Pumpkin Gnocchi

I saw a pumpkin at a market this weekend and instantly thought PUMPKIN GNOCCHI! I was sold. After a failed attempt at getting the right potatoes in a German supermarket, I persevered. Here is what I did.

Ingredients:

1 Pumpkin (any size you would like! Mine was the size of a baby’s head)

750 grams “floury/grainy” potatoes (the potato descriptions usually say what kind of potato they are. I used a Google Translate…)

2 cups all-purpose flour (cooking/baking flour NOT bread flour or cake flour) plus more for handling

1 tsp salt

Sauce (optional): Butter, olive oil, fresh sage leaves, salt and pepper.

Prep Step 0: This can be made the day before. Cut the pumpkin in half and take the seeds out. Put on a baking tray and roast for 30 min. or until soft in a 200C/400F oven. Once cooked, scoop out the inside of the pumpkin into a bowl.

Step 1: Add the potatoes to a pot, cover with water and let boil for approx. 20 min. or until you can stick a fork all the way through. When cooked, peal the potatoes (be careful!) while they are still hot. I used tongs and a spoon…

Step 2: Mash the potatoes with a fork or use a potato ricer if you have it. Place next to a pile of flour (1tsp of salt added) and a pile of mashed pumpkin. Take a picture.

Step 3: Kneed the dough on a floured surface. Massage the dough. Make it into a ball. Keep adding flour if it is too sticky.

Step 4: Make dough snakes like when you were in kinder garden. Reminisce about the good old days, sigh.

Step 5: Use a sharp knife to slice gnocchi sized gnocchi. You decide the size you want. I chose the 2 Euro/ 1 quarter size. Use the back of a fork and a lot of patience to roll off each gnocchi and make the grooves (completely optional but pretty).

Step 6: Boil water and add salt to it. Then, IN SMAAAAALL batches, cook the gnocchi for about 4 minutes if similar to mine. They will float to the top when they are ready.

Step 7: In a pan, heat up butter, olive oil and sage leaves. (Quantities are dependent on the number of gnocchi. I did 1/2 tbsp butter, a drizzle of oil and about 2 tbsp packed fresh sage leaves.) Let it become fragrant. MMMMM…

Step 8: Add in the just cooked gnocchi (or not, and use this to heat them up) and sear them until they get a golden crust.

Step 9: Sprinkle on some salt and pepper to your liking. Maybe a little parmesan if you are feeling fancy. Enjoy!