Vegan Parsnip Gnocchi

Forget what you think you know about the humble parsnip, and take it to the next level with this vegan gnocchi recipe.

Ingredients

  • 400g parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 600g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 60ml olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
  • 1 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 100g strong ’00’ flour
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • Small handful of thyme leaves
  • 30g walnuts, toasted and chopped

Method

  1. Begin by heating your oven to 220°C / 200°C Fan / Gas Mark 7. Take a roasting tin and toss the parsnips and potatoes together in 2 tbsp of olive oil along with the unpeeled garlic cloves. Roast for around 40 minutes until the veg is soft, then remove from the oven and allow to cool.
  2. Squeeze the garlic cloves out of their skins, then tip everything into a food processor along with the nutmeg, flour and nutritional yeast. Pulse until combined and holding together like a dough.
  3. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Tip the dough out onto a floured surface and cut into four equal sized chunks, then roll each into a sausage shape about 35cm long and 2.5cm wide.
  4. Using the back of a table knife, cut each sausage into small pieces of gnocchi, around 2cm long. Cook in the salted water in batches for 1 minute, or until they bob to the surface. Remove and drain on kitchen paper.
  5. Now, take a frying pan and heat the remaining oil. Add half of the gnocchi and fry until golden on each side (usually around 3-4 minutes), then transfer to a tray. Cook the remaining gnocchi in the same way.
  6. Return all gnocchi to the frying pan to warm through, then divide into bowls. Grind over some fresh black pepper the scatter over the thyme leaves and toasted walnuts. Top with a little drizzle of olive oil.

Lead image: AnjelaGr via Getty images.