Gnocchi Bake-Off

Potato Gnocchi vs Sweet Potato Gnocchi

From Scratch!

Potato Gnocchi is for Avo-Vegetarian recipe was taken from: https://www.recipesfromitaly.com/potato-gnocchi-recipe/

Vegan Sweet Potato Gnocchi recipe was taken from: https://www.pastabased.com/sweet-potato-gnocchi/

Ingredients

Potato Gnocchi Ingredients (Ovo vegetarian)

500 g (about 1 lb) of Russe t potatoes or Yukon Gold Potatoes*
150 g (5,3 oz) of Unbleached Flower
2 tablespoons of 1 beaten egg (about half egg)
fine salt to taste

Vegan Sweet Potato Ingredients

1 medium/large Sweet Potato
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (or other plant milk)
1.25 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
***Modified at the End***

We also air fried one sweet potato for a trial batch…

Because this is such a labor intensive process that you do not do everyday, we triple the batches and freeze them in Gallon Freezer Bags.

Two Different Sauces: Red and Olio

Oilo Ingredients

Kosher salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbls Black Truffle Oil
1 cup Shiitaki Mushroom
3 cloves garlic, very thinly sliced
1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Red Sauce Ingredients

1 – 32 oz. can of Italian Pomodoro (tomatoes)
i chopped onion
1 chopped bell pepper
6-10 basil leaves – Chiffonade
2 clove fresh garlic sliced thin
Optionally you can add 1 cup mushroom and other veggies that are in the fridge.
1 Italian Long Hot Pepper – fried in the air fryer or in olive oil for taste (Optional)

The OXO Good Grips Food Mill is a great tool for ricing the potatoes.

Making the Gnocchi

Cooking the Potatoes

In two separate pots 2/3rd full with water, boil the water in one, and not the other, YET. Add the regular potatoes to boiling water and let cook for 20 minutes on a slow boil. Add the sweet potato to the pot with cold water and then boil and cook for 30 minutes or until softened, (check with fork.

Drain and let the potatoes sit until cool before ricing.

Air Fry 1 sweet potato at 400 degrees for 20 minutes after poking with a fork or knife.

Ricing the Potatoes

Mixing the Dough

Place the riced potatoes (or Sweet Potatoes in a bowl, and add the flour, and 1 egg beaten (for vegan replace egg with Almond Milk and Yeast). add a touch of salt so the batter will rice and be fluffy.

We tried to add nutmeg to the sweet potato batch and it was a mistake, although at Christmas or Thanksgiving it might go well.

Kneed the dough together with a wooden spoon (or hands). Add flour gently until the batter is like tacky. Too much flour will ruin the batter. Add the flour to the rolling surface.

Break off a 1/2 cup bit of dough and roll it in a log about 1/4 – 1/8 inch thick. Chop with a dough blade about 1/4 inch squares from the log.

On a Gnocchi Board, press down on the dough square and roll with the tip of you finger on the slotted surface to create the lines in the 1/2 moon shaped dumpling. Place on a plate leaving a space between each gnocchi. Cook when all are completed. We made the mistake of eating them as they were being made… NOT GOOD, but DELICIOUS!

Cooking Choices

We both cooked the gnocchi traditionally by boiling them in water until they just popped up, or Air Fried them for 5 minutes on 375. I prefer traditional, but fufu is fufu…

Making the Sauces

Red Sauce – Light Red Sauce with Mushrooms

Saute the onions and mushrooms over a medium heat until slightly browned, and add garlic. Pour in the can of tomatoes, I prefer either crushed or for this dish, diced. Add for died Italian herbs, or I use just fresh basil for this dish to keep it tasting light. NO PASTE! No long cooking, keep it quick and light!

Truffle Oil and Shiitaki Mushroom Olio.

This sause again is light. Cook on medium low head in extra-virgin olive oil the onions and mushroom until translucent. Add a generous amount of garlic near the end of cooking. If you cook the garlic with the onions it will become bitter. Right at the end add the truffle oil (black) and the Chiffonade Basil, save some for garnish!

Pairing Sauces to Gnocchi

Well we tried each sauce with each gnocchi. The concensous was that the red sauce with tranditionally cook potato gnocchi was the best. That may have been because of our history with the food, Without Flora’s Rosemary Chicken, the Olio was amazing but could not overcome my love for RED…That’s right not GREEN in this case, but RED!

Sweet Potato Gnocchi Recipe Modified by Robin

The next day Robin Modified the sweet potato recipe to make them more like traditional potato gnocchi. By adding egg, and eliminating both the Almond Milk and the Yeast, the sweet potato gnocchi came out great! I tried them without the nutmeg, but Robin also made some with nutmeg, which would be good for the holidays (I guess). I am just a traditionalist! This batch was made with a drizzle of black truffle oil, Pecorino Romano Cheese and sliced Parmesan with some sage! Delicious!