This is a recipe that can be easily modified to work with whatever squash or whatever mushrooms you happen to have around. I use butternut squash and a wild mushroom known as the Prince, but you can get very close using cremini or Portobello mushrooms -- they're related. You can also use other winter squash here, but remember some are wetter than others; many pumpkins happen to be very wet, for instance. Butternut and kabocha squash are my favorites, but you can also acorn squash or other members of the Curcurbita maxima species.
A few swipes of fresh nutmeg,or 1/4 teaspoon ground
MUSHROOMS
1poundfresh mushrooms,chopped
3tablespoonsbutter,divided
1to 2 tablespoons fresh sage
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Prep the mushrooms. Put the mushrooms in a large pan and set them over high heat. Shake them around a bit and sprinkle them with salt. Heat, shaking often, until they release their water, about 3 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and saute until nicely browned. Set aside.
Make the gnocchi dough. Mix all the gnocchi ingredients together in a large bowl. If you are new to making gnocchi, you might need a little more flour than I call for; add it 1/4 cup at a time. The dough should be sticky, but workable.
Form the gnocchi. Cut the dough into 4 pieces, and lay a damp towel over those you aren't using while working with 1 piece at a time. Gently roll out the dough into a snake -- you will likely make several as they get long -- and cut the dough into pieces the size of your thumbnail. Roll the little pieces against a fork or a gnocchi roller and dust with a little flour. Set aside and repeat with the rest of the dough.
Boil the gnocchi. Get a large pot of water boiling and add a small handful of salt. Add about a dozen gnocchi at a time and simmer until they float. Move them to a pan and drizzle a little olive oil over them. Set aside until you have all the gnocchi finished.
Finish the dish. Add the rest of the butter to the pan you cooked the mushrooms in and put it over medium-high heat. Add the gnocchi, mushrooms and sage and toss to combine. Let them cook now for 1 minute undisturbed, so you get a little browning on the gnocchi. Repeat this one more time, then serve with black pepper.