Sweet potato gnocchi is such a treat for my mouth.  Growing up I avoided sweet potatoes but now I find myself trying to incorporate them into more and more dishes.  Lucky for me, my excellent farmer boyfriend has some planted in our backyard so soon I’ll get the chance to experiment much more with these delicious creatures.

Making gnocchi is easy.  All it takes to make sweet potato gnocchi is to cook your potatoes (2 large sweet potatoes) in the oven (at 350) for about 40-50 minutes (you want to make sure they cook through…poke a couple holes in them before you put them in the oven).  Let them cool until they are touchable. You want to remove the skin and mash them in a bowl with 1 garlic clove (pressed), 1/2 t of sea salt, 1/2 t ground nutmeg and 1 egg (vegan friends use Ener-G Egg Replacer).  Mix the ingredients together and then add in 2 cups of whole wheat flour (this will turn your mash into a dough.  You may need to add more or less flour–its up to you).  On a floured surface, roll the dough out into several long snakes and cut 1 inch pieces off. You want to boil these pieces in a pot of salted boiling water.  The gnocchi will float when they are done.  Make sure you drain them very well so they aren’t too soggy.  I haven’t perfected my recipe yet so feel free to play around with your spices and let me know what you use! I’ll update this post next time I make it with my changes.

I served my gnocchi with a red sauce I made from sauteing broccoli, pumpkin seeds and onion in some extra virgin olive oil.  I added some tomato sauce once the veggies cooked through and let the flavors simmer together while I waited for my gnocchi to finish.  I served this pasta over a bed of spinach and finished with a couple basil leaves, vegan parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes.