Delicata Ricotta Gnocchi

1 delicata squash

1 cup ricotta cheese

2 tablespoons salad oil or light olive oil

½ teaspoon salt

1 egg yolk

1 small egg, lightly beaten

2 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour plus more as needed

Sage Cream Sauce

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon King Arthur all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt

⅛ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Pinch of fresh nutmeg

1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage

⅛ cup dry white wine or vermouth

¾ cup heavy cream or half-and-half

4 whole fresh sage leaves for garnish

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut squash in half lengthwise. Spoon out the seeds. Ripe squash will have an orange color. Place cut-side down on a sheet pan and roast for 55 minutes. Remove pan and allow the squash to cool before spooning out the flesh away from the outer hard shell. A ripe squash after baking will have browned on the bottom edges from its natural sugars. This is a good thing. Purée the squash and measure out 1 cup. Reserve remaining squash for another use.

In a medium large bowl, combine 1 cup pureed squash, ricotta, oil and salt. Using a sturdy wire whisk, an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer, mix on medium-high for about 2 minutes or until it looks smooth. Add the egg yolk, the small beaten egg and mix for another minute.

Add ½ cup flour to your mix and fold with a spatula. Add another ½ cup and continue to mix/fold. As the dough starts to form, if it is still sticking to your fingers in a big way, add more flour in ⅛ cup intervals and continue to fold in. Try not to over-knead the dough. Keep adding more flour a bit at a time until you arrive at a soft slightly sticky well incorporated dough.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. At this point, you could do a test by breaking off a couple of small bits of dough, lightly dust with flour to prevent sticking to your hands and boiling them in salted water until they float (about 3 minutes). After they float, remove them from the boiling water and taste them. Adjust the dough for salt seasoning or additional beaten egg or flour for a firmer structure. The less flour you add, the lighter the texture of the finished gnocchi.

Divide the dough into 6 equal parts. Keep your work surface well coated with flour. With both of your palms, press and roll the dough out into a long, slender log, about ½ inch in diameter. Set it aside on a floured surface while you roll out the remaining sections into similar logs. Once all of the logs are completed, use a pizza cutter or floured knife to cut 1-inch long pieces. Roll each gnocchi off the back of a fork to create a rippled surface to the outside of the gnocchi (this texture aids the dumplings ability to hold sauce).

Gently drop in about 15-20 gnocchi into the boiling water and gently stir them once so they don't stick together. When they are ready, they will float to the top. Remove them using a slotted spoon and place them into a colander to drain.

For the sauce: Melt butter in a sauce pan under low heat. Whisk in the flour, stir and cook for 1 minute to remove the raw flour taste, then add salt, pepper, nutmeg, sage and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add wine and simmer until reduced by half. Stir in the cream and turn heat up to medium and simmer to thicken.

To plate: Ladle a small puddle of sauce down first, place gnocchi on the sauce and garnish with a fresh sage leaf. Serve with Frank Frittata and Broiled Tomatoes.

Serves four.

David Rench, Spring Grove