A sweet main meal

I felt very inspired last weekend when my lovely friend Carly made me her very own, very first, homemade gnocchi dish. Wanting to give it a whirl myself, but always willing to test something a little different, I opted for a sweet potato version. I wasn’t 100% sure this would even work. Would a direct substitute of a waxy potato for a sweet potato work? On the other hand, I didn’t have a backup dinner either, so I had no choice but to succeed... Or go and grab a burger from down the road (ie. Gnocchi was the only option!)

Until last weekend, I had always had a fear of homemade gnocchi. You hear many a horror story of how the gnocchi is tough or chewy or spongy. But I swear, from my experience, these are just kitchen urban legends. I can understand that there is a bit of room for error in this process, and I guess if you were a bit blasé about some of the steps, you could be steered down the tough-chewy-soggy path. However, if you follow the steps, take your time, and feel your food, all should go to plan! (*Note: success cannot be guaranteed... sorry!)  

Thankfully, my curiosity was rewarded and I found that, yes, you can substitute the white for the sweet variety. Therefore, if you have a preference of normal potato gnocchi, simply use the same amount of potato instead. The potato variety was supposed to serve 6, I guess because it’s a bit heavier, but this was enough for a decent sized meal for just Ryan and I... But we do have big appetites!

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with blue cheese sauce (Serves 2-4)

500g sweet potato

150g plain flour

½ cup grated parmesan

50g butter, melted

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped,

100g baby spinach

100g mild blue cheese, chopped (try a gorgonzola)

1/3 – 1/2 cup cream (this will depend on how ‘blue’ you want your sauce to taste)

1. Wash and dry the sweet potato, then pierce the skin a few times with a fork. Place on a tray and into a preheated oven at 180°C for 1 hour, until tender in the thickest part. (Alternatively you could place the sweet potato in the microwave for 8-10 minutes, but I think the oven makes for a better flavour). Cool and peel (if it is ready, the skin should come off with your fingers).

Don't chuck out the skin - eat it!! It's so tasty and apparently packed with nutrients.

2. Sift flour onto a clean work surface. Pass the potato through a metal sieve (I used a metal oil splatter screen because it’s flat and easy to use) using pastry scraper. Add the potato to the flour. Add parmesan and season. Drizzle butter evenly over potato. 

3. Using a pastry scraper or the end of a plastic spatula, gradually work flour into potato to form a dough. Gently knead for 1-2 minutes until smooth. Add more flour if the mixture is too wet. 

4. Divide dough into four pieces and roll each piece into a long thin log. Cut into 2cm lengths.

5. Bring a saucepan of water to a gentle boil (over a medium-high heat). Cook gnocchi in batches, removing when it floats to the surface and transferring to a dish.

6. Heat oil in a large fry pan over a medium heat. Cook gnocchi, turning, for 1-2 minutes, until golden. Remove from pan.

7. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant. Add spinach and cook until wilted. Return gnocchi to pan to reheat then divide between dishes.

8. To make sauce, add cheese and cream to a pan and heat over low heat until melted and creamy. Drizzle over gnocchi and serve (or tip sauce over gnocchi and then serve).

Result? No horror stories to report - the gnocchi was perfect! So tender and sweet, and sufficiently cured my fear of homemade gnocchi (so much so that it makes me wonder why any restaurant that serves gnocchi could EVER put that rubbish packet stuff on the table in front of you!)

On the downside, my choice of stilton as the blue cheese was somewhat regrettable. It wasn’t inedible, but would definitely have been nicer had I used a milder version of the mouldy fromage (hence my suggestion of gorgonzola in the recipe).

Enjoy!

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