Good Italian food doesn’t need to be difficult or complicated. Which is why with a little help from the store, you can make incredible Baked Gnocchi (4 ingredients)!
This baked gnocchi is not only freaking incredible, but it has a special meaning to me. This is my little Beans meal. The meal I had before she came into the world.
The last week before my due day, dinners are our house were EASY. I’m talking 3-5 ingredient/10 minute dinner easy. I was huge and achy and tired and not up to cooking a whole lot. Especially since I was too busy chasing my busy toddler around and quite frankly done being pregnant.
On August 16th, we started off the day with the hubs working from home. This was AMAZING because I had experienced on and off contractions for a few days already. And even had a false alarm where we went to the hospital and they sent me home. Wah wah…
But anyway, the 16th was a pretty normal day. Poppy and I went to the playground in the morning. She played while I waddled around. We ate lunch as usual and then Poppy did a short hour of quiet time in her.
I blogged for a little while and did laundry. You know … the usual. By 4 PM, I started feeling a little different. Little faint cramps here and there. Nothing serious I thought, especially since I had experienced a false alarm already.
Dinner rolled around and I was craving Italian bad! Something carby, saucy and cheesy.
4-ingredient Baked Gnocchi
This is hands down one of the easiest dinner recipes in my repertoire! And even though I am taking a shortcut with the sauce and the gnocchi, this is totally one my guilty pleasures!
The whole recipe consists of cooking pre-made gnocchi (3 min), snazzying up pasta sauce with basil, and baking it all with mozzarella until gooey and melty. You can also make your own pasta sauce if you want by cooking a bit of crushed tomatoes, minced garlic, oregano, basil, and salt & pepper.
So I whipped up this dinner in about 20 minutes and devoured it with the hubs and my little Poppy. From there the cramp/contractions slowly got worse throughout the evening and by 2 am we were at the hospital. From there, the rest is history!
This meal will always have a special place in my heart as it was the dinner I had before meeting my Cora Bean. And for a birth story, I love that mine has gnocchi in it!
Serves 2 large portions OR 3 with a side.
Ingredients
- 1 lb pre-made potato gnocchi
- 20 oz. good marinara sauce
- ½ cup coarsely chopped fresh basil, plus more for garnish*
- 8 oz. whole milk mozzarella, shredded (or sliced if fresh)
- Optional: 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper, 1/2 garlic powder
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 400F degrees. Spray an 8 inch oven safe dish or cast iron pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- Pour sauce into the prepared dish or cast iron. Add crushed red pepper and garlic powder if using. Set aside
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the gnocchi and cook according to the package instructions. They normally take about 3 minutes. Drain and pour gnocchi into the baking dish. Give it a little stir.
- Add fresh basil and layer cheese on top of the sauce. If you don’t have fresh basil sprinkle on 1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano and 1/2 dried basil.
- Cover dish with foil. Bake for 10 minutes.
- Remove foil. Bake for another 5 minutes or until bubbly.
- Allow dish to cool for a few minutes before serving. Garnish with extra basil.
Notes
Fresh basil is amazing in this recipe but if you don't have any, you can sprinkle on 1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano and 1/2 dried basil into the sauce an garnish with a little parsley. A package of gnocchi normally feeds 2-3 according to the package. To feed 3 I like to make a side, like roasted veggies and bread. Otherwise it will feed 2 good sized portions. As for the sauce, you can make it if you have the time. Simply saute 2 garlic cloves and a little minced onions. Then simmer about 20 ounces of crushed tomatoes and add salt, pepper, basil and oregano.
Recipe slightly adapted from Food52.
Originally posted 2017-12-04 06:00:38.
Leave a Reply