Il Cucinologo
EN

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Taleggio Sauce

17/11/2023

Pumpkin gnocchi with taleggio sauce are a rich and tasty first course, an autumnal variant of traditional potato gnocchi. Here is a recipe to prepare them:

Ingredients

  • 1 kg pumpkin
  • 300-400 g 00 flour
  • 1 egg
  • Salt
  • Nutmeg
  • 200 g taleggio
  • 100 ml cooking cream
  • grated Parmesan
  • Fresh sage
  • Butter
  • Pepper

Preparation

  1. Cut the pumpkin into pieces, removing the seeds and fibrous parts. Cook it in the oven at 180 °C until it becomes soft. This should take about 30-40 minutes. Afterwards, let it cool.
  2. Once cooled, pass the pumpkin through a food mill or blend it until you obtain a puree.
  3. In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin puree with the egg, a pinch of salt, and a little grated nutmeg. Start adding the flour little by little, working the dough until it becomes homogeneous and solid enough to be handled with your hands, but still soft.
  4. Flour a work surface and take small portions of the pumpkin dough to roll into ropes. Cut the ropes into small pieces to form the gnocchi.
  5. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the gnocchi until they rise to the surface, indicating they are ready.
  6. While the gnocchi are cooking, prepare the taleggio sauce. Cut the taleggio into cubes and melt them over low heat with the cream, adding a handful of grated Parmesan to make the sauce thicker. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
  7. In another pan, melt a knob of butter and add a few sage leaves. Let the butter take on flavor for a couple of minutes.
  8. Drain the gnocchi and add them to the pan with the butter and sage, tossing lightly to coat them with flavor.
  9. Arrange the gnocchi on plates and nap them with the taleggio sauce. Serve hot with a grating of pepper and, if desired, an extra touch of Parmesan.

Trivia

Taleggio is a Lombard cheese with a soft paste and a particularly delicate flavor. It pairs perfectly with the sweetness of pumpkin, creating a tasty contrast much appreciated in Italian autumn cuisine. Sage adds a pungent aroma that balances the entire dish. Pumpkin gnocchi also lend themselves well to variations, such as adding crumbled amaretti on the sauce for an extra crunchy and sweet note.