VEGAN GLUTEN-FREE CARROT GNOCCHI
These vegan and gluten-free carrot gnocchi require just 5 simple ingredients (plus sea salt). Carrots are steamed and puréed. Then, they're folded into a mixture of almond flour, arrowroot starch, nutritional yeast, and sea salt. Oat flour is slowly mixed in until a firm-tender dough is formed. The dough is quartered, rolled into ropes, and sliced into bite-size pieces. Each piece is gently rolled down the back of a fork, leaving an imprint that allows sauce to cling to the gnocchi. I recommend pairing these delightful little pillows of pasta with herb-infused olive oil or vegan butter (see notes).
Servings: 2
Ingredients
- 1 pound (454g) carrots, peeled and diced (about 2 ¼ cups)
- ⅓ cup blanched almond flour*
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons arrowroot starch
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¾ to 1 cup oat flour, plus more as needed and for flouring**
Instructions
- Steam the carrots in a steamer or steamer basket for 25 minutes, or until tender.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, arrowroot, nutritional yeast, and sea salt. Form a shallow well in the middle.
- Transfer the steamed carrots to a food processor and process for 30 seconds, or until puréed, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed. The texture won't be perfectly smooth but rather like a thorough mash.
- Add the carrot purée to the center of the flour well. Use a spatula to mix until the dry ingredients have been incorporated, folding the flour mixture in to the carrots. Then, add the oat flour ¼ cup at a time and mix. Repeat until ¾ cup has been incorporated. Allow the dough rest for 5 to 10 minutes and then evaluate whether or not you need to add the additional ¼ cup***. The dough should be tacky yet easy to handle when dusted with oat flour.
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper, and bring a large stockpot of water to a vigorous boil.
- Liberally flour a clean work surface with more oat flour and turn the dough out onto it.
- Gently shape the dough into a disc, and slice into four equal pieces.
- One at a time, gently knead each piece of dough for a few seconds to smooth out. Then, roll into a 1-inch thick rope. Slice the rope into equal 1-inch pieces. Gently roll each down the backside of a fork, allowing the tines to make soft imprints. Transfer to the lined baking tray. Repeat until all of the dough has been formed.
- Add about ⅓ of the gnocchi to the boiling water. Boil for 2 to 3 minutes, or until they float to the surface. Do not overcook. Use a pasta scoop to remove from the water and transfer to a serving bowl.
- Repeat until all of the gnocchi is cooked.
- Serve the gnocchi warm with sauce of choice. I recommend making an herb-infused olive oil or herb-infused vegan butter, sea salt, and black pepper (see notes). They're also delicious when pan-fried in an herb-infused sauce.
Notes
*Blanched almond flour is different than almond meal. It's lighter and airer. If you substitute it with almond meal, do so at your own risk as I haven't tested the recipe with that swap.
**Please, for the sake of all things delicious, do not substitute the oat flour with coconut flour. Coconut flour isn't a suitable 1:1 replacement for oat flour (or any flour for that matter) and will result in dry, inedible rocks instead of pillowy pasta.
***Keep in mind that the more flour you add, the heavier/denser the gnocchi will become. I typically have to add just shy of 1 cup but go on look and feel of the dough.
To make an herb-infused olive oil or vegan butter: Add a few tablespoons of olive oil or vegan butter to a sauté pan along with chopped fresh parsley (or herbs of choice), fresh minced garlic or a few shakes of garlic powder, sea salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes (if desired). Heat over medium-low for 2 to 4 minutes, or until hot and simmering. Spoon over the gnocchi.