Gnocchi Parisienne with roasted pumpkin and sage butter
Serves 4
– 135ml water
– 90g butter
– 2 tsp salt
– 1 cup flour
– 3 eggs
– ½ cup grated parmesan
– 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
– 1kg firm pumpkin – butternut or Queensland blue – peeled and
cut into 1.5cm dice
– 60ml olive oil
– 200g unsalted butter
– ⅓ cup sage leaves
– shaved parmesan, to serve Bring the water, butter and salt to the boil, making sure the butter is melted before the water boils. Stir in the flour as you would for choux pastry. Cook and stir until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan. Remove from the heat and put in the bowl of a stand mixer or a mixing bowl. Cool for five minutes. With the paddle attachment fitted to the machine, or using a wooden spoon, add the eggs, one at a time, and then the cheese and mustard.
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Turn to a simmer. Place the gnocchi dough in a piping bag with a plain 0.75-centimetre nozzle. Working quickly, squeeze the dough out of the bag and into the hot water, cutting it off with a small knife every two centimetres. Continue until you have done a quarter of the mix. As it cooks, the gnocchi will rise to the surface. Simmer for about three minutes and then lift the gnocchi out into an iced-water bath. Continue in this manner until all the dough is used. The gnocchi should then be drained and tossed in a little oil. It can be kept like this in the refrigerator for three to four days.
Preheat your oven to 200ºC. Toss the diced pumpkin in olive oil, place in baking dish in a single layer and bake until soft and slightly caramelised (about 20 minutes). Place gnocchi in an ovenproof serving dish, scatter with the pumpkin and return to the oven until puffy and golden (about 15 minutes). When nearly done, place the butter in a small saucepan and cook over a low heat for four to five minutes until the butter starts to turn brown. Add the sage leaves and cook for about one minute or until crisp. Make sure the butter is a lovely nutty brown. Remove the gnocchi from the oven, then pour over the butter and sage leaves. Garnish with curls of parmesan.