Luckily, sweet potatoes have been extremely cheap and I happened to by a lot the last time I went to the store. And when I say cheap, I mean it (.25 cents a pound!). Did I mention I'm in graduate school??? This is a better deal than buying Ramen Noodles! Also, sweet potatoes are GREAT for you, check out this article by "Fast Fit Tips," where they discuss all the health benefits sweet potatoes have to offer. There is nothing I love more than a vegetable that tastes great (literally like candy) and that is also good for you. The only thing I need to find out is how many is too many?!
As I stated before, I followed a really great recipe for how to make the sweet potato gnocchi and I will have the link below in the actual recipe. At first I was afraid and worried that they wouldn't turn out well, but I was not only impressed at how easy it was to make them, but also at how delicious they really were. I had seen these made many times on The Food Network channel and also on Top Chef, but never thought I could make them. Well, I decided to experiment and it was worth it! If you are still too nervous, or you just don't have the time, you can always pick some up at your local specialty market. They often have different types of Gnocchi, and it's often not very expensive (BONUS!).
P.S. I would recommend preparing your chicken first. You can boil it, buy a roasted chicken, or grill it. It's really your preference here. I liked the idea of just throwing it in a pot and not having to worry about it for 15 minutes, but that's just me.
Sweet Potato Gnocchi:
I adapted these gnocchi from a recipe I found on All Recipes. The original recipe is here if you'd like to see it.
1 Large Sweet Potato
4-5 Roasted Garlic Cloves - mashed
1 Cup Flour
1 Egg
Salt and Pepper to taste
** yields - two hefty servings
1. To begin, cook your sweet potato. You can do this by wrapping it in foil and baking it for about 30 minutes at 350-375 degrees until the potato is soft and squishy to the touch, OR you can poke the sweet potato a few times with a fork, put it in the microwave and cook it for 5 minutes, and then flip the potato over and cook it for another 5 minutes. (Do whichever one you prefer.... I personally like the microwave better. I'm not that patient)
2. Take the sweet potato out of the microwave/oven and set aside until it has cooled enough for you to handle it.
3. In a bowl, mash up the roasted garlic cloves, sprinkle with salt and pepper and add the egg. Mix the ingredients well and when the sweet potato is ready, open up the skin and put the yummy goodness from inside in the bowl.
4. Mix the sweet potato with the egg and garlic mixture until it is all incorporated. Begin adding flower 1/4 Cup at a time. you may not need a full cup or you may need more. Add enough until it begins to turn into a dough. Mine was a little under a cup once I finished.
5. Flour your counter top and roll the dough out into a "snake" (yep, just like you did with Play-doh). Cut the "snake" into 1/2" pieces and set aside. At this point, you can roll each individual Gnocchi along the back of a fork to get the signature marks, but this is not necessary and I found it to be tedious and waste of time.
6. In a slightly salted large pot of boiling water, add in the Gnocchi, being sure to not splash and burn yourself (I did this... a lot - learn from my mistakes). Once the Gnocchi float to the top scoop them out using a slotted ladle.
7. Set the Gnocchi aside and begin preparing the sauce.
Brown Butter Sauce:
This brown butter sauce was great, but Blake and I both decided it would be have been better if it was more of a cream based sauce. The Gnocchi, although delicious, could have used a little more savoriness (did I just make up a word?), and I think having a cream based sauce really would have pushed this dish over the edge.
**The recipe below has the cream added in, so it will look different than in the picture above.
1/2 Sweet Onion - diced
4-5 Garlic Cloves - minced
3 Tbs. Butter
1-2 Tbs. Olive Oil
1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese
1/4 Cup Heavy Cream
1/4 Cup White Wine
Pinch of Red Pepper Flakes
Salt and Pepper to taste
1. Begin by melting the butter until it begins to brown over medium heat. You will actually begin to see the butter begin to change color. It should take a few minutes, but be sure not to burn it. It usually begins to smell really good at this point too!
2. Add in the olive oil and onions, sauteing for a few minutes. Just as the onions begin to wilt add in the garlic and red pepper flakes. You add this in after, because burning the garlic makes it taste very terrible. Be sure NOT to do this.
3. Continue cooking the onion mixture until they become translucent. Add the wine and let it cook off for a few minutes. This will take about 3-4 minutes. You want to allow the wine to cook long enough to cook off all of the alcohol.
4. Finally, add in the cream the Parmesan cheese and again let the sauce cook until it thickens. Continue stirring the sauce to make sure it cooks evenly and do not allow it to come to a boil. You want this sauce to simply simmer. (little bubbles)
5. Now that your sauce is finished, you will want to get out a large saute pan. Add a tsp. or twoolive oil to the pan and add the previously cooked Gnocchi and chicken. Allow the Gnocchi to saute for a few, letting them get some color and warm all the way through. Pour the sauce over top and mix the ingredients thoroughly.
6. Serve and top with parsley and Parmesan cheese!
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