pumpkin gnocchi with herby brown butter mushrooms
Little bundles of pillowy, doughy, pumpkiny joy.
My first round of gnocchi-making a good while ago, mom decided to pile the tiny bites into a small bowl after we shaped them. You can likely predict what happened next. They stuck together like they’d been glued, and instead of nice separated balls we got a giant convoluted pile that resembled a science experiment gone wrong. I will say, I remember them tasting wonderful, because we don’t fail when we cook together.
Love you mom. Had to tell that narrative. We all have ungraceful culinary moments, don’t we?
Whenever pumpkin season rolls around, I like to morph some of my cans into savory delights, like Saucy Coconut Pumpkin Kale and Chickpea Curry, and some into sweet treats, like Vanilla Chai Pumpkin Bread. Today’s dish is a really enjoyable hands-on venture that, if you love sticking your hands into bowls and mushing things around, you’ll really catch onto. Pumpkin Gnocchi is suitable for weeknights with a bit of extra wiggle room or cozy weekend movie parties. I was bopping and grooving while developing these morsels. They’re fun, simple, and the sauce goes kablooey in your mouth and just suits the gnocchi so well, like a well-tailored dress jacket.
Gnocchi Dokey
I present to you a shortcut to mashed potatoes: the microwave. Since we aren’t creating an elaborate bowl of fluffy potatoes this week, the only worry you should have about your tuber is softening the flesh enough to mash. Rely on your friendly neighborhood nuke machine to do that.
Depending on your wattage, you may need more or less time, but 6 total minutes – 3 per side – worked for me. Poke holes in the skin first to prevent an actual nuclear explosion of potato. Let the potatoes cool to room temperature, then peel and mash to accomplish 1 cup of potato.
Then, mix in pumpkin puree – our Hollywood star – cinnamon, and salt.
To a big-ass bowl, add 1 1/2 cups of flour to start. You will likely need more, but this prevents an overdry, unsalvageable dough from forming if your gnocchi is in a bad mood and wants to work against you if you make one tiny mistake. Plop the pumpkin-potato mash in the center and make a well. Crack an egg into the well and whisk lightly, being careful not to incorporate too much pumpkin mush into the egg.
If you do, what the fuck ever – just start mixing!
Use your hands (recommended) or a wooden spoon (wuss) to incorporate all of the ingredients. If the dough is sticky, add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time to achieve a tacky, slightly wet, but cohesive blend.
Pillow Talk
Once you’ve got the dough, split it into four relatively equal pieces. Flour a very clean surface and roll out one piece into a 1-inch thick log. Cut the rope into your gnocchis, about 1 inch in size. I apparently play a game of inches here. Place the newly-born gnocchis on a baking sheet to hang out while you finish the remaining ropes. You can get fancy and roll the pieces against the flat ends of the fork tines for that characteristic set of indentations, but I’m lazy, so I didn’t.
Boil a big pot of salted water and carefully drop the gnocchis into the volcano of H2O. Cook 4-5 minutes until the gnocchis begin to float. Scoop out 1 cup of the cooking water, then drain the gnocchis either in a large colander or by plucking from the water with a slotted spoon. Set onto their baking sheet couch or a large platter.
Here, we get saucy. Super easy yet the fragrance will make you swoon. Least, caramelized mushrooms have that effect on me. Weird? Whatever.
Heat a bit of olive oil in a large skillet. Quarter the mushrooms and toss into the oil, then leave them be for 5 minutes to start releasing their juices. Seriously, be patient, if you keep poking and prodding the mushrooms you’ll piss the mushrooms off and they’ll refuse to form a juicy outer layer…Then, add a big wad of butter, some chopped rosemary and sage, and garlic cloves. Melt the butter, swirling it in the pan with the herbs and mushrooms, until slightly browned.
Pour in some white wine and reduce for a few minutes, then stream about 1/2 cup of the starchy gnocchi water and whisk until the sauce begins to thicken, a few minutes longer. Set the gnocchi into the sauce and toss gently, being careful not to break the innocent little doughballs. If needed, add another tablespoon of the cooking water to thin the sauce. The buttery, rich concoction should coat the gnocchi nicely in a gleaming layer.
A word about the wine – I learned a long time ago to never cook with wine I wouldn’t drink, and I truly believe holding to such a ideal is important in recipes using the imbibement. I grabbed a nice chardonnay for this particular recipe, but the type of wine isn’t really the important part, just your own perception of quality. If the wine is shit, the dish will also probably be shit, or at least have a tinge of shit floating around the otherwise delicious components. You could expand this lesson to any ingredient you choose, really, though sourcing good wine is a fine start.
Happy sommelier-ing!
Tried this recipe out? Leave a comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Ingredients
- 2 medium russet potatoes (for 1 cup mashed)
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 1/2 – 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 egg
- 1 lb baby portobella mushrooms
- 6 tbsp salted butter
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
- 2 tsp fresh sage, chopped
- 1/4 cup white wine
Instructions
- Poke several holes in the potatoes. Microwave 3-4 minutes per side until very soft. Let cool to room temperature, then peel and mash with a large fork.
- In a bowl, stir together the mashed potato, pumpkin puree, cinnamon powder, and salt.
- In another larger bowl, spread 1 1/2 cups of flour. Drop the pumpkin and potato mix atop and make a well in the center. Crack the egg in the well and whisk gently. Using your hands or a large wooden spoon, fold the flour into the egg and pumpkin until well combined. If the dough seems too sticky, add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time until tacky but smooth.
- Flour a clean, flat surface generously. Split the dough ball into four pieces and, working one at a time, roll into a rope about 1 inch thick. Cut pieces about 1 inch in length out of the rope. Repeat until all of the dough is used.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a gentle boil. Drop the gnocchi into the water and cook 4-5 minutes until the pieces float to the top of the water. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the starchy water, and set gnocchis onto a baking pan or a large platter.
- Quarter the mushrooms. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet and toss mushrooms with the oil. Cook undisturbed for 5 minutes. Add the butter, garlic, rosemary, and sage and cook until the butter browns slightly, about 3-4 minutes. Pour in the white wine and simmer until mostly reduced, about 2-3 minutes. Stream in 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking water from the gnocchi and whisk until thickened. Carefully toss the gnocchi into the sauce, adding cooking water as needed to thin. Taste for salt and pepper.
