Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Broccoli Rabe and Garlic Sage Butter Sauce

November 7, 2016

Sweet Potato Gnocchi in a bowl with a fork

Sweet Potato Gnocchi is about to happen in your life. Get ready.

I started a dinner club a few years ago (gah! seriously feels like yesterday ) and for this dinner club, every month, 6 friends + my happy self get together for a night of wine, appetizers, and amazing homemade food. We’re talking the type of food that we all maybe wouldn’t normally make for our families or for our regular weeknight selves, but that can be fully embraced and appreciated when we are with our foodie friends.

Example: gnocchi.

About a year ago, I learned the basics of making gnocchi at a blog related event, and I came home and said: listen up, dinner club -> we need to make gnocchi together.

I am not exaggerating when I say that our gnocchi night is STILL the talk of our dinner club. It will never ever be topped, unless it’s topped by another gnocchi night. There were platters upon platters of that pillowy potato gnocchi, and simmering pots of tangy bolognese and creamy marsala mushroom and zippy pesto sauces that still live right at the surface of our food dreams. It was a girls’ night gnocchi event that bordered on otherworldly.

Why You’Ll Be Excited To Make This Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Comforting, wintery, love-yourself-GNOCCHI. You’ve got sweet potatoes, you’ve got a sage butter sauce, you’ve got serious comfort food dreams in a bowl for the end of a long day.
Superfood vegetables tasting ahhmazing (hello sweet potato and broccoli rabe). Will admit that the sage butter sauce definitely helps here.
Weeknight ease. Trust me: this is an EASY gnocchi recipe, perfect for the person who thinks making their own gnocchi isn’t for them.

Do you believe me? Look here.

Prefer To Watch Instead Of Read?

How To Make Sweet Potato Gnocchi – It’s Easier Than You Think

As with most recipes that I make, I like them to be NOT OVERWHELMING.

With the fancy gnocchi night, I boiled, dried, rested, cooled, and riced the potatoes before mixing. That was a different time.

This time we are literally just baking in the microwave. Okay? Can you get on board with me here? Just bake that little sweet potater in your micro for speed and ease, mix it with the ricotta, Parm, and flour, and form into cute little sweet potato gnocchi. Boil them till they float, and voila. Gnocchi.

These gnocchi are sturdy enough to stand up to the sage-garlic-butter-pan-frying situation that follows, which is exactly what I wanted them to be: golden and crispy on the outside, and soft and lovely on the inside.

A Little Nutritional Boost

To avoid getting overly sweet (and to throw some powerhouse nutrition in the mix), we are serving this up with broccoli rabe – blanched to tender-crisp perfection before getting tossed in to the magic of that saute pan.

In addition to being a SUPER HEALTHY power ingredient, I loved using broccoli rabe with this because it was kind of like a textural cross between broccoli and spinach. You have the leaves of the broccoli rabe which cook super nicely similar to spinach, and you have the beautiful, barely-crunchy florets that are small enough not to overwhelm the dish.

Besides, the colors.

You NEED those bold colors working together in your recipe life.

If you don’t have easy access to broccoli rabe, another green veg will do here, like spinach or kale. Just throw it right on in that pan. Or, skip the veg and just enjoy that gnocchi perfection.

Do we love gnocchi or do we love gnocchi?

Common Questions About This Sweet Potato Gnocchi

If I don’t like sweet potato, can I use something else?

We’d recommend pivoting to another recipe for this! Like this guide to making classic potato gnocchi, our yummy Pumpkin Gnocchi, or homemade Cauliflower Gnocchi.

Can I bake the sweet potato instead of microwaving it?

Yep! Just prick it all over with a fork, set it on a sheet pan, and bake for 45-50 minutes at 425 degrees.

Is there another sauce I can use with this gnocchi?

Sure! If you wanted to just lighten it up a bit, you could use some olive oil with the garlic and sage and create a lighter sauce without cream, but we’d recommend staying in the garlic/sage flavor profile. IT’S SO GOOD.

What can I serve with sweet potato gnocchi?

We’re serving it with broccoli rabe here, but you could sub in some spinach or kale or a favorite roasted veggie (or skip the veggies overall as we did in the video!). This is also delicious with a simple, tangy green salad.

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Broccoli Rabe and Garlic Sage Butter Sauce

4.6 from 67 reviews

Author: Pinch of Yum
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 6-8 servings

Print Recipe

Description

Sweet Potato Gnocchi! The easiest and best way to make Sweet Potato Gnocchi! Serve it with broccoli rabe and garlic sage butter sauce for a BOMB meal.

Ingredients

Gnocchi:

One 1-lb sweet potato
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/4 cup flour (more for dusting)

Sauce and Other Ingredients:

5 cups finely chopped broccoli rabe (stems, leaves, and florets) – optional
8 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 cloves garlic, minced
5–6 sage leaves
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Instructions

Video

For the gnocchi: Stick the sweet potato a few times with a fork, wrap in a damp paper towel, and microwave until soft, about 7 minutes. (You can also bake the sweet potato in the oven, which will take closer to an hour.)
Scoop the flesh of the sweet potato into a mixing bowl. Discard the skin. Mix the ricotta, parmesan, and salt until well combined and almost completely smooth. Add the flour 1/2 cup at a time, kneading very gently after each addition (don’t over knead it – you don’t want it to get tough).
Eventually, as the dough becomes easier to handle, transfer it to a clean floured work surface and form it into a loaf, about 9×5 inches. Cut a slice off of the loaf on the short side (think of it as if it were a loaf of banana bread and you were going to cut a slice to eat). Roll and stretch the slice on a floured surface until it forms a long, skinny rope-like shape. Cut the rope into 1-inch segments and transfer to a bowl: this is your gnocchi.
Bring a large pot of water to boil, add the gnocchi, and boil until the gnocchi rise to the top of the water. Drain and toss gently with a little olive oil to prevent sticking. At this point you can make the rest of the recipe with the gnocchi, refrigerate the gnocchi to finish them later, or freeze them.
For the Broccoli Rabe (optional): Bring a large pot of water to boil and prepare a bowl with ice water. Add the broccoli rabe to the boiling water and cook for 1 minute. Drain and transfer to the ice water to cool and stop the broccoli rabe from cooking further. Drain again and set aside.
Putting it all together: Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium high heat until lightly bubbling and foaming. Add the gnocchi and pan-fry until golden brown on the outside (you may have to do this in batches). Once the gnocchi is done, add the broccoli rabe, garlic, sage, and salt and pan-fry for another few minutes (again, working in batches). Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes so the butter thickens just a little. Add the cream to the pan along with the Parmesan cheese – toss gently a few times to combine (the sauce should coat the gnocchi and broccoli rabe very lightly) and serve immediately with salt, pepper, and a squeeze of lemon juice if you want.