Homemade Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Sweet potato gnocchi are tender and flavorful Italian dumplings made from sweet potatoes, egg and flour. Top with brown butter and sage or your favorite sauces for sweet potato gnocchi for the perfect meal that can be made using leftover potatoes.

I always seem to have leftover sweet potatoes made in the air fryer around the holidays. My kids are not very fond of sweet potatoes but my husband and I are. They are delicious but also have good nutrients and fiber in them. My daughter might not eat the sweet potatoes the first time around but if I mash up them up in gnocchi, she loves them.  We had these babies a few days after Thanksgiving.  The gnocchi were served with a browned butter and sage sauce. You can serve them with your favorite sauce and don't forget the grated Italian cheese!

What are potato gnocchi?

Gnocchi (pronounced NYOW-kee) are Italian dumplings made primarily with cooked potatoes, eggs and flour. I like to change things up a bit and use sweet potatoes. This gives the gnocchi a touch of sweetness as well as extra nutrition.

Steps to Making Gnocchi

1. Cook and cool sweet potatoes than peel them and mash them in a bowl.
2. Make a well in the center of the potatoes, add the egg and mix to combine throughly.
3. Reserving 1 cup of flour, add 1 ½ cups of flour to the potato mixture and mix well.
4. Line the counter with a large piece of waxed paper and add a few tablespoons of flour.
5. Turn the dough onto the waxed paper and kneed, adding more flour if needed to achieve a workable dough. (Dough will be slightly sticky.)
6. Roll a chunk of dough into a ½ inch diameter rope, sprinkling with more flour if needed.
7. Cut the dough into 1-inch pieces and press with the tines of a fork to make horizontal lines in each piece.
8. Boil for 1-2 minutes or until the gnocchi rise to the top of the cooking pot.

Some helpful tips when making gnocchi:

• If the sweet potatoes were just cooked, make sure they are cooled off before using them. If they are leftover and from the fridge, bring them to room temperature.
• Lay some wax paper on your counter so that the flour and gnocchi don't stick.
• Use a fork to make ridges in the gnocchi. The ridges aren't necessary but will make the sauce stick better.
• If you do not have leftover sweet potatoes, bake them on a foil lined baking sheet in a 400 degree over for one hour. Pierce the skin with a fork before baking.

Sauces for Sweet Potato Gnocchi

There are a variety of different sauces that go well with sweet potato gnocchi. Here are my favorites:

Brown Butter Sage Sauce - Brown a few cloves of garlic in a pan. Add some chopped sage along with a few tablespoons of butter. Cook on low until the butter starts to brown then toss with cooked gnocchi.

Easy Italian Marinara sauce - Make my homemade version in just 25 minutes!

Sun Dried Tomato and Basil - In a pan saute a few tablespoons of olive oil with chopped sun dried tomatoes and chopped fresh basil. Toss the gnocchi with the oil mixture as well as some salt and fresh ground pepper.

Creamy Pesto Sauce - In a pan, toss the gnocchi with a few tablespoons of pesto that has been thinned out with a few spoons of heavy cream. I buy store bought pesto or you can use this Homemade Pesto Recipe via Swirls of Flavor.

Salads to Serve With Italian Gnocchi

• Beet and Goat Cheese Salad with Toasted Walnuts
• Spinach Salad with Blue Cheese, Grapes and Almonds
• Caprese Pasta Salad with Pesto
• Avocado, Tomato and Arugula Salad with Cilantro Vinaigrette
• Fall Cobb Salad from Homebody Eats

No matter which sauce you choose or which salad you serve alongside these Italian dumplings, this is sure to be a soul-satisfying meal.

If you like this sweet potato gnocchi, please leave a 5-star rating.

RECIPE

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Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Tender Italian dumplings served with your favorite sauce.

Course: Main Course

Ingredients

• 2 medium size sweet potatoes already cooked
• 1 egg beaten
• 2 to 2 ½ cups flour
• salt for boiling gnocchi

Instructions

• Cut the sweet potatoes in half and peel off skin. Put in a medium size bowl and mash well.
• Make a well in the center and add egg. Mix together thoroughly.
• Add 1 ½ cups flour and mix together. Reserve the other cup of flour.
• Line your counter top with wax paper and sprinkle with a few spoons of flour. Put the ball of sweet potato mixture on top of the paper and knead into a soft dough. Add more flour if necessary. Dough should be slightly sticky.
• Cut off a chunk of dough and roll it out into a ½ inch in diameter rope. Use a little sprinkling of flour on the paper if the dough is sticking too much.
• After you roll out the rope, sprinkle the rope with flour and cut with a sharp knife into one- inch pieces.
• Place on the wax paper and sprinkle with additional flour so the gnocchi don't stick together. Repeat with remaining gnocchi.
• Take a fork and make horizontal lines in each gnocchi.
• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil.
• Put the gnocchi in the water and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes or until gnocchi rise to the top.
• Drain in a colander and serve with your favorite sauce.
• Makes about three main dish servings or 4 appetizer servings.

First Published December 2011 ; Updated October 2021

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