Growing up, our neighbourhood was full of backyard gardens. People often turned their yards into rows of tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, onions, carrots, peas and beans. Even people who didn’t have big gardens, as in our family, at least had a patch of rhubarb or pots with tomato plants. One thing I don’t recall seeing in my childhood was people growing herbs; with the exception of the dill weed that people needed to make their pickles. I never saw fresh herbs until college where my culinary instructors taught me to properly “chiffonade”: a French term meaning “ribbons”. We were taught to stack leafy herbs like basil, rolling them into a tight little bundle and then slicing them into fine thread-like strands.

Turns out herbs are one of the easiest things to grow. I have my herb box just outside my patio door that leads off my kitchen. Every year I grow basil, thyme, sage, oregano, chives, mint.

I just snipped the last of my herbs in anticipation of a hard frost and will dry and crush them to use over the next few months.

One of my favourite herbs to have fresh, is sage. The smell is unlike anything else you’ll every smell. I love to toss these pale green furry little leaves in browned butter and serve them over pasta, especially my homemade sweet potato gnocchi. The taste of that nutty butter, pungent sage on top of the pillowy balls of slightly sweet goodness, is one of my favourite treats.

Here’s my recipe. Easier to make than you might think. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Sage
8 dinner size servings

2 1-pound sweet potatoes- rinsed, patted dry, pierced all over with fork
1 12-ounce container fresh ricotta cheese,
1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 3 ounces)
2 tablespoons (packed) golden brown sugar
2 teaspoons plus 2 tablespoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
3 cups (about) all purpose flour
1 cup butter
6 tablespoons chopped fresh sage plus whole leaves for garnish

Line large baking sheet with parchment paper. Place sweet potatoes on plate; microwave on high until tender, about 5 minutes per side. Cut in half and cool. Scrape sweet potato flesh into medium bowl and mash; transfer 3 cups to large bowl. Add ricotta cheese; blend well. Add Parmesan cheese, brown sugar, 2 teaspoons salt, and nutmeg; mash to blend. Mix in flour, about 1/2 cup at a time, until soft dough forms.
Turn dough out onto floured surface; divide into 6 equal pieces. Rolling between palms and floured work surface, form each piece into 20-inch-long rope (about 1 inch in diameter), sprinkling with flour as needed if sticky. Cut each rope into 20 pieces. Roll each piece over tines of fork to indent. Transfer to baking sheet.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil; add 2 tablespoons of salt and return to boil. Working in batches, boil gnocchi until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer gnocchi to clean rimmed baking sheet. Cool completely. Can be made 4 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.
Preheat oven to 300°F. Melt butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until butter solids are brown and have toasty aroma, swirling pan occasionally, about 5 minutes.
Add chopped sage (mixture will bubble up). Turn off heat. Transfer half of sage butter to large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add half of gnocchi. Sauté until gnocchi are heated through, about 6 minutes. Empty skillet onto rimmed baking sheet; place in oven to keep warm. Repeat with remaining sage butter and gnocchi. Divide gnocchi and sauce among shallow bowls. Garnish with sage leaves.

Kath’s quote: “Herbs are the friend of the physician and the pride of cooks.” – Charlemagne

Love never fails.

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