Something I have noticed since giving up meat, is that it is not necessarily the meat that makes a meal taste so good, but the ingredients used to flavour it. One of the most common uses of sage is with pork, and when I roasted up some butternut squash with a bit of sage this weekend, I realised that it was the herb rather than the beast that had made me love roast pork all along. Good for me, good for the pork.
Sage's earthy flavour compliments squash's sweetness really well, making it a perfect accompaniment.
Because gnocci is so heavy, I don't feel like it can take being drenched in a thick sauce, so a bit of drizzling, melted blue cheese, and semi-solid roasted squash stirred through the little dumplings, provide just enough coating. The flavours are rich, and this is by no means a light dish, but each powerful ingredient manages to co-exist in the dish, without getting lost amongst one another.
Ingredients (serves 4)
1 bag of fresh gnocci
200g of creamy blue cheese such as Dolcelatte (Gorgonzola would be amazing, but is sadly not vegetarian)
1 medium butternut squash
1 small handful of fresh sage leaves
loads of olive oil for drizzling and roasting
black pepper
Directions
Peel the squash and cut into small cubes. Toss into a roasting tin with the sage and drizzle with plenty of olive oil. Roast in the oven at 180C/Gas Mark 4, for 30-40 mins, turning occasionally, until squash is soft.
About 10mins before squash is done, bring a pan of water to the boil and cook gnocci according to packet instructions (should take about 3 mins to boil). Drain, and throw into a deep oven dish.
Toss through the roasted sage and squash, season with black pepper and drizzle with a little more olive oil if there was not much from the squash (you want about 2 tablespoons worth coating the gnocci).
Cut the cheese into cubes and evenly top the gnocci and squash.
Stick under a hot grill for 5mins until cheese melts and drizzles through the gnocci.
Serve with green salad.
