Sweet Potato Gnocchi wtih Sage and Cider Brown Butter Sauce

By á-7125

Ingredients

• For Sauce and to Finish:
• 1 large sweet potato (about 1 lb)
• 1/2 cup (4oz) whole milk ricotta
• 2 TBSP finely grated dry cheese, such as Vermont Shepherd or Parmesan-style
• 1/2 tsp fine salt
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 8 TBSP butter, divided
• 16 fresh sage leaves
• 1 tsp apple cider
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 400. Prick sweet potato several times through skin. Bake sweet potato until very soft all over when pressed about 50-60 minutes.

Meanwhile, set ricotta in a fine sieve over a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and weight it with a can or jar to help expel excess liquid. When sweet potato is cooked, slice it in half lengthwise and cool completely. Scoop flesh into a large bowl and mash thoroughly until there are no lumps (you should have about 1 1/2 cups.)

Stir drained ricotta, grated cheese and salt into sweet potato until thoroughly combined. Gently work in 1 1/4 cups of the flour, adding the remaining 1/4 cup by tablespoon just until a soft dough forms. It will be a little sticky but should be workable. (don't overwork dough or gnocchi will be tough) Turn dough out onto a lightly floured counter and divide into 4 equal balls. Roll each ball into a long rope and 3/4" thick. use a sharp knife to cut each rope into 1/2" pieces and mark with the tines of a fork if desired. Transfer to a lightly floured rimmed baking sheet. Repeat with remaining balls of dough.

Trays of gnocchi can be left out, loosely covered with a clean fowl or plastic wrap for a couple of hours. They can also be frozen on baking sheets to keep them separated and then, once frozen, stored in zippered plastic bags. (Do not thaw if cooking them frozen, nothing they may take an extra minute to cook, though.)

When ready to cook gnocchi, bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat. Add gnocchi in batches, stirring once to make sure they stay separated, and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, about 3-4 minutes. Cooked gnocchi should float to the surface of the pot, but taste one to be sure. Remove cooked gnocchi with a slotted spoon and lay, well separated, on clean baking sheets, patting gnocchi dry with paper towels.

Preheat oven to 200. IN a medium saute pan, melt 4 TBSP butter over medium heat. Continue to cook, swirling occasionally, until the foam subsides and the butter begins to brown. Add sage leaves. Cook 1-2 minutes, or until sage leaves are crisp. Remove sage leaves to a plate and set pan with browned butter aside.

In another large sauté pan, melt 1 TBSP butter over medium heat. Add enough gnocchi to fill the pan, but with enough room to turn them, and brown on 2 sides, 2-3 minutes per side. Remove browned gnocchi to a platter and keep warm in oven. Finish browning gnocchi in batches, adding butter to the pan as needed, and keeping warm in oven until all are browned. Put brown butter sauce back on medium heat and stir in cider and cider vinegar. Cook for 2-3 minutes until hot. serve gnocchi drizzled with brown butter sauce, fried sage leaves and additional grated dry cheese as desired.

Makes about 120 gnocchi: serves 6 as a main course or about 10 as an appetizer.