Sweet Potato Whole Wheat Gnocchi with Poblano Pesto

Posted on | August 4, 2009 | 1 Comment

I’m on my fifth week of eating vegetarian. Cheese is my weakness. For others, it’s either chocolate or something else. We all have a weakness. But give me a good Mirableu blue cheese from Spain and get in my way; well, there will be a fork in the back of your cheese grubbin’ hand. Two things have happened since I’ve stopped eating animal protein. First, I’m not raging hungry like I used to be and second, I’ve lost ten pounds. The book “The China Study” freaked me out a bit and already a known recipient of heart disease I didn’t want to tempt the fates with cancer.

Warning: This isn’t an Italian pesto. This is a Texas pesto. And the gnocchi is made with sweet potatoes, not white potatoes. Now, I don’t have anything against Italians or white potatoes. I love ‘em both. But I am trying to stay on the complex carbohydrate trail and they guy at Central Market talked to me like an idiot when I said I was looking for whole wheat gnocchi. Gnocchi, as a reminder, is made from potato and not flour like pasta. (Duh, I pointed out to him. I said I realized that but most gnocchi makers use flour as a binder and I was asking if they had a whole wheat version. He said they didn’t. And he was wrong.) Score one for Gary!

You can find gnocchi in two places in a market. It can be found either with fresh pasta meaning it probably has egg in it or in the dried pasta section, meaning it may not have egg. These little pillowly delights were in the dried section and aren’t quite as pillowly as potato gnocchi, but very close.

The poblano pesto is made with fresh poblano peppers rather than basil and has a slightly richer flavor with a slight bit of spice. It is a delightful twist on regular pesto and makes a good pasta dish if you have to bring a side dish to a Mexican meal. They won’t expect it until they taste it. This dish is garnished with fried watercress. Watercress is slightly peppery and frying the watercress adds a nice crispy texture to an otherwise smooth dish.

Sweet potato is low in Sodium, and very low in Saturated Fat and Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin B6 and Potassium, and a very good source of Vitamin A, Vitamin C and Manganese and is strongly anti-inflammatory. Poblano pepper is low in Saturated Fat, and very low in Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Thiamin, Niacin, Folate, Magnesium and Copper, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Vitamin B6, Potassium and Manganese. Watercress is very low in Saturated Fat and Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Protein, Folate, Pantothenic Acid and Copper, and a very good source of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), very rich in Vitamin K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Manganese.

Sweet Potato Whole Wheat Gnocchi with Poblano Pesto

The pesto will keep for a good week if refrigerated. And if you want, the gnocchi can be homemade. I used a store-bought variety. I clearly cheated.

For the pesto

2 Poblano peppers, roasted until charred over a stove burner and peeled
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
Juice from a lemon
3/4 cup oil (I used rice bran oil but corn, sunflower, olive, grapeseed, or peanut oils will all work)
Salt and pepper to taste

Gnocchi cooked according to package

In a blender, add poblano peppers, garlic, pine nuts, and lemon juice. Set blender on mix and slowly drizzle oil until the pesto is evenly mixed (about a minute). Refrigerate after use. Garnish with quickly fried watercress (careful, it will spatter). Add 1 tablespoon of pesto to 1 and 1/2 cups of cooked gnocchi and serve warm.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups of pesto

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