Spinach Gnocchi Recipe

spinach gnocchi with butter sage sauce in blue skillet

Spinach gnocchi with butter sage sauce, a twist on traditional potato gnocchi. Follow my step by step instructions and tips for perfect gnocchi!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 40

Servings servings

Calories 775kcal

Author Nadia Fazio

Ingredients

For the gnocchi:

2 pounds russet potatoes 900 grams, approximately 4-6 potatoes
3-3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
250g grams frozen spinach thawed and squeezed to remove excess water

For butter sage sauce:

⅓ cup butter
1 handful fresh sage leaves hand torn or chopped
Parmigiano cheese for serving

Instructions

Begin by boiling the peeled potatoes in a large pot of salted water until tender. Drain well and allow to cool slightly.
Pass the potatoes through a potato ricer or alternately mash with a fork. The potatoes should be light and fluffy unlike the consistency of mashed potatoes.
Make a well in the center of the mound, add the eggs. Squeeze the excess water from the spinach, chop finely and sprinkle over the eggs and potatoes. Sprinkle salt over the ingredients.
Add 3 cups of the flour around the edges of the potato mixture.
Use a fork to lightly beat the eggs, combining them with the spinach and potatoes. Use your hands to gradually mix in the flour around the edges, using only what is needed to form a dough that is not sticky. Only if absolutely necessary, add extra flour. A dough scraper may come in handy at this point to help gather all the bits of dough. Do not over knead, the dough should be light and airy. This will take about 10 minutes.
Divide the dough into 4 pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a long rope of approximately ½ inch in diameter. Use the palms of your hands and your fingertips to exert a light pressure on the dough, rolling from the center outwards to form an even shaped rope. Use a sharp knife to cut into 1 inch pieces.
Form an indentation in the gnocchi by pressing down lightly with your thumb to roll each gnocchi on the wood board. These grooves will help the sauce adhere to the gnocchi.
Place gnocchi on a parchment covered baking sheet lightly dusted with flour to prevent from sticking. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add gnocchi and stir. When they have all risen to the surface, drain well and add to the butter sage sauce. Serve hot topped with grated Parmigiano cheese.

For the butter sage sauce

In a deep wide skillet large enough to pour the cooked gnocchi into, melt the butter on medium heat. Add the sage leaves. When the gnocchi are ready, add a ladle full or 2 of pasta water into the butter sage sauce to thicken it before adding the drained gnocchi to the pan.

Notes

I like the marbled look of chopped spinach in the dough, however you may purée the spinach before adding it to the dough.
Traditional pasta dough requires a resting period before rolling. Do not let gnocchi dough rest or place in the refrigerator before rolling, you will have a sticky, mushy dough on hand!
The key to making gnocchi is to handle the dough with a light hand, as opposed to bread dough which requires vigorous kneading.
When making gnocchi dough gradually incorporate the flour into the potato/egg mixture until a dough which is neither too firm nor too sticky is formed.
Don't fret! As you begin this process you will have a crumbly mess of potatoes and flour on your work surface that you think will never turn into dough. Patience is required!
In order to test if the dough is ready for rolling, break off a small piece of dough and roll in the palm of your hands. If it doesn't stick, it's ready to roll. Otherwise add more flour.
Avoid adding too much flour to your work surface or hands when rolling the dough into ropes. This will make the dough slip on the work surface and make it very difficult to roll.
When rolling the dough, if it becomes too difficult to handle as it lengthens, cut in half and continue rolling.
Use the tines of a fork or even a cheese grater if you don't have a gnocchi board.
If the dough sticks when rolling onto the gnocchi board, dust the board with a bit of flour.
You can make gnocchi ahead of time as they freeze well. As you shape the gnocchi, lay them flat on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper which has been lightly floured. Place in the freezer and once they are completely frozen, transfer to a freezer bag.
Note that frozen gnocchi will take longer to cook. When you dump them in the boiling water, cover the pot until the water comes back to a boil.

Nutrition