Pumpkin Gnocchi Recipe

This pumpkin gnocchi recipe is the perfect celebration of Autumn cooking; blending classic Italian potato gnocchi with the sweetness of pumpkin, herby rusticness of pesto, and all served in baked baby pumpkin - yep, you can eat the whole thing; both the gnocchi and the pumpkin dish it comes in. It certainly should impress for any dinner party (and comes in useful if you ave any leftover pumpkins). I personally would recommend serving it with pesto; either store bought or following my woodland pesto recipe!

Prep Time: 30 Mins

Cook Time: 1.5 Hrs

Difficulty: Very Easy

Serves: 2 people

First off is getting the potato into the over at 180°c (350°f; Gas Mark 4), it will need about an hour or so; until soft through. Check after 50 minutes with a knife or skewer through the middle.

Cut a hole in the top of the miniature pumpkins with a very sharp knife and lift the lid out.

Scoop out the seeds and discard. Cut any spare flesh from the under side of the lid and place on a piece of foil. then with the sturdiest metal spoon you have, start to scrape away at the inside walls of the pumpkin - it'll take quite a bit of force to shave the pumpkin off. Place all of the shavings on the foil and season with salt and pepper. Put the foil with the shavings on in the oven with the potato and bake open for 20 minutes until they start to desaturate - you'll need them for later.

Then cut 150g (5oz) of flesh out of the regular sized pumpkin, place on another piece of foil and season. this time wrap the foil around the pumpkin and place in the over for 25-30 minutes, until soft through.

Once the potatoes are soft through, take them out of the over and cut them lengthways, leaving open to evaporate for 5 minutes.

Add 150g (5oz) of the potatoes and 150g (5oz) of the pumpkin flesh to the ricer / food mill and press through. The ricer will need 2-3 times through to properly break it down. If you don't a ricer you can mash them together; be careful not to overwork the potato though - it will lead to heavier gnocchi.

Put the riced potato into a pile, making a well in the middle. Pour a quarter of the flour over the middle, and add a beaten egg.

Using your hands, mix the potato into the egg / flour, adding a bit of flour at a time until the dough is smooth and no longer sticky. Stop adding flour at this stage, as it detracts from the potato / pumpkin taste.

You'll have to give me a bit of trust on this one... when it's fresh gnocchi, pan fried is better than boiled! You'll get this beautifully crispy edge, and it avoids the sogginess that boiling it is prone to. Once you've tried it fried, you won't go back!

In a non-stick pan, pour a little oil and salt, then put onto a low heat.

Place the gnocchi into the pan gently - try not to let them stick together. Cook on one side at a low heat until they form a golden brown edge (it'll be around a couple of minutes or so - but keep  key eye on them, they catch very quickly).

Once they're brown on one side, turn them over, either with a couple of forks or a pair of tongs, and fry the same on the other side.

Once that's done, pour the pesto into the pan and warm through.

Pour into the hollowed pumpkin and top with a little more pesto (plus the bacon crumb if using it).

One option is the serve it like this. Another is that if you now wrap it in foil and place in the over for 30-40 minutes at 160°c (320°f; Gas Mark 3) it will cook through the pumpkin and you will be able to eat the whole thing... well maybe not the stalk...

Hope you enjoy!