I Confess, I'm A Sweet Potato Stalker

Sometimes I get crushes on restaurants and like any good school girl, I stalk their menus. The problem with having crushes on restaurants is that menus can change, leaving the menu-lover sitting in the rain á la every John Cusack movie made from 1985-2000. My newest crush is on a restaurant around the corner from my new residence, Fuel Cafe, who changes their menu every MONTH! On the one hand this is made of awesome because there is always something new and delightful to try. On the other hand, it makes me one sad monkey because I have a short window to get hooked on a dish, obsess over, eat it as often as possible, and then say goodbye to it.

The October menu featured a delightful gnocchi with sweet potatoes (not to be confused with gnocchi made from sweet potatoes which also sounds pretty delightful). As any stalker is bound to do, I made my own version of this dish at home so I could re-live all the blissful memories. Sigh...

Fuel Cafe Inspired Gnocchi With Sweet Potatoes
--2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
--3 TBSP butter
--1 12oz. package of gnocchi
--10 pieces of fresh sage
--1 cup fresh spinach, thoroughly washed and hand-ripped into palm sized pieces

Place the sweet potatoes in an oven-safe baking dish. Chop 2 TBSP of butter into chunks and spread chunks over the top of the sweet potato pieces. Bake in the oven at 300 degrees until potatoes are softened but not browned (20 minutes max).

While the potatoes cook, boil the water for the gnocchi. Cook the gnocchi per package instructions, omitting any oil. Drain and set aside.

In a large skillet, melt the remaining 1 TBSP butter over medium heat. Fry the sage in the butter until it is evenly brown and wonderfully crisp! Add the spinach, using tongs or a spatula to turn the spinach frequently so that it wilts but doesn't get soggy.

Add the cooked sweet potatoes and sauté until the potatoes are fully integrated with the spinach and sage and begin to crisp. Remove the mixture to a bowl.

In the same skillet, add the cooked gnocchi. Sauté for a few minutes, allowing the gnocchi to get brown, crisped spots on the outside. Add the sweet potato mixture back to the skillet and stir it all together. Serve!

Dammit Jim, I'm a cook, not a doctor...
Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 2
Calories: 510