Gnocchi in White Wine Sauce

This is a recipe I get asked for a lot so I figured it was time to write it out! What I love best about it is that the base is the same but you can switch out for whatever you have on hand (protein and veggies included). As long as you have gnocchi, butter, white wine, vinegar and some kind of broth/stock, you can mix and match how you like! I also live that this dinner is (almost) one-pot. While I do boil the gnocchi in an additional pot the sauce and protein all cook in the same pan. I prefer cast iron but a large nonstick skillet would be fine as well. Finally, I like to use fresh homemade gnocchi when I can but when you don't have any on hand the frozen stuff from the store works perfectly well and it easy to work with! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound hot Italian sausage links (I used turkey but you can choose whatever you prefer)
• 1 pound gnocchi 
• 1 medium shallot, thinly sliced in rounds
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 ears corn, kernels shaved from the cob (or 1 cup frozen sweet corn)
• 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 cups kale leaves, washed, stems removed and rough chopped
• 1/4 cup rough chopped parsley for garnish
• Shaved hard cheese (Pecorino Romano or Parmesan) for garnish

For the sauce:

• 1 cup white wine
• 2 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth 
• 2 tbsp light-colored vinegar (I prefer sherry but red wine or white wine vinegar will work as well)
• 2 tbsp honey
• red pepper flakes to taste for spice level
• 2 tbsp butter (for finishing)

Directions:

•  Heat your skillet over medium heat with a touch of oil. Add sausage in whole links and cook on all sides until browned, about 10 minutes (does not need to be cooked through at this point). 
• Remove sausage from pan and set aside in a bowl or plate to retain juices. 
• Add 1 tbsp olive oil and add corn and tomatoes to the pan. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes until corn is slightly browned in spots and tomatoes begin to wilt. 
• Add shallots and garlic and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Do not allow garlic or shallots to burn. 
• Add white wine to the pan and allow to cook out for 2-3 minutes until reduced by about half. Add in broth, vinegar, honey and pepper flakes. Slice sausage into 1/2 in rounds and add back into sauce (with any juices left on your plate) to finish cooking. Continue to allow sauce to cook until fully reduced by about half. 
• While sauce is cooking boil salted water to cook your gnocchi. Once water is boiling, reduce down to low boil and add gnocchi in batches to avoid lowering the temperature too much. Cook gnocchi until it floats (meaning it's done). Fresh gnocchi will only take 45 seconds-1 minute. Frozen may take 2-3 depending on your water temperature. Add gnocchi floats transfer to sauce pan using a slotted spoon. Continue this until all gnocchi is cooked and transferred to sauce pan.
• Add kale and butter to your pan and stir to combine. Allow to sit in the pan but off the heat for 5-7 minutes until kale is soft. 
• Serve in shallow bowls garnished with parsley and shaved cheese.