Homemade Pumpkin Ricotta Gnocchi

If you never made pumpkin gnocchi you will love this super easy recipe. It has ricotta so you know they will be soft and tender. Once you have the ingredients measured, this dish is ready in less than 40 minutes! And they can be frozen, so make a large batch and enjoy them fresh every time. 

Originally published in 2013, this post has been updated with text and images to serve you better. The recipe remains the same. 

As if homemade pumpkin gnocchi wasn't good enough, I went ahead and drowned them in brown butter flavored with blue cheese. That extraordinary thing that is butter when browned just got a little saltier, more luscious, oh my, just wonderful.

I basically took a fantastic plate of pillowy gnocchi to the next level. Sorry about the self-congratulation, but this plate of pasta deserves it. It really does. 

Ingredients

• Ricotta: is an Italian soft cheese with a mild flavor. It gives this gnocchi moisture and texture. The soft type is needed for this recipe which is easily available in supermarkets and you can also buy ricotta online. We use a lot of ricotta cheese in this blog. Big fans.
• Pumpkin or Butternut squash: I use homemade pumpkin puree but canned works fine too.
• Egg yolks: they bind the mixture and add creaminess.
• Cheeses: I'm very partial to good parmesan cheese, but asiago works well too. And blue cheese if you're making the sauce.
• Flour: all-purpose works well.
• Brown butter: it's very easy to make it, and we have a post with detailed video instructions on how to make brown butter. The flavor is magical and perfect for these gnocchi.

Making gnocchi is, in my opinion, the best way to start making homemade pasta. Though it's not the pasta we think of when we think of eating homemade noodles, it is a great way to practice with flour and doughs.

Easy steps

• Mixing - I use a large wooden bowl but any other works. Make sure it's large enough to accommodate all the ingredients. Also, I use a wooden spoon, but if you're more comfortable with a spatula, use it. I find that a wooden spoon mixes everything better.
• Grated cheese - beware of Microplane graters that are too small holed as the cheese tends to clump and doesn't distribute well. I like to use medium-sized graters.
• By hand - we want to mix everything well but not beat it, because we don't want to add too much air to the dough.

Adding flour

So, we have our homemade gnocchi dough ready. Now comes the tricky part, and what is, in my opinion, the crucial step for making light and airy gnocchi vs. tough, average gnocchi:

It all comes down to how much flour you add to it.

Doughs, in general, behave differently depending on many factors.

Temperature and moisture play a big role, and that includes both the temperature of your kitchen or room where the gnocchi are being made, the amount of moisture in the ingredients (ricotta and pumpkin puree can vary a lot depending on the brand or how you drain it) and the temperature of your hands,

That's why I will forever say that practice is everything when it comes to pasta, doughs, and bread. Practice, practice, practice! Become a master at knowing how the gnocchi dough should feel and not only be guided by the amount of flour in the recipe.

This recipe works!

Make no mistake, this recipe works and I have made homemade gnocchi a million times through the years. But the type of ricotta cheese and/or squash puree you use will add more or less liquid to the dough, and because of that we almost always need to adjust.

So, how much flour is enough?

The dough should feel soft and you should be able to roll it into a thin rope with your hands. But, it should not be firm as for example a pie crust dough. That would mean that you added too much flour.

It should not be sticky either, but you should only add enough flour to roll it and be able to cut small pieces.

How to freeze gnocchi

One of the best parts of making homemade gnocchi is that you can spend a few hours once in a while, make a large quantity and then freeze it. That way you have made-to-order fresh pumpkin ricotta gnocchi every time you crave it!

1. Roll the dough and cut it in small pieces.
2. Put them in a lightly floured baking sheet (image above) separated from each other.
3. Freeze directly in the sheet. When they are completely frozen and rock-solid transfer the gnocchi to a plastic bag or container and keep frozen.
4. When ready to cook, boil them directly from the freezer.

My number one tip:

Make a test boil first with a small amount of gnocchi!

1. Make the initial mixture according to the recipe.
2. Have ready a boiling pot of salted water.
3. Take a small amount, maybe ¼ cup, and roll it on a floured counter until you have a rope.
4. Cut the gnocchi and add it the water. Let them rise to the surface, take them out with a skimmer or hand colander and try them.
5. You will know instantly. They will either rise with their original shape or they will disintegrate and you will have more of a boiled puree than gnocchi.
6. I recommend you also put them in the freezer for 5 minutes before boiling them. They tend to keep their shape better.
7. Beneath that, you find bites of pale orange pumpkin with ricotta, so smooth they will make you a convert if you had any doubt about making homemade gnocchi, which is only a matter of practice and lightness of fingers.

Homemade pasta is a wonder, the results so different and better, it is worth the effort. 

More tips & tricks

• Moisture: ingredients vary a lot in moisture content and that is the main reason for failure. Not enough flour and you have pumpkin ricotta puree, the balls melding into one big mess; too much flour and they keep their shape wonderfully but you run the risk of cracking a tooth – an exaggeration I know, but then you should’ve seen my first attempt at potato gnocchi.
• Texture: so it's all about knowing what the right texture is, which in this recipe's case, is about being able to make a rope but not lift it up easily from the table. That way you'll get gorgeous gnocchi that freezes perfectly well; so spend some time making a big batch and then freeze them for later times. Talk about a great quick dinner.
• Butter sauce: pumpkin and pasta are commonly paired with butter and herbs, especially sage. The idea is not to overpower the soft flavor of the pasta. So the amount of blue cheese is given by how strong it is.
• Organization: making gnocchi is easy if you organize your working space and ingredients, much like making marshmallows. There's no need to panic if you've read the recipe through and have enough table space to work on.
• Ridges: I don't roll them down the fork to make the characteristic ridges, because they are extremely tender, and I'd have to make a much firmer dough (read: add more flour) in order to be able to make the indentations.

Other similar recipes you might like:
Leftover Pasta Fritatta
Bruschetta with ricotta, bacon, and tomatoes
Easy Baked Mac and Cheese

Let me know in the comments below if you make this recipe! I’d love to hear what you think about it. Thank you for being here, I appreciate it! Let’s connect via Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.

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