Sweet potato gnocchi in brown butter with crispy sage leaves

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Sage

Name: Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Sage
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Yield: 2 servings
Ingredients: 500 g sweet potatoes whole, unpeeled — gives about 300 g flesh once cooked and scooped; 150 g plain flour plus more as needed, a little at a time; 0.5 tsp fine salt; 60 g unsalted butter; 12 fresh sage leaves; parmesan to serve, finely grated; flaky salt and black pepper to finish

Three ingredients in the dough, one pan for the sauce. Sweet potato gnocchi are more forgiving than potato. The dough is wetter and stickier, but that is actually the point. You pipe it straight into the boiling water with a piping bag and scissors, no rolling, no board, no flour everywhere.

The sweet potato gives the gnocchi a naturally sweet, earthy depth that pairs perfectly with the nuttiness of brown butter and the slightly bitter crunch of fried sage. Finish with a blizzard of parmesan and serve immediately.

How to Make Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Sage

This comes together in four stages: microwave the sweet potato, mash and mix the dough, pipe into boiling water, then pan-fry in brown butter with sage. Each stage is simple — the piping bag is the only unusual step and it makes everything easier.

All Ingredients

1. Microwave and mash

1
Prick the sweet potatoes all over, microwave on high for 7 to 10 minutes turning once, until completely tender.
2
Cut in half, scoop the flesh into a bowl and mash thoroughly. Weigh it — you need 300 g.

Sweet potato cut in half after microwaving

2. Mix the dough and pipe

1
Add the flour and salt and mix until a soft, slightly sticky dough forms. Do not overwork it. Transfer to a piping bag.
2
Pipe the dough over simmering salted water, cutting with scissors every 2 to 3 cm. Cook until they float, then 30 seconds more. Remove with a slotted spoon.

Piping bag filled with sweet potato gnocchi dough, ready to go

Piping gnocchi dough into boiling water, cutting with scissors

3. Brown butter and fry

1
Melt the butter over medium heat. Add the gnocchi in a single layer and fry without moving until golden on the base, then toss and fry the other side.
2
Push the gnocchi to the side, add more butter and the sage leaves. Let the butter foam until golden and nutty and the sage turns crisp. Toss together, season, and serve immediately with parmesan.

Gnocchi frying in the pan before adding butter and sage

The Recipe

Prep10 min

Cook20 min

Total—

Serves2

DifficultyEasy

Ingredients

for 2 serves

Gnocchi
500gsweet potatoes, whole, unpeeled — gives about 300 g flesh once cooked and scooped
150gplain flour, plus more as needed, a little at a time
½tspfine salt
Butter and sage sauce
60gunsalted butter
12fresh sage leaves
parmesan, to serve, finely grated
flaky salt and black pepper, to finish

Instructions

Prick the sweet potatoes all over with a fork. Microwave on high for 7 to 10 minutes, turning once halfway, until completely tender when pierced.
Cut in half and scoop the flesh into a bowl. Mash thoroughly with a fork until smooth. You need 300 to 350 g of cooked flesh, weigh it.
Add the flour and salt. Mix with a spoon first, then with your hands, until a soft, slightly sticky dough forms. Do not overwork it. If the dough is extremely wet and shapeless, add more flour a tablespoon at a time.
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a simmer. Transfer the dough to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip (or a zip-lock bag with one corner cut off).
Pipe the dough over the simmering water and cut with scissors every 2 to 3 cm, letting the gnocchi drop in. Work in batches to avoid overcrowding. Cook until they float to the surface, then give them another 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Melt the butter in a wide pan over medium heat. Add the gnocchi in a single layer and fry without moving for 1 to 2 minutes until golden on the base, then toss and fry the other side.
Push the gnocchi to the side and add more butter and the sage leaves. Let the butter foam and cook until golden and nutty, about 2 minutes, and the sage turns crisp. Toss everything together and season with salt and pepper.
Serve immediately, topped with finely grated parmesan.

Tips & Notes

The piping bag is not optional

Sweet potato gnocchi dough is too sticky to roll by hand without adding so much extra flour that you lose the texture. A piping bag (or a zip-lock bag with one corner cut off) solves this entirely. Pipe directly into the simmering water and snip with scissors every 2 to 3 cm.

Do not overwork the dough

Mix until the flour is just incorporated. Overworked dough develops gluten and the gnocchi go tough and gluey. A shaggy, slightly tacky dough is correct.

The flesh weight matters

You need 300 to 350 g of cooked sweet potato flesh. Start with about 500 g of whole sweet potatoes, you will lose the skin and some moisture when scooping. Weigh the flesh before adding the flour.

Brown the butter

Do not just melt the butter. Let it keep cooking in the pan until it smells nutty and the milk solids turn golden brown. This is the difference between a sauce that tastes bland and one that makes people ask for the recipe.

Pan-fry in batches

If you crowd the pan the gnocchi will steam instead of fry. Work in a single layer with space between each piece. You want golden and slightly crispy on the outside.

How It Turned Out

Sweet potato gnocchi with brown butter and sage on a plate

Close up of gnocchi in sage brown butter

Sweet potato gnocchi plated with sage and parmesan

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How to Make Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Sage

All Ingredients

1. Microwave and mash

1
Prick the sweet potatoes all over, microwave on high for 7 to 10 minutes turning once, until completely tender.
2
Cut in half, scoop the flesh into a bowl and mash thoroughly. Weigh it — you need 300 g.

2. Mix the dough and pipe

1
Add the flour and salt and mix until a soft, slightly sticky dough forms. Do not overwork it. Transfer to a piping bag.
2
Pipe the dough over simmering salted water, cutting with scissors every 2 to 3 cm. Cook until they float, then 30 seconds more. Remove with a slotted spoon.

3. Brown butter and fry

1
Melt the butter over medium heat. Add the gnocchi in a single layer and fry without moving until golden on the base, then toss and fry the other side.
2
Push the gnocchi to the side, add more butter and the sage leaves. Let the butter foam until golden and nutty and the sage turns crisp. Toss together, season, and serve immediately with parmesan.

Instructions

Prick the sweet potatoes all over with a fork. Microwave on high for 7 to 10 minutes, turning once halfway, until completely tender when pierced.

Cut in half and scoop the flesh into a bowl. Mash thoroughly with a fork until smooth. You need 300 to 350 g of cooked flesh, weigh it.

Add the flour and salt. Mix with a spoon first, then with your hands, until a soft, slightly sticky dough forms. Do not overwork it. If the dough is extremely wet and shapeless, add more flour a tablespoon at a time.

Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a simmer. Transfer the dough to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip (or a zip-lock bag with one corner cut off).

Pipe the dough over the simmering water and cut with scissors every 2 to 3 cm, letting the gnocchi drop in. Work in batches to avoid overcrowding. Cook until they float to the surface, then give them another 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Melt the butter in a wide pan over medium heat. Add the gnocchi in a single layer and fry without moving for 1 to 2 minutes until golden on the base, then toss and fry the other side.

Push the gnocchi to the side and add more butter and the sage leaves. Let the butter foam and cook until golden and nutty, about 2 minutes, and the sage turns crisp. Toss everything together and season with salt and pepper.

Serve immediately, topped with finely grated parmesan.