Pumpkin Gnocchi with Sage Brown Butter Sauce

I friggin love pumpkins. I buy so many for my front porch, you can hardly get in the door! I justify my purchases by keeping them in the cold storage room in my basement and eating them over the winter. They are great for soups and casseroles, but this pumpkin gnocchi recipe is by far my favourite.

For the pasta

2 1/2 cups pumpkin, cooked and mashed

2 tsp salt, divided

Olive oil

2 1/4 cups flour

1 egg

pinch of nutmeg

For the sauce

4 ounces (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/4 cup fresh sage leaves, chopped

1/8 tsp. ground black pepper

Kosher salt, to taste

Preheat your oven to 400F (200C).

Cut the pumpkin in half and remove the seeds. Use 1 1/2 tsp of salt to cover the cut sides. Cover the cut sides and a baking sheet with olive oil and place the pumpkin halves, cut side down, on the sheet. Bake until a knife inserted into the pumpkin meets no resistance.

Leave to cook and peel off the pumpkin skin. Mash the pumpkin and place 2 1/2 cups on the baking sheet. Bake for another 4 minutes to remove moisture.

Add mashed pumpkin to a medium mixing bowl. Add the rest of the salt and the nutmeg and mix well. Add the flour and egg and mix gently until a soft dough forms.

Roll the dough into balls, handling it as little as possible. Use a toothpick or the back of a butter knife to gently press segments into each gnocchi ball to look like a pumpkin.

In a pot of boiling, salted water, gently add the gnocchi pumpkins. Boil until the gnocchi rises to the top and then scoop them out with a slotted spoon.

In a medium pot over a medium heat, melt the butter. When it begins to foam, add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Then add the chopped sage and cook for another 4 minutes or until the butter is light brown with a nutty aroma.

Remove the sauce from the heat and season with black pepper and salt.

Dish up your gnocchi and cover with the brown butter sauce. Serve immediately.