Vegan Pumpkin Gnocchi Made From Scratch
Servings: 4
Calories: 436kcal
The pumpkin gnocchi is made with pumpkin puree, potatoes, and gluten-free flour all topped with a rich and flavorful buttery sage sauce enhanced with pine nuts, culinary sage, onions, vegan parmesan, and sun-dried tomatoes.
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Ingredients
The Pumpkin Gnocchi
- 14 ounces Yukon gold potato 1 3/4 cups mashed see notes
- 1⅓ cup pumpkin puree see notes
- 1½-2½ cups gluten-free flour see notes
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
Buttery Sage Sauce
- 5 Tablespoons vegan butter divided, see notes
- ⅔ cup red onion, sliced
- 3 Tablespoons pine nuts
- 15-20 culinary sage leaves use fresh
- 5 sun-dried tomatoes see notes
- ¼ cup vegan parmesan cheese
Instructions
The Pumpkin Gnocchi
- Boil a pot of salted water. While the water is boiling, remove the skin from the potatoes with a paring knife or potato peeler. Cut the potato into thirds.
- Once the water has come to a boil, place the peeled potatoes in the pot for 15-25 minutes until they are fork-tender. Remove from the heat and run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain and pat dry.
- Mash the potatoes into a med/large mixing bowl until they are mashed into a nice puree. It's easier to use a potato masher, but you can use a fork.
- Add the pumpkin puree, one and a half cups of flour, and salt on top of the mashed potatoes. Combine the ingredients until you form a nice solid but pliable dough. Work in more flour if the dough is too mushy and can't hold its shape when rolled. Remember that you want your dough to be pliable - not dry and crumbly, but the dough should still be able to hold its shape.
- Sprinkle flour onto your working surface and flour your hands. Divide the dough into five even pieces. Stretch and roll each piece into a cylinder that is about one-half inch thick. About as thick as your thumb - well, my thumb, your's might be smaller or larger than mine!
- Cut each cylinder into pieces that are the same length (as much as possible). These little pieces should be slightly longer than they are fat to make small rectangular pillow-shaped gnocchi pasta.
- You can leave it in these rectangular puffy pillow shapes, or make the classic gnocchi designs using a gnocchi board if you want to be extra fancy, or with a fork (the photos in the blog post use the fork method.) Place a fork on the table with the curved part on top. Take a cut gnocchi piece and carefully press it with your finger or thumb onto the top of the fork. Rool the gnocchi piece to the table to get the lines pressed in.
- Place the prepared gnocchi pieces in the refrigerator while you are boiling the water for the gnocchi pasta.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. (It's important that the pot be large enough to cook the gnocchi with enough space so that it doesn't stick together.)
Buttery Sage Sauce
- While the water is coming to a boil, you can cook the buttery sage sauce. Start by slicing the onion and sun-dried tomatoes so that they will be ready when you are. Set them aside separately.
- Melt two Tablespoons of vegan butter into a frying pan and pan-fry the fresh sage until they become browned and crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Add the pine nuts to the melted butter and pan fry, stirring constantly until they are just lightly browned. Remove from the pan immediately. Pine nuts turn quickly so do be sure to watch them carefully. Set them aside separately from the sage.
- Now add the remaining vegan butter to the pan and saute the onions for about three minutes or until they have softened. Add the sliced sundried tomatoes and continue sauteing for another minute. Add the pine nuts. Salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat while the gnocchi is cooking.
Finishing the Gnocchi
- By now your water should be boiling. Place the gnocchi in the pot and gently stir so that the pieces don't stick together. Once the gnocchi floats to the top, they are cooked. This should take about 3-5 minutes. Strain the gnocchi and add to the frying pan with the other ingredients.
- Pan fry all together, stirring and flipping until the gnocchi pieces are well covered and have started to crisp up around the edges.
- Top with the fried sage and vegan parmesan. Serve immediately.
Notes
14 ounces of potatoes is about two small or one large potato. You need one and three-quarters cups of mashed potatoes for the recipe. Fourteen ounces of potato should give you this.
If you use canned pumpkin, make sure to use the pure pumpkin puree - not the cans labeled "pumpkin pie filling". If you make your own pumpkin puree, make sure to use the right kind of pumpkin. The jack '0 lantern type of pumpkin is the wrong flavor and texture. Read the blog post above for suggestions.
Depending on the moisture level and the actual amount of potatoes you are using, the amount of flour may vary. Start with the smaller amount and you can always add more. You will also need flour to work with the gnocchi dough. Remember that your gluten-free flour should be a one-to-one flour substitute. Do not use straight almond flour or coconut flour or some such.
The amount of butter is divided. First, you will be using two tablespoons and then three tablespoons for a total of five tablespoons.
I used five sundried tomato halves in this recipe and then cut them into small slices. You can also use packaged julienned sundried tomatoes. You will need about 14 pieces.
We are a vegan family and so we use vegan ingredients. If you are not vegan then use the ingredients of your choice. Also, be aware that if you are vegetarian that most parmesan cheese is not even vegetarian because of the animal rennet used - unless it is labeled as vegetarian. My favorite brand of vegan parmesan cheese is Follow Your Heart. If you can't find a suitable vegan parm cheese then you can use my cashew parm for flavor but be aware it will not be the same texture.
Please read the blog post section titled "What might go wrong" for troubleshooting BEFORE cooking this recipe.
Nutrition
Calories: 436kcal | Carbohydrates: 61g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 777mg | Potassium: 722mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 13404IU | Vitamin C: 24mg | Calcium: 72mg | Iron: 4mg