With fall comes hibernation season—the huge sweaters, fuzzy blankets, hot cups of tea, and deliciously cheesy, savory deliciousness that one craves when the air outside is chilly. A surprisingly easy fall dish to make is sweet potato gnocchi—the gnocchi only requires a handful of ingredients, and it’s no more difficult than making dumplings a la chicken & dumplings!
But funnily enough, there aren’t that many different takes on gnocchi, let alone sweet potato gnocchi. A quick Google search yields a lot of sage butter sauce and not much else!
A New Spin on Gnocchi
This Cheesy Baked Sweet Potato Gnocchi is a new spin on your standard gnocchi. Sweet potato gnocchi made with ricotta, nutmeg and cinnamon is baked in a casserole with a smooth, peppery bechamel sauce.
We also added mozzarella and parmesan cheese for that elusive goo factor. On top of it all, there’s crispy bacon and fried sage to make this a hearty plate of fall goodness.
After you’ve frolicked in the leaves, gotten your fill of apples, and waddled home with a huge pumpkin from the patch, come home and make this Cheesy Baked Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Bacon and Sage!
Sweet Potato Gnocchi Bake: Recipe Instructions
Prepare the baked sweet potatoes by piercing the raw potatoes with a fork all over. Place on a sheet pan and bake at 400 degrees F for 40 to 55 minutes, until tender. Cool slightly. Cut in half lengthwise and scoop the flesh out. Mash the sweet potatoes and measure out about 2 cups into a large bowl.
Add the ricotta cheese, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pepper and blend until well-mixed.
Add the flour 1/2 cup at a time until a soft dough forms.
Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface.
Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces.
Roll out each ball into a 1-inch wide rope. Cut each rope into 1-inch pieces, flouring them as needed.
Roll the gnocchi over the tines of a fork or over a gnocchi board.
Transfer the formed gnocchi to a large baking sheet sprinkled with flour. Repeat until you’ve made all of the gnocchi.
These gnocchi can be made in advance and frozen! Put the gnocchi in the freezer while they’re still on the baking sheets and freeze until firm, at least one hour. Transfer them to a zip-top bag and freeze for up to two months.
Boil a pot of water to par-boil the gnocchi, and preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
While the water is coming up to a boil, prepare the bechamel. Over medium heat, melt the butter and add the olive oil. Whisk in the flour and stir until there are no lumps. Cook the flour for 1-2 minutes, whisking constantly. Pour in the milk, whisking until you get a smooth sauce. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
While the bechamel is cooking, you can prepare the bacon and sage. But you can also prepare them in advance!
When the water is boiling, par boil the gnocchi for 1-2 minutes, drain, and add to the bechamel along with the bacon, sage, mozzarella cheese, and parmesan cheese, reserving some of the bacon, sage, and cheese to sprinkle over the top of your casserole if desired.
Transfer the entire mixture to a casserole dish.
Bake for 35-40 minutes.
Serve your sweet potato gnocchi hot and think about this awesome dish as a possible Thanksgiving dinner side dish this year!
Cheesy Baked Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Bacon and Sage
Ingredients
For the gnocchi:
- 1½ to 2 pounds sweet potatoes (800g, yields about 2 cups mashed)
- ½ cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1¼ - 1½ cups all-purpose flour
For the cheesy bechamel:
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ cup flour (plus 1 tablespoon)
- 3 cups whole milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
- 5 slices bacon (cooked and chopped into bits)
- 12 sage leaves (julienned and fried in the bacon fat)
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (about ½ pound, 225g, plus some additional to sprinkle over the top)
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Prepare the baked sweet potatoes by piercing the raw potatoes with a fork all over. Place on a sheet pan and bake at 400 degrees F for 40 to 55 minutes, until tender. Cool slightly. Cut in half lengthwise and scoop the flesh out. Mash the sweet potatoes and measure out about 2 cups into a large bowl.
- Add the ricotta cheese, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pepper and blend until well-mixed. Add the flour 1/2 cup at a time until a soft dough forms. Lightly flour a work surface and divide the dough into 6 equal balls. Roll out each ball into a 1-inch wide rope. Cut each rope into 1-inch pieces, flouring them as needed. Roll the gnocchi over the tines of a fork or over a gnocchi board. Transfer the formed gnocchi to a large baking sheet sprinkled with flour. Repeat until you’ve made all of the gnocchi.
- These gnocchi can be made in advance and frozen! Put the gnocchi in the freezer while they're still on the baking sheets and freeze until firm, at least one hour. Transfer them to a zip-top bag and freeze for up to two months.
- Boil a pot of water to par-boil the gnocchi, and preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
- While the water is coming up to a boil, prepare the bechamel. Over medium heat, melt the butter and add the olive oil. Whisk in the flour and stir until there are no lumps. Cook the flour for 1-2 minutes, whisking constantly. Pour in the milk, whisking until you get a smooth sauce. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
- While the bechamel is cooking, you can prepare the bacon and sage. But you can also prepare them in advance!
- When the water is boiling, par boil the gnocchi for 1-2 minutes, drain, and add to the bechamel along with the bacon, sage, mozzarella cheese, and parmesan cheese, reserving some of the bacon, sage, and cheese to sprinkle over the top of your casserole if desired. Transfer the entire mixture to a casserole dish, and bake for 35-40 minutes.
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