Potato Gnocchi with Sage Browned Butter Sauce {Powernap}
This is the latest installment of my Powernap column. The series where I share quick, easy food that can be made for all kinds of situations. Powernaps are short and sweet, and so are these recipes. These are the things I make in a jiffy when I need a quick snack, am in the mood for a recipe experiment, or simply need to clean out the pantry.
This week we’ve been in full summer mode. Everyday we’ve been taking long day trips to visit friends in neighboring towns and my daughter has been doing most of her napping in the car. This isn’t a problem, really, since I often mine the freezer or fridge for quick meals when I haven’t had a chance to cook during naptime. The other night my excavations yielded some frozen potato gnocchi (a must for any freezer!) which prompted me to head to the deck to check on my bountiful pots of herbs and pick some sage.
There are few sauces as simple and quick as an herb browned butter. Simply warm the butter and herbs together over medium-low heat until the milk solids turn a toasty light brown and sink to the bottom of the pan. Once the butter turns a light golden, remove it from the heat and pour it over the desired food. Drizzling the sage-infused butter over our freshly cooked potato gnocchi was one of the simplest meals I know how to make. In the interest of calories I only use a small amount of butter, but that is really all you need since the flavor is so strong. We enjoyed our easy meal with a side of fresh snow peas — equally as quick to make — while discussing our upcoming trip to Sag Harbor this weekend. Summer mode is fun, and the food is, too.
Recipe
Potato Gnocchi with Sage Browned Butter Sauce
Ingredients
| 1 | pound frozen potato gnocchi, thawed |
| 3 | tablespoons unsalted butter |
| 3 or 4 | fresh sage leaves |
| 1 | pinch of kosher salt |
| 2 | tablespoons of Parmesan cheese, optional |
Instructions
1. Cook the gnocchi according to package directions and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, over medium-low heat warm the butter, sage, and salt. The butter will begin to turn a golden brown and small bits of milk solids will fall to the bottom. At this point, remove it from the heat and allow it to cool slightly.
3. Toss the butter with the freshly cooked gnocchi and sprinkle each serving with a bit of Parmesan cheese.
Naptime Notes
Naptime Recipe Serving ideas
Sage Browned Butter sauce tastes wonderful over roasted vegetables, tossed with linguine or even as a dip for bread!
Naptime Stopwatch
10 minutes for the whole meal.
Naptime Reviews
This is a hit with the whole family. Even my daughter loves gnocchi so this is fun for her!
I have sage in the garden – and am always, always looking for quick supper recipes after my yoga classes. Love this!
Enjoy it, Liz! Also, Thyme or basil work well in lieu of sage if you are ever in the mood for a change! 🙂
Enjoy it, Liz! Also, Thyme or basil work well in lieu of sage if you are ever in the mood for a change! 🙂
[…] and is so easy to cook up right before dinner. Sometimes I simply buy frozen potato gnocchi and combine it with a really great sauce. With a leafy salad on the side it is a complete meal and even fits nicely into my commitment to […]
Giving this recipe a try tonight! Can’t wait.
I hope you like it Stephanie!
This was so easy and so delicious! The perfect combination and it looked so elegant. Thank you!
I am so glad Beckey!
My daughter made this tonight and it was so easy! But it looked and tasted like we were eating out! All of our teens thought it was the bomb! Thanks!
Lesley, that is the coolest story! So glad!