Hand-made Gnocchi Recipe with Leek Butter
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Mmmm, we are big fans of gnocchi here, and with this easy gnocchi recipe, you will be too. Perfect to share with the family during the holidays – who doesn’t love soft potato pillows with a sweet and creamy umami leek butter sauce?!
Melt in the mouth glory. Add in any dark greens you wish to give this one a Wicked healthy edge!
I started working with this special sauce when we had an abundance of leeks for an event, years back. I wanted to incorporate them into our menu and here’s the result! I melted them all down until soft, added a splash of non-dairy milk, and whipped up a sweet cartable sauce that is perfectly served with pasta, but even better with gnocchi when you want a belly-full of delicious goodness.
Don’t be intimidated by making your own gnocchi, follow us and you’ll see it’s super easy with a bit of basic know-how, and boy, are the results worth it.
Gnocchi is great to batch cook, freeze, and have available for a quick and delicious meal.
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 8 Yukon Gold Potatoes, medium, kept whole
- Spray oil
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 large leeks
- 1/2 cup nondairy milk, unsweetened
- A handful of small kale leaves
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit, 220 degrees Celsius. Poke potatoes with fork a few times, and spray with cooking oil. Place on baking sheet and bake in oven until tender, about 45 minutes. Once potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel with a paring knife and grate the potatoes with a cheese grater into a medium bowl.
- Sprinkle flour slowly into grated potatoes, mixing as you go, until mixture resembles a dough-like ball.
- Make the pasta: Sprinkle a cutting board with flour, and begin to knead the dough ball until the dough becomes firm. You don’t want to overwork the dough, so knead for about 8 minutes. Allow to sit for the gluten to settle. Wrap in plastic for at least 15 minutes before rolling out.
- Cut dough ball in half.
- Using one half of dough, sprinkle your surface with flour again and begin to roll the dough until it forms a long roll, about 2 feet (60 cm) long. Cut dough with a knife into squares, about 1 inch by 1 inch (2.5 cm x 2.5 cm).
- Gently roll the gnocchi squares over a gnocchi board if you have one, creating ridges on the pasta.
- The gnocchi hold up best if you freeze before cooking. This helps them not break apart while cooking. So place the tray in the freezer for at least 30 minutes. While you are doing this make the leek sauce and bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- To make the leek sauce: Chop white part and some of the green of leeks and wash sand out of layers by placing leeks in a strainer and rinsing. Pat dry and dice the leeks.
- Heat two swirls of extra virgin olive oil on low to medium in a large pot. Add leeks to pot. Cook until the leeks become translucent, being careful not to brown them. Allow them to cook for 8-10 minutes stirring well.
- Add almond milk to leeks and simmer. Puree mixture with a hand blender and set aside in a warm spot. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook the gnocchi: Fill a bowl with ice water and set aside. Add pasta to large pot of boiling water and, working quickly using a slotted spoon or small sieve, drop in frozen gnocchi and cook until it floats on the surface of the water, 2-3 minutes. Remove pasta from water and place in the bowl of water. When ready to use, strain and save for a later date, or get ready to pan-fry to serve.
- Heat a pan on medium heat and add 2 swirls of olive oil. When oil shimmers, add gnocchi to the pan.
- Add strips of kale to the pan, and the leek butter, a bit at a time. Toss the pasta and kale in the sauce in the pan. Remove from heat and divide amongst serving bowls. Top with plant-based parm and enjoy!