Gluten Free Vegan Pumpkin Gnocchi Recipe

What is Gluten Free Pumpkin Gnocchi?

Pumpkin Gnocchi is a perfect dish for the fall season. It combines two of my favorite things, pumpkin, and gnocchi, into an easy-to-make meal.

This delicious recipe combines pumpkin and potatoes and produces wonderful, golden gnocchi with a distinctive sweet flavor. Finished off in a savory butter-sage infused sauce (with a dairy-free and vegan option) this recipe will keep you warm this fall.

This is a perfect recipe for a special dinner with your family and friends, or even for an at-home date/romantic night in.

This recipe is near and dear to my heart because pumpkin gnocchi was one of the first meals I ever made by myself when I was eight years old. I found a recipe printed in the food section of our newspaper and tried making it when my mom was late coming home from errands one afternoon. (I know, I was not a normal eight-year-old.)

Gluten-free pumpkin gnocchi recipe

Gnocchi is a traditional Italian dish that's typically made with potato and flour. But this recipe is made with gluten-free flour and pumpkin in addition to mashed potatoes, which is a great alternative so even those who are gluten intolerant or have celiac disease can enjoy festive fall pumpkin gnocchi.

How to make gnocchi dough at home

A lot of people avoid making their own gnocchi dough because they think it's difficult. But with the right recipe, you can make your own dough in just a few minutes.

All you need is gluten-free flour, salt, potatoes, and canned pumpkin puree.

Let's get started!

Ingredients for gluten free pumpkin gnocchi:

Gluten-free pumpkin gnocchi recipe is a perfect dish for the holiday season. It is gluten-free, vegan, and it can be served as a side dish or a main course.

To make this pumpkin gnocchi recipe, you'll need the following ingredients:

• pumpkin puree
• gluten-free flour
• potatoes
• salt

A Detailed Step-by-Step Guide to Making Gluten Free Vegan Pumpkin Gnocchi

Gluten-free vegan pumpkin gnocchi is a dish that is perfect for the holiday season. It’s hearty and satisfying, with a perfect balance of sweet and savory flavors.

This pumpkin gnocchi are easy to make, gluten free, and vegan-friendly. They're also nut-free, if you omit the pine nuts in the sauce. so they can easily be enjoyed by anyone with food allergies. They're light and fluffy, made with a pumpkin puree for the perfect fall flavor. You can try to make them sweet by adding a dash of cinnamon to your pumpkin gnocchi dough, and adding a drizzle of honey to the sauce.

This dish is gluten-free, vegan, dairy free, and sugar-free.

It can be made ahead of time and frozen or kept in the fridge for up to two days.

It's also an excellent dish if you're looking to increase your consumption of vegetables this season! Pumpkin is rich in beta carotene, vitamin C and potassium.

How to make vegan pumpkin gnocchi dough

First, cook the potatoes.

Place a pot filled with water and add salt. Then, turn the heat to high under the pot.

In the meantime, peel the skins off the potatoes and boil them until they are soft enough to mash.

Strain the water from the potatoes then put them into a mixing bowl. Use a potato masher (or fork) to mash them. You could use leftover potatoes, if you didn’t add too many other ingredients to them, but I think it is easier to make gnocchi from warm freshly mashed potatoes.

Next, add the pumpkin purée, salt, and gluten free flour into the same mixing bowl, and combine the ingredients until you form a dough. 

Note: to make sure your gnocchi is more or less the same size, weigh the dough and divide it into smaller pieces of the same weight.

How do you roll gnocchi pasta dough?

Now, use gluten-free flour to dust your hands and the table surface before placing the dough.

Take the first piece of dough and roll it into a snake or log about ½ inch thick.

With the help of a sharp knife or spatula, trim the gnocchi pieces to the same length and place them on a tray.

Repeat the same process until you finish the dough. 

How do you shape gnocchi pasta?

Making gnocchi pasta dough is not difficult. Roll the dough into a long log and cut it into 1-inch pieces.

Use a gentle hand, and be careful not to overwork the dough so your gnocchi stays tender.

To help my sauce stick to the gluten free gnocchi, I like to roll my gnocchi over something to give it texture.

I don’t have a gnocchi board (lucky you if you do) so I usually roll each gnocchi over the back of fork tines to give it little ridges. This gives the sauce something to stick to.

I’ve seen people roll it over all kinds of things, in the Great American Recipe on PBS a competitor rolled it over the rough edge of a rustic serving platter cut from a log that had bark on it.

How to roll Gnocchi with a fork, the Italian way 

Place a fork on the table but flip it; the curved part has to be on top.

Take a gnocchi piece and carefully press it with your thumb against the top of the fork, making sure to roll the gnocchi piece to the table.

It really is that easy!

Yes, this takes a while but will help your gnocchi to hold onto the delicious butter and sage sauce we’ll be making.

How to cook gluten free gnocchi:

To cook your vegan pumpkin gnocchi, place the shaped gnocchi into the fridge for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime, take a pot filled with salted water and bring it to a boil. 

Note: Make sure the pot is big enough for the gnocchi portions; otherwise, they will stick together. Use more water than you think you’ll need.

Once the water is boiling, place the gnocchi into the pot and gently stir so they won't stick to the bottom.

Once the gnocchi starts floating to the surface (it takes 3-5 minutes), strain them and place them into a hot frying pan with some butter or olive oil.

Pan-fry into medium heat, tossing around all the ingredients until they mix and the gnocchi fries enough to become slightly crispy.

Top up with some fried sage and vegan parmesan cheese, or your favorite toppings or sauce.

How to make sage butter sauce for pumpkin gnocchi:

While you wait for the water to boil, take a frying pan and pour 1 or 2 spoons of vegan butter and pan-fry your fresh sage until they become darker and crispy.

Remove the sage and toast the pine nuts until they become darker. 

Now, chop the onion and sun-dried tomatoes into juliennes.

Pan-fry the onions with remaining vegan butter until they soften enough; add the tomatoes, salt & black pepper to taste, pine nuts and mix all the ingredients.

Remove from heat and set it aside.

After you finish boiling your gluten-free pumpkin gnocchi, panfry it in the pan from making the sauce, in the leftover butter.

Once your pumpkin gnocchi are crisp, add the onions, sun-dried tomatoes, sage, and pine nuts back to the pan and serve.

Gluten free vegan pumpkin gnocchi recipe

This pumpkin gnocchi recipe is delicious, hearty and healthy.

How to make vegan pumpkin gnocchi:

The ingredients for the gluten-free pumpkin gnocchi are also vegan.

If you use vegan parmesan to top your gnocchi and use vegan butter to prepare the sauce, you’ll have a fully vegan pumpkin gnocchi dish!

You could also use olive oil instead of vegan butter, if you prefer.

How to freeze the gnocchi?

In a baking pan lined with parchment paper, carefully place the uncooked gnocchi pieces close to each other but avoid contact and prevent them from sticking.

Once frozen, remove them and put them in a freezer bag. If you put them in a bag before they are individually frozen, they’ll all stick together.

To cook from frozen, follow the same directions given as above. It may take a few extra moments for your gnocchi to cook from frozen, so be patient.

How to store gnocchi? 

It is best to eat freshly cooked pumpkin gnocchi. If you’ve cooked them in advance, place them in an airtight container and store them in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.

Best gluten-free and vegan pumpkin recipes

Pumpkin is a popular ingredient in the autumn holidays and it lends itself to a variety of vegan and gluten-free recipes.

Here are some of my don’t-miss gluten-free pumpkin recipes and vegan pumpkin recipes. Just click on the image to go to the corresponding recipe.