the reaction you’ll get if you serve them homemade gnocchi? That don’t look like grey rubber balls??? – Nagi xx
Gnocchi Lovers!
Easiest homemade gnocchi ever – Ricotta Gnocchi
Pan Fried Gnocchi with Pumpkin & Spinach – quick and easy, made with store bought gnocchi
Malfatti – Cousin of the gnocchi, made with spinach and ricotta
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Ready to see how easy it is to make Pumpkin Gnocchi? 🙂
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Easy Pumpkin Gnocchi with Sage Butter Sauce
Ingredients
Gnocchi Dough
- 300 g /10oz fresh pumpkin , steamed or boiled then mashed or 2/3 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup ricotta , full fat (Note 2)
- 1 1/4 cup plain flour (all purpose flour), plus more for dusting
- 1/3 cup parmesan cheese , finely grated
- 1 egg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- Black pepper
Sage Butter Sauce:
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 50g / 3.5 tbsp butter (Note 3)
- 20 fresh sage leaves
To serve:
- Black pepper (and salt if needed)
- Parmesan
Instructions
- Line a colander with 4 sheets of paper towel. Spread the fresh mashed pumpkin or canned puree onto the paper towel (see photo in post) then leave for 5 minutes.
- Measure out 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree (scale up if you scaled recipe, Note 6).
- Place pumpkin and remaining Gnocchi ingredients in a bowl. Use a wooden spoon to mix well – it should be a soft dough. (Note 4)
- Dust a work surface with flour, tip dough out, sprinkle with flour then pat into log shape.
- Cut into 6 pieces. Roll into 1.7cm / 2/3″ ropes, then cut into squares (Note 5).
- Optional: Use a fork to press down lightly on the cut side of the gnocchi.
Cooking
- Bring a large pot of water to the boil.
- Scrape gnocchi onto parchment paper, then tip into water. Cook for 1 minute or until all the gnocchi rises to the surface (means it is cooked), then drain.
- Meanwhile, melt about 1 teaspoon of the butter plus oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add gnocchi and cook, shaking the pan, until the gnocchi is just starting to turn brown (about 1 1/2 minutes).
- Add remaining butter, once it melts, add sage leaves. Stir and cook for 2 1/2 minutes or until gnocchi is golden, sage is crisp and butter is slightly browned. Add salt if you used unsalted butter.
- Serve immediately, garnished with parmesan and pepper.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
This fabulous Pumpkin Gnocchi with Sage Butter Sauce is brought into this world with many thanks to Lurpak which has been my butter of choice for as long as I can remember. If you make your own homemade gnocchi, it deserves the very best butter!!! N xx ❤️
LIFE OF DOZER
Post Pumpkin Gnocchi snack nap.
Could you substitute the plain flour with either almond meal or tapioca flour, etc.?
Hi Sharon, sorry it won’t work as you need the gluten in the flour to help bind. N x
Thanks Nagi ! Made this for dinner tonight. 2 Coeliac’s in my household and substituted Aldi gluten free flour. Worked well. My gnocchi trick is to use some sr flour to account for my heavy hand . Used 20% sr to plain tonight – would try 30% next time for lighter gnocchi – especially as I think frying it dries it out a a little bit.
How much gnocchi does this make?
Hi Kate, depends on how big you cut them but this recipe serves 4 people 🙂 N x
Thing is i have a packet of pumpkin gnocchi i need to use and was wondering hiw much to use for the sauce.
Hi Nagi
Wondering why you wouldn’t roast the pumpkin beforehand? Makes it rich and sweet and also not as watery – so no need to drain water from it. Is there a secret reason this way wouldn’t work? thanks – love your recipes!
What do you think if we use a gluten-free flour/
Hi Onya, the texture would be too dense unfortunately – N x
what can I use in place of the sage leaves? I have rubbed sage and ground sage on hand….if I can use either of these, how much do you suggest?
Hi Wendy, you really need fresh sage here unfortunately – N x
Would this recipe work with beets instead of pumpkin?
Can you use spelt flour instead? Can you add potato to it? If so how much?
I haven’t tried Peg but would love to know if it works! – N x
I made this today- the gnocchi turned out great! Nice and light little pillows. I froze half of it for another meal, and made a delicious butternut squash soup with the rest of the squash. I had a giant sized one! 4 meals for one squash!
Talk about economical!
Hi Nagi – in Australia where do you buy canned pumpkin puree?
Coles actually now stock it in the international section! – N x
I usually don’t comment but I’ve made this a few times now and I just wanted to thank you so much for this recipe!
It is sooo good and people are always blown away by it. It’s my favourite thing to make for Thanksgiving!
Perfect Irena, that’s great to hear – N x
I’m dairy intolerant. Can I replace the ricotta with something else like dairy free cream cheese that I can get at my local supermarket?
Hi Margaret, sorry you need the ricotta for this recipe unfortunately – N x
Hey Nagi, just wondering if you’ve tried this with Tipo 00 flour as opposed to plain flour, and if so, does it make any difference?
I haven’t tried to be honest but would love to know!
You NAILED it Nagi …. delish! I’m a LURPAK fan too ! If your not your doing something wrong 😉
I hear ya Kerry 🙌
I love this recipe, have made it a number of times now and quadrupled it the last time. It is a firm favourite! Great to freeze the fresh gnocchi as it makes a quick tasty dinner after a long day. Thank you!
That’s wonderful Georgie, I’m so glad you love it!
Not so easy after all… perhaps it was due to the odd measurements when changing from 4 to 6 serves.. How does one only use half an egg, or 0.88 of a cup. Changing the serving size is a great idea in theory but not so good in practice in this case. Keen to try again though with the standard serve size
Hi G, this is a forgiving recipe, if you need half an egg, I usually crack an egg into a cup, beat it and add half to the mix – N x
Hi I am confused what you do with the 1/2 cup of pumpkin you don’t use? i.e step 1
Hi Justine, you are going to use half a cup of pumpkin for the recipe – N x
It’s funny you mention the spreadable ricotta from the refrigerated section rather than the deli.
I personally have found that I prefer to use the one from the deli as I press it between multiple pieces of paper towel to remove as much moisture as I can before adding Parmesan and flour. I had found this did not work as well with the spreadable variety
Hi Alan, I find it’s better to use the soft one in this recipe as it makes the gnocchi lighter ☺️
Hi i was wondering if i could use low fat ricotta for this recipe?
Hm so it says in the ingredients 2/3c of puréed pumpkin but in the recipe it says only a half cup? What amount should I use?
Hi Kara, I have written 2/3 cup but as per the notes, you need to remove some of the water from this otherwise the dough is too sticky. So you will end up using 1/2 cup of it. Hope this helps!
I’m confused as we have cooked 300 g pumpkin and are only using half a cup… am I missing something. What do we Do with all the left over pumpkin?
We live by amazing Italian restaurants and this recipe was comparable!! I roasted my sugar pumpkin from Halloween, added some grated nutmeg and tossed with peas and ham (leftover thanksgiving ham!!) and it was pretty “wow”. My dough was pretty sticky but I refrained from adding more flour. Thanks Nagi!!! Keep these delicious recipes (easy!!) coming!
Made them last week and my husband said it was as good as a restaurant!