These dessert gnocchi are served with a delicious balsamic strawberry sauce and white chocolate-dipped blueberries. It might all sound unusual, but everything comes together as a truly tasty treat.
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OK, first things first - I know, you might already think this is a bit odd from the title, but believe me this is one incredibly tasty dish so do bear with me. If you've read this blog for any length of time you have probably heard me mention my son's extreme love of gnocchi which, thankfully, is one we enjoy too. There's something about enjoying those soft pillowy lumps that's so comforting.
Now I know there would be no need to persuade him to eat something that was both gnocchi AND dessert. Not to mention the fact there's a bit of chocolate in there, but that wasn't what led me to this. The idea for this dish comes from a whole different direction: poutine. Yes, you read that right, the French-Canadian fries with gravy and cheese curds thing. Somehow I got from poutine to dessert gnocchi. Let me explain...
The challenge
You may have seen me mention before, or you may have come across it elsewhere, that January is National Sunday Supper Month and there are lots of things going on to celebrate - in fact today is Sunday Supper Day. Another part of the celebration is a competition in collaboration with Idaho® potatoes, one of Sunday Supper's partners. The challenge was to create a poutine-inspired dish which sounded like too much fun to pass up.
You see, last year I didn't manage to attend the Food and Wine Conference but apparently they had a poutine bar which everyone raved about and I believe that's what sparked this competition.
Why, I'll never know, but I decided to challenge myself to creating a dessert 'poutine'. After a couple other ideas, I fell on our beloved gnocchi to become the star. I wanted to make a dish that looked fairly like 'real' poutine but with dessert flavors.
This led me to thinking about a dark fruit sauce as 'gravy' then I had the idea to dip blueberries in white chocolate as the 'curds'. With Florida Strawberries also being a Sunday Supper partner, it seemed only right to make a strawberry sauce and so with a few more tweaks, this dessert gnocchi dish was born.
The flavors of this dessert gnocchi
I can understand you may still be skeptical and thinking it's all well and good to put things together to look the part, but what about when you eat it? I admit even I was pleasantly surprised with how well this dessert gnocchi turned out. Of course I picked things I thought would go well, but they all worked even better than I expected.
I purposely didn't actually sweeten the gnocchi since the sauce was going to be sweet, and they paired perfectly. The mascarpone, egg yolk and hint of lemon zest in the gnocchi make them smooth and rich but also perfect for taking on the sauce's flavor.
The sauce is wonderfully aromatic from the strawberries, as you'd expect. There's also a slight edge from the balsamic vinegar which intensifies the flavor somehow. While the white chocolate-coated blueberries were in there more as a bit of fun, they really add to the dish as the white chocolate gently melts into the sauce with a luscious creaminess.
Then the blueberries give a lovely fresh burst that contrasts nicely with the rich softness of everything else. Have I convinced you yet? Well, just give it a try, as it's also not that hard to make and is so delicious.
How to make dessert gnocchi
For the sauce, you simply warm some pureed strawberries with a little balsamic vinegar and some sugar. Allow it to cook a little to thicken slightly and bring out the flavor. Drop the blueberries into some melted white chocolate and roll to coat them. Scoop them out and set aside to dry/harden.
Making gnocchi is a lot easier than you might think and this is a relatively 'dry' dough that's pretty easy to work with. You simply cook the potatoes, mash them, then once cool add the other ingredients to form a dough. Roll little logs and cut in chunks.
To cook, drop them in to boiling water a few at a time and when they float to the top, they are done. Scoop them out, pop in a bowl, pour over the sauce and dot some blueberries on top. Then dive in and be in awe of the deliciousness you are eating.
Dessert gnocchi might not be the first thing you think of for dessert, nor the first thing you might think to be inspired by poutine. But believe me it really works and is such a delicious dish. Will it win me the competition? Who knows, but I certainly enjoyed making and eating it, and I am pretty sure you will too.
Try these other tasty desserts:
- Swedish cheesecake (ostkaka)
- Chocolate raspberry almond tart
- Blueberry galette
- Plus get more dessert recipes in the archives.
Dessert gnocchi with balsamic strawberry sauce
Ingredients
- 1 oz white chocolate 30g, approx
- 14 blueberries approx
For the sauce
- 1 cup strawberries 160g, washed and hulled
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp sugar or a little more, to taste
For the gnocchi
- 8 oz potatoes 225g, peeled weight (approx 9oz with skins)
- ½ cup all purpose flour 70g plain flour
- 3 tbsp mascarpone 50g
- 1 egg yolk
- ¼ lemon zest a few fine gratings, from approx ¼ lemon
Instructions
- First cook the potatoes for the gnocchi. Cut the peeled potatoes into chunks and place in a pan with plenty water. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a low boil. Cook for around 7-10min until the potatoes are tender to a knifepoint. Drain, mash (or put through a ricer) and set aside to cool.
