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Nothing says “autumn” like comfort food. I mean, what is autumn without comfort food? In my opinion, gnocchi is one of the best autumn dishes. It’s filling, comforting and usually paired with some creamy, yummy sauce. Just like sweet potato gnocchi with mushroom sauce – I just love that dish.
Old recipe, new looks – and a better taste
I’ve created this recipe last year already. I can’t let autumn go by without making this dish a few times and so an upgrade occurred. I’ve improved this recipe and I love it even more. The gnocchi is even fluffier, the sauce is even tastier, and the whole thing rounds up into this delicious dish that warms you from the inside.
We didn’t eat gnocchi much as I was growing up but I’ve always loved it. My grandma used to make small rolls, “weenies” we called them. They were made from the same dough gnocchi are made of but in a different shape. My grandma would make them as an afternoon snack after school. We ate them with sugar and cocoa. But any time we’d go out to a restaurant, I’d be ordering homemade gnocchi. It always seemed like a special dish and I always thought it was difficult and time-consuming to make gnocchi. But it’s not!
I’m the first in my family to be making my own gnocchi at home. If we ever had gnocchi, my mom would buy them – it’s a lot easier and quicker, you see. But actually, it’s also unhealthy and packed with substances that should not be in there. Gnocchi needs 3 ingredients and 3 ingredients only.
3-ingredient sweet potato gnocchi
(Sweet) potatoes, flour, salt. That’s all you need for gnocchi. Add about 30 minutes to that and you have yourself a delicious, comforting meal.
I’ve learnt that you don’t need eggs for gnocchi. There are flour and potatoes that make the dough stick together. You also don’t need water, because in that case, you need even more flour and that makes gnocchi stiff. If there are more potatoes than flour, the gnocchi will be fluffy and light and that’s what we’re aiming for.
I have never eaten gnocchi as fluffy and delicious as these – probably because they were usually prepared with eggs (protein coagulate, resulting in stiffness). Store-bought ones tend to be chewy- But I want my gnocchi soft and fluffy. I had to make my own, I had no other choice.
Mushroom sauce *classic*
I love pairing gnocchi with some creamy sauce, like cashew cream sauce or pumpkin sauce. But mushroom sauce feels like a classic to me. It’s super simple and comes together really fast.
I’m usually using fresh button mushrooms – they are available everywhere and very inexpensive. If you want to up your game, use some other mushrooms, like porcini – these add some really nice taste and meaty umami flavour.
In this case, I’m using coconut milk as cream, but if you feel uncomfortable doing that, I recommend you use oat cooking cream or soy cooking cream.
Spices that are in the sauce are there for a reason. There are not many, but they are essential. If you’re leaving out marjoram, it’s your loss.
Q&A
What do I do if my gnocchi dough is too wet and sticky?
Add more flour, but add it 1 tbsp at a time. If you’d add too much flour, you’d need to add more water and that might make gnocchi stiff and chewy.
What do I do if my gnocchi dough is too dry?
Add some water, but gradually, little by little. If you’d add too much water you’d need to add more flour which can result in stiff and chewy gnocchi.
Can I prepare gnocchi with regular potatoes / pumpkin / cauliflower / … / ?
You can do that, at your own risk. I would say go for it, try, experiment! You know, if it’s too dry, add some water, if it’s too wet, add some flour. I hope it works out well!
Can I prepare this sauce with some other mushrooms?
I haven’t tried with any other but porcini and it works great. I’m guessing some other forest mushrooms could work, but I don’t recommend Asian mushrooms etc. unless you know what you’re doing.
What can I use instead of coconut milk?
Oat cooking cream, soy cooking cream or something along those lines.
Are you a fan of comfort autumnal foods? Go and try my gnocchi in creamy pumpkin sauce with sage or some oven-baked creamy pumpkin pasta.
Are you making any of my recipes? Don’t forget to take a photo and tag me on Instagram @littlekitchenvibes
Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Mushroom Sauce
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Gnocchi
- 500 g cooked sweet potatoes
- 130 g all-purpose flour
- 200 g wholemeal flour
- pinch salt
Mushroom Sauce
- splash olive oil about 1 tbsp
- 1 onion
- 500 g button mushrooms
- 100 ml coconut milk creamy part
- ½ tsp granulated garlic
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- ⅓ tsp caraway
- 1 tsp dried marjoram
Instructions
- Peel and cut sweet potatoes into small pieces (1x1cm). Cook them in salted water.
- In the meantime, chop onions and slice mushrooms. First cut the mushroom in half and then slice each half. If mushrooms are small, there's no need for you to cut them in half first, just slice them.
- Once potatoes are cooked, strain them and mash them. You can mash them with a fork or with a strong whisk (yup, that works too) or with a potato masher. I don't blend them because I like some pieces of potatoes here and there, but you can also blend them if you want a completely smooth dough.
- Then add flour and salt to mashed potatoes and knead into a nice soft ball of dough. It should not be sticking to your fingers too much and should hold shape.
- Flour your countertop and place a ball of dough onto it. Cut the ball into 4 pieces. Now take one piece and place it on the floured surface and roll it out into a long snake. Cut it into 1.5 cm wide pieces. Repeat with the other 3 pieces of dough.
- Prepare your sauce. Sautée onions in a large pan. Add mushrooms and sautée until mushrooms soften and let out a ton of water. Then sautée a bit more so some water evaporates. Add spices and coconut milk. If you feel like the sauce is too thick, add some water.
- Cook gnocchi in boiling salted water for about 3 minutes or until they come to the surface of the water.
- Add cooked gnocchi to the sauce and mix. Or place them on a plate and add sauce on top of them there. Garnish with some chopped parsley and serve.
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