Another day, another excuse to not get my kitchen dirty. I love gnocchi. I know how to make it. It takes time which quite frankly I don't have. There are a lot of high-quality gnocchi products in the market. Many of which requires a pot of boiling water which in hot weather is unappealing to do. Enter Trader Joe's Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Butter and Sage.
The taste
The perfect gnocchi is light and airy. However, the lightest and airy gnocchi I've ever had were not made with sweet potatoes. So if it is light and airy you are hoping for then reach for the regular potato variety in the frozen section or in the pantry.
Otherwise, these are straight-up comfort food. The sweet potato gnocchi is complimented by a buttery sauce that can almost border on being a bit cheesy. It has a hint of sage but nothing that would overwhelm the palate.
Depending on how you like your gnocchi dictates which cooking method you should go with. If you like these soft then stick with the microwave. If you like a bit of crispness then consider adding these to a pan. They can also be oven-baked or even air-fried.
The packaging
Trader Joe's Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Butter and Sage are packaged in a 14.1-ounce plastic bag. There is no additional packaging beyond the product pictured here. The only problem with the current packaging is some of the sage and butter sauce gets stuck to the inside of the packaging.
That can be a bit of a mess when you want to quickly pour out the product or want to use up every bit of what has been packaged.
A comparison of gnocchi
And believe me, I've tried all the gnocchis they offer: Cauliflower Gnocchi, Chocolate Lava Gnocchi, Gnocchi alla Gorgonzola, Gnocchi alla Sorrentina, Inside Out Stuffed Gnocchi, Sweet Potato Gnocchi, and even the dried gnocchi which I haven't reviewed yet (but are always on my pantry shelf).
If I had to recommend them in order of the best to the worst:
- Sweet potato gnocchi
- Cauliflower gnocchi
- Inside Out Stuffed Gnocchi
- Gnocchi alla Sorrentina
- Gnocchi alla Gorgonzola
- Chocolate Lava Gnocchi
- and lastly Kale Gnocchi.
You can click on any of the links above to be taken to the reviews of each of these products.
Frequently asked questions
Below are common product questions that I get:
Yes! Preheat your air fryer to 400F. Place them in a single layer for 10-14 minutes. Be sure to check half way through and give the basket a good shake.
Yes! You can bake these at 450F for 15 minutes. Be sure to coat these with a bit of olive oil to prevent sticking. You can also make an easy sheet pan dinner by tossing in a vegetable with some salt and pepper.
No, this product contains milk and eggs. The cheese also contains animal rennet.
Overall
There is a reason why this has been on store shelves for so many years. This product is very good. It's quick, easy, and flavorful. The sage is moderate which is actually a good thing as sage has the potential to overwhelm whatever is near it.
Would I buy this again? Yes! Was this what I expected? No, this had a cheesy taste to the sauce that I was not expecting. Was this bad? Absolutely not. I enjoyed it and was grateful that this was not drowning in butter.
The taste of sage was pleasant without being overwhelming. If you look at the bag and think the product will look like you that you'll be surprised like I was and I'm not talking about the size of the actual gnocchi, the bag tells you the picture is zoomed in.
The cheesy tasting sauce was the surprise here. If you add this to your own plastic container, it can be brought to work as a filling lunch. I was full after eating half of the bag. If you are wondering, I know this isn't "half," I was writing this post and picking at my dish while full (I swear.)
Should Trader Joe's make this as lunch portions in the freezer section? I think so, but it's not that much effort to break the bag down into 2 or 3 portions for a respectable lunch.
A visual rundown of this product
Let's start with the visual rundown of Trader Joe's Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Butter and Sage before we go into what comes out of this bag beyond the visuals:
The bag of Enter Trader Joe's Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Butter and Sage:
Here is the nutritional information and the ingredient list:
There are two ways to prepare this:
I chose the microwave path as it creates the least amount of mess.
Out of the bag this is what the product looks like:
I thought there would be a ton of butter on this, so I had my doubts.
It still needed more time. So I put it in for another 2 minutes at 50% power. This is what it looked like after the 2 minutes were up:
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The Bottom Line
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Trader Joe's Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Butter and Sage
Product Name: Trader Joe's Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Butter and Sage
Product Description: Trader Joe's Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Butter and Sage is a long-standing favorite in the freezer aisle.
Price: $3.49
Summary
Trader Joe's Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Butter and Sage is a perennial favorite in the freezer aisle and is part of a series of frozen gnocchis.
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Taste
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Value
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Worthy of Repurchasing
Pros
- Makes for an easy and quick dinner.
- Very flavorful and requires little effort
- One of the top frozen gnocchi options in the freezer case.
Cons
- If you aren't a fan of sweet potatoes then give this a pass
- Very easy to eat the whole bag.
- Expect this to be closer to 1-2 actual serving sizes based on normal portions
- A lot of the frozen sauce can stick to the sides of the bag.
After having a similar experience to you following the microwave instructions for this, now I use the stove top method instead. I love this gnocchi though!
Me too. It's my favorite gnocchi flavor.
After ready your review of TJs Fusilli with Vegetables & Basil Pesto I decided to back track to look at your reviews of other TJs pasta & pasta-like products. I looked up the Gorgonzola Gnocchi which I personally like. I doctor it up with lots of spinach, parmesan & roasted garlic. I saw your review on the Sweet Potato Gnocchi product. I have passed it dozens of time & have never purchased it. Not sure why though. Sweet potatoes - yum. Butter - yum. Sage - yum. Your review was in 2016. I am assuming you have purchased it a number of times since then. Do you still give it high marks?
If so, it is going on my next TJs shopping list:)
Hey Dag! Yes, I still love my sweet potato gnocchi. The only problem is there are three servings in the bag. It's very easy to eat all three in one sitting. I still get it at least once a month. It's a completely different gnocchi than the other ones. Not strong on the sage, but still very tasty. Worth a try.