- Meanwhile, melt the white chocolate. One way is by cutting into chunks, putting in a microwavable bowl and cooking in the microwave for 20-30 seconds at a time, then stirring, until it has melted, around 1min. Alternatively, put a bowl with the chocolate over a bowl with boiling water in it so the hot water comes up the side but not into the chocolate bowl.
- Once the chocolate has melted, put a few blueberries in at a time and roll them in the chocolate with a small spoon so all sides are lightly covered. Scoop them out with the spoon, letting excess chocolate drip off. Try to just scoop the blueberry rather than a spoonful of chocolate. Place them to dry/harden on a cookie sheet or parchment paper. Repeat with all of your blueberries. Once they have hardened a bit, you can smooth off any drips so they are fairly uniform.
For the sauce
- For the strawberry sauce, halve the strawberries then pulse them in a food processor or blender until pureed.
- Place the strawberries in a small pan with the balsamic vinegar and heat over a medium heat, stirring now and then, until it comes through the boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook around 7-10 minutes. After a few minutes, carefully (so you don't burn your tongue!) test the mixture and add the sugar to taste, stirring in so it dissolves. The exact amount depends on how sweet the strawberries are. Remove from heat and set aside once it has cooked long enough to thicken up slightly.
- While the strawberries are cooking, make up the gnocchi by adding the flour, mascarpone, egg yolk and lemon zest to the cooled mashed potatoes and mixing until well combined. You might need to finish it off by hand.
For the gnocchi
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and break off chunks at a time and roll the mixture into logs. Cut chunks from the log that are small bite-sized pieces and set aside on a floured surface. Repeat with all of the mixture.
- Bring a shallow pan of water to a boil over a relatively high heat then cook the gnocchi in batches so you don't overcrowd the pan. Make sure the water stays boiling as you cook. The gnocchi will float to the surface once they are ready. If they don't do this after a minute or two, nudge them with a spoon as they may have stuck to the bottom of the pan.
- Remove the cooked gnocchi from the pan with a slotted spoon and serve with the balsamic strawberry sauce poured over the top and topped with your white chocolate-dipped blueberries and enjoy.
Nutrition
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Frugal Hausfrau
Wow, this is interesting - I wondered when I pulled up the post, to tell you the truth! I can really see how all these flavors would come together, though.
Thanks for linking up with us on Throwback Thursday - we appreciate it, and are always looking forward to next week's posts, too!! 🙂 Be sure to follow our pinterest board, too! 🙂
Mollie
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks, I appreciate it might seem a little odd but it honestly does work really well! Thanks for hosting as well.
Linda
Delicious! I love how you used the gnocchi as a dessert! So yummy!!
Thanks for bringing this to Fiesta Friday 🙂
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Linda, they are indeed delicious!
Christie
Okay. I HAVE to make gnocchi. They look so simple and delicious. I love this spin on the traditionally savory ingredient. I'm always looking to mix things up and bit and this really does inspire me!
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Christie. I only started making my own gnocchi about 3 years ago and now I can't imagine buying them and they're a regular in our house! This is a tasty variation on the norm as well.
Elaine @ foodbod
I think there's nothing better than challenging yourself, and it looks to me like you did a great job! I guess gnocchi are a carrier really aren't they, it's just that we usually think of them as a savoury thing. Great work! Thank you for sharing this with everyone at Fiesta Friday 🙂
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Elaine, and I agree it's good to challenge yourself - you feel even better if it works out! Gnocchi are indeed something that can carry a variety of flavors, I think. I see more experimenting ahead!
Michelle@The Complete Savorist
This stretches creative to new bounds. I have had a lot of typically savory things for dessert, and vice versa, but never had a potato dessert. You are a genius.
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Michelle, that's very kind!
Joy @ Joy Love Food
What a creative dish, I've never had gnocchi as a dessert before, it sounds delicious, I love those white chocolate dipped blueberry "curds"!
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Joy, the blueberries are great like that! And they go so well here too.
Jade @ Jonesin' For Taste
We are huge gnocchi fans as well and although this dish does sound a little crazy I think it could still be a big hit with the family! I love creative dishes.
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Jade, sometimes a little crazy is good 🙂
KC the Kitchen Chopper
Dessert Gnocchi is something I never would have thought of. I love the idea with the strawberry and balsamic. And of course the chocolate. Super creative.
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks KC, they are all so tasty and great together.
Analida's Ethnic Spoon
I love strawberries and balsamic! This looks fantastic!
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Analida, strawberries and balsamic vinegar are so tasty, aren't they.
Denise Wright
What an awesome dish! I have never heard of dessert gnocchi.....sounds delicious!
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Denise, can't quite remember how I got to the idea but so glad I did, it's delicious!
Kristen @ A Mind Full Mom
This is so creative Caroline! I love that you put a dessert spin on gnocci.
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Kristen, it works so well, I might need to make some other versions!
Liz
This sounds amazing!!! SO very creative!
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks Liz, it's delicious too!
Hezzi-D
Awesome idea! This looks delicious and I love all of the flavors together
Caroline's Cooking
Thank you, it is indeed a great combination!