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Vegan Bicyclinguist

An occasional thought from a vegan bicyclist language-lover

Vegan whole wheat gnocchi

Posted: Monday, October 20th, 2008 – 10:44 pm

Vegan whole wheat gnocchiI've just started doing more serious bike training in hopes of improving my endurance and stamina, maybe for an amateur race in the future. Anyway, I've had to carb it up a bit, and I've been finding new ways of adding more nutrient-rich high carb foods (unlike all of the fun recipes for sweets I like to post!).

Pasta is an obvious source, and I've been making a lot of gnocchi lately just because I love the process of making it from scratch. They are quite versatile – I've made the money shot photo with plain old tomato and seitan sauce, but you could use anything. Homemade gnocchi will take you about an hour to an hour and a half from start to finish, but it's definitely worth the time. That in mind, I've found three things that can go wrong with gnocchi that you can hopefully avoid:

  1. Using the wrong kind of potato. You want to use a spud with a bit higher starch level, white ones like Russets. I used a red potato variety once, and the result was a heavy mushy mass. You can substitute other high starch vegetables like squash for the potatoes to introduce some variety. You have to experiment a bit with the proportions of flour to get it right.
  2. Not mashing the potatoes enough. You can either use a potato ricer or what I use, an electric mixer. The idea is to beat enough air into those spuds until they are light and fluffy. You have to make sure the potatoes are silky smooth at this point because if you overwork them after you add the flour, you run into the third problem.
  3. Adding too much flour or overworking the dough. Ideally, you want to work in just enough flour just enough to the point where the dough holds together and is slightly sticky. If you overwork the dough or add too much flour, the resulting gnocchi will be heavy and tough.

Gnocchi ideally will have a texture that is light and pillowy. It is tender on the inside while still being slightly firm and done.

Oh, and the vegan part, gnocchi traditionally are made with egg as a binder. I've found that there's no need for it, so you get a simple 4-ingredient recipe here. These also use whole wheat flour for a little healthier variety.

One important thing to note is that I've never been able chill the dough in the refrigerator for later. The liquid tends to redistribute oddly and the result is a horribly sticky mess. Make just enough dough for what you need and boil it all up. The idea is if you have to put something in the fridge, it's the cooked gnocchi, which keep much better.

Gnocchi ingredients

Gnocchi preparation

  1. Over high heat bring a medium-sized saucepan to a rolling boil. Add the sliced and peeled potatoes.
    Sliced and peeled potatoesAdd sliced and peeled potatoes to water at a rolling boil.
  2. Boil the potatoes until a fork cuts easily through the potato pieces, about 25-30 minutes. Drain and rinse. Place potatoes back to the hot saucepan and stir to help cook off some of the extra water.
    Drain the potatoes and place back in hot saucepan stirring to cook off extra water.
  3. Start bringing a medium saucepan filled with water to a rolling boil. In the meantime:
  4. In a medium mixing bowl add potatoes, salt, and olive oil. With an electric mixer whip the potatoes until they are light and fluffy with no lumps (2-3 minutes). The potatoes should actually start to hold together at this point.
    Whip the potatoes until light and fluffy.
  5. Gently mix/knead in the whole wheat flour until it is well-incorporated into the potatoes.
    Gently incorporate the whole wheat flour.
  6. On a lightly floured surface, gently knead in the remaining ¼ cup of regular flour. Do not overwork the dough. It should hold together well but it may be slightly sticky to the touch.
    Knead in the regular flour, but do not overwork.
  7. Divide the dough into two or three pieces and roll out into a long rope about ¼" thick.
    Roll pieces of dough into ropes ¼" thick
  8. Cut ¼" pieces off the rope.
    Cut ¼" pieces off the rope.
  9. Roll the tines of a fork over each gnocchi piece creating an indentation in the pasta.
    Roll a fork over each gnocchi piece.
  10. Drop the gnocchi into the boiling water. When they float to the top, they're done. Do not cook too long!
    Drop the gnocchi into the water. When the gnocchi float, they are done.
  11. Remove the gnocchi with a slotted spoon, and set on a plate. Serve with your favorite sauce.
    Set gnocchi on a plate and serve!

Yield: 3 servings

Nutritional information for 1 serving
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 serving (126g)
Servings Per Batch 3
Amount Per Serving
Calories 220 Calories from Fat 45
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 5g 8%
Saturated Fat 1g 5%
Monounsaturated Fat 3g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.5g
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0g 0%
Sodium 195mg 8%
Potassium 438mg 12%
Total Carbohydrate 40g 13%
Dietary Fiber 4g 15%
Sugars 1g
Protein 5g 10%
Vitamin A 0%
Vitamin C 20%
Calcium 1%
Iron 8%
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.

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