Pumpkin Gnocchi with Brown Butter, Sage, and Garlic Sauce

Pumpkin Gnocchi: Simple and Delicious

If you’ve never made gnocchi from scratch, the idea might sound intimidating. Pillowy little dumplings? Doughy perfection? Isn’t that something only Italian grandmothers and culinary school grads should attempt?

Nope. Not at all.

Gnocchi is actually one of the most approachable homemade dumpling dishes you can make. And when you swap the traditional potato for velvety pumpkin?

Oh, friend. You’re about to fall head over heels for pumpkin gnocchi.

What Is Gnocchi, Anyway?

Gnocchi (pronounced NYOH-kee) are small, soft dumplings that hail from Italy. They’re not pasta in the traditional flour-and-egg sense, though they’re often treated like pasta in terms of preparation and sauces.

Classic gnocchi is made with mashed potatoes, flour, egg, and sometimes cheese. The dough is rolled into ropes, cut into bite-sized pillows, and gently boiled until they float. Once cooked, gnocchi is ready for a quick sauté and a quick sauce.

These tender dumplings date back to Roman times. Early versions were made with bread crumbs or semolina before potatoes even hit the European scene. Once potatoes were introduced from the New World in the 16th century, Italians couldn’t resist swapping them in.

With roots in ancient Rome and a modern pumpkin glow-up, gnocchi is a simple and satisfying dish for the home cook.

Why Pumpkin Gnocchi Deserves a Spot in Your Dinner Lineup

Pumpkin gnocchi is everything you love about cooking and eating delicious food packed into one elegant little bite. It’s:

• Tender, a fabulous browned exterior, and earthy
• Dreamy with sage, brown butter, and garlic
• Cozy enough to count as a hug in a bowl
• Totally doable for a home cook (yes, YOU)

Pumpkin not only adds gorgeous color and flavor, but it also replaces the potato, cutting down on prep time. No boiling, peeling, or ricing potatoes here. Just scoop out your purée, mix your dough, and get rolling.

Let’s Talk Dough: Tips for Pumpkin Gnocchi Success

Don’t Skip the Sauté

Take your cooked gnocchi one step further: sauté them. A quick toss in a hot ceramic skillet with olive oil or butter gives the gnocchi crispy golden edges and adds a delicious contrast to their soft centers. It’s a simple move that transforms good gnocchi into unforgettable gnocchi.

Use a ceramic or a well-seasoned cast iron pan, cook in batches (don’t overcrowd), and let them sit undisturbed for 1–2 minutes per side to get that caramelized finish.

That golden crust? It’s the result of the Maillard reaction — a flavorful browning process that adds flavor and texture that sauces love to cling to.

I never skip this step.

Brown Butter, Sage, and Garlic: The Sauce That Makes It Sing

The beauty of this pumpkin gnocchi is how well it pairs with a simple yet deeply flavorful sauce. Enter: brown butter with sage and garlic — a trio that transforms every bite into pure bliss.

Brown butter, also known by its French name beurre noisette, is made by gently simmering butter until the water evaporates, and the milk solids toast and turn golden creating a nutty, caramel-like aroma.

Add in fresh sage leaves that crackle and crisp, plus garlic that shares all the richness of its flavors, and you’ve got a sauce simple richness and flavor that make pumpkin gnocchi sing.

Can Pumpkin Gnocchi Be a Main Dish?

Absolutely — but it’s rich. For a more balanced plate, serve it with something fresh, crisp, or protein-packed. Think:

• A bright arugula or shaved fennel salad
• Roasted Brussels sprouts with lemon
• Herbed chicken thighs
• A lentil ragu
• Grilled shrimp with a chili-lime drizzle

These pairings cut the richness and bring your plate into harmony.

Make-Ahead and Freeze Tips

Want to prep ahead? Yes, you can!

• Form the gnocchi and freeze them raw on a baking sheet until solid.
• Transfer to a freezer-safe bag and cook from frozen. They will float when they are cooked, but give them an extra minute or two in the boiling water to ensure they are heated all the way through.
• Leftover cooked gnocchi? Sauté in butter for a crispy flavor bomb the next day. They also warm quite well in the microwave.

A Cozy Invitation to the Table

Pumpkin gnocchi is more than just a recipe. It’s a celebration of simple ingredients coming together to create something extraordinary. It’s a little hands-on adventure that invites you to slow down and savor the process.

So roll up your sleeves. Dust your counter with flour. And get ready to craft a dish that’s soft, slightly crunchy on the outside, golden, and undeniably satisfying.

Because food should spark joy, invite connection, and make you proud to say, I made this.

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Pumpkin Gnocchi with Brown Butter, Sage, and Garlic Sauce

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Soft pumpkin gnocchi tossed in a brown butter with sage and garlic sauce is a scrumptious dish easily made at home.

• Author: Chef Sandra Lewis
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: 8 servings 1x

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

Gnocchi

• 1 large egg, whisked
• 3/4 cup pumpkin purée
• 1/2 cup full-fat cottage cheese
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 pinches of red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1 3/4 cups flour, divided
• unsalted butter for sautéing the cooking gnocchi
• olive oil

Brown Butter, Sage, and Garlic Sauce

• 4 tablespoons butter, unsalted
• 6–8 sage leaves
• 1 large garlic clove, smashed
• 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar, optional

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Instructions

Gnocchi

1. Combine the egg, pumpkin, cottage cheese, parmesan, salt, and nutmeg in a bowl. Stir until smooth and well blended.
2. Add 1 cup of flour and mix gently. Add more flour only as needed to bring the dough together. The dough may be sticky. Avoid overworking it.
3. Turn the dough out onto your countertop that’s been generously dusted with flour. If needed work some additional flour into the dough to bring it together.
4. Create a log with the dough, about 9″x3″, then cut into three sections with a bench scraper.
5. Working with one section at a time, roll into a rope about 8″x1″.
6. Cut into individual 1″ pieces with your bench scraper and place the cut pieces on a parchment paper lined sheet tray. Repeat with the remaining two sections.
7. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt the boiling water generously with kosher salt.
8. Add the gnocchi to the boiling, salted water in three batches. The gnocchi are ready when they float to the top of the pot. Remove them to a sheet tray with a spider or slotted spoon.
9. Melt a tablespoon or two in a ceramic skillet along with some olive oil over medium heat.
10. Sauté the gnocchi in the ceramic skillet, leaving them undisturbed for two minutes to crisp and brown them. Turn them and sauté another two minutes or so until you reach the desired browning.
11. Remove them with a spatula to a serving dish and drizzle the brown butter over the top.

Brown Butter, Sage, and Garlic Sauce

1. Melt the butter in a small skillet over low heat.
2. Add the sage leaves and the smashed garlic.
3. The butter will foam and turn golden brown, and the sage will crisp. You’ll see browned bits of milk solids on the bottom of the skillet. This process will take 4-5 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and remove the sage leaves and garlic, reserving the sage leaves for garnish.
5. Add 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar and stir.
6. Pour the sauce over the gnocchi.
7. Garnish with the sage leaves. (That sautéed garlic is pure gold. Chop it and add it to your dish or draw straws to see who gets to enjoy it whole.)

Notes

• The nutritional values are calculated based on 1/2 cup for a serving. If you serve this as an entrée, the serving size will be 1 cup and double the calories.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1/2 cup
• Calories: 257
• Sugar: 1.5 g
• Sodium: 263.6 mg
• Fat: 12 g
• Saturated Fat: 6.2 g
• Trans Fat: 0 g
• Carbohydrates: 29.6 g
• Fiber: 2 g
• Protein: 8.5 g
• Cholesterol: 48.2 mg