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This is DELICIOUS! I made the recipe exactly as written and added ground Italian chicken sausage (cooked separately). Served with a green salad and crusty bread. HEAVEN. Thank you!!
Sara C.
This recipe is sponsored by DeLallo.
Tender gnocchi blanketed in a creamy tomato sauce, speckled with fresh spinach and bites of melty cheese – capital G to the orgeous!
This recipe is a new fave around here and I think it walks that summer-to-fall line perfectly: just a beautifully simple tomato sauce made with mild tomato passata (a skinless, seedless, silky, and pure tomato puree that pretty much tastes like fresh tomatoes in a jar), thinly sliced garlic and onion, a little torn basil to hold onto those last few days of warmth, and a dollop of mascarpone cheese to kick off the cozy vibes for the season.
Add some pre-made gnocchi and spinach to that dream of a sauce, blanket it under some fresh mozzarella and Parmesan, and you are looking at a dinner-party-worthy recipe that conveniently also works as a fall SOS weeknight meal.
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Here Are The Ingredients We’re Working with Today
Your wonderfully short ingredient list consists of:
- passata (love! love love love. I recommend DeLallo passata because they make only the best authentic Italian products so you know they’re doing it right. Their passata is just so mild and lovely.)
- onion / garlic
- mascarpone cheese
- pre-made gnocchi (see above about DeLallo)
- spinach
- cheese for topping – I like mozzarella slices and a little dusting of Parmesan
- basil
Fab. Amaze. Perfection. Couldn’t love this lineup more.
How To Make Baked Gnocchi
Making this couldn’t be easier:
You make the sauce.
You add the gnocchi and spinach.
You bake it under cheese.
How you deal with all the goodness, though, is a more challenging affair. Do you invite friends over? Share with a neighbor? Eat the whole thing in 1-2 sittings? Or save a small container in the fridge for a midnight snack? I can personally confirm these are all effective and appropriate ways to conduct yourself around a large bubbling skillet of cheese-blanketed gnocchi. You can’t go wrong.
I’ve also tried adding a can of white beans for a little extra bulk, which would be a good trick to keep in your back pocket, but I would submit to you that the glory of this recipe is its simplicity – the chewy gnocchi, the tender cooked spinach, and the tangy tomato sauce with just the right amount of creaminess – and honestly I hate to mess with such a good thing.
Grab your cozy clothes and let’s get into this.
Three Cheese Baked Gnocchi: FAQs
Absolutely! Just thaw the gnocchi beforehand.
It’s super filling on its own, but you can always add white cannellini beans or spicy Italian sausage. Either would be delish!
Ricotta cheese can work in a pinch. The texture just might be a little grainier.
Watch Lindsay Make This Gnocchi on Stories!
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Three Cheese Baked Gnocchi with Spinach
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 5–6 servings 1x
Description
You’re in for a treat with this delicious Three Cheese Baked Gnocchi! Tender gnocchi blanketed in a creamy tomato sauce, speckled with fresh spinach and bites of melty cheese. Gorgeous!
Ingredients
Simple Delicious Tomato Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- quarter of an onion, minced
- 1 large clove garlic, minced or thinly sliced
- 12 ounces DeLallo Passata Tomato Purée
- 1/2 cup broth or water
- torn basil
- 1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Gnocchi:
- one 16-ounce package DeLallo Potato Gnocchi (I used shelf-stable gnocchi but frozen would also work)
- a handful of baby spinach
- 8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese slices
- Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Make the sauce: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat the olive oil over medium low heat. Add the onion and garlic; sauté until translucent and fragrant. Add passata and water or broth; bring to a low simmer. Add torn basil, mascarpone, and salt. YUM.
- Bake it up: Add gnocchi and spinach. Stir to coat evenly with sauce. Top with mozzarella slices and a sprinkle of Parmesan. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until gooey and light golden brown on top. Serve with more basil. THE END. That’s it. You’re in heaven.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: Italian-Inspired
Keywords: baked gnocchi, passata recipe, gnocchi recipe
Thank you to DeLallo for sponsoring this post!
Other Gnocchi Recipes We’re Crushing On
- Homemade Cauliflower Gnocchi (three easy ingredients and that’s it)
- Ridiculous Baked Gnocchi with Vodka Sauce (an incredibly easy weeknight favorite)
- Crockpot Chicken Gnocchi Soup (pasta in soup? definitely!)
- Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Broccoli Rabe and Garlic Sage Butter Sauce (gnocchi with a boost)
Time To Show You Off!
This is what I’m talking about! Simple, fast and absolutely delicious, I will make this over and over again. Thanks for another winner.
My husband is not a fan of gnocchi, and he LOVED this! I cut back a bit on the salt and used a little less mozzarella, but otherwise made the recipe as written. Thank you — a great, filling, easy, decadent tasting weeknight dish!
This was very good. I cooked up some chicken sausage and added the sauce to this. Made for an easy and nice Sunday dinner.
This came out great. One tweak I make is baking the gnocchi in the oven tossed with olive oil while making sauce it gives the gnocchi a bite and a bit of crispiness to it
Oh, love that crisping tip!
Could I substiute kale for the spinach?
Yes!
Where can I find DeLallo passata sauce? I’m in the twin cities and have checked 3 stores and can’t find it 🙁 I made the recipe with plain tomato sauce and while it did indeed turn out delicious it was a bit watery.
If you can’t find passata, I would try crushed tomatoes instead of tomato sauce!
I tried this recipe and it was the best would give it a next try.
This was super easy and delicious, thank you!
A perfect Friday night meal.
I added a whole small pkt of spinach and 4 sliced sundried tomatoes.
I will make this one again.
This feels way too indulgent for Monday night, or is it? Maybe this is exactly what Monday needs. Over the top flavor, pillowy gnocchi, comfort food at its best. Paired with a side salad and cheesy bread. So quick and easy. This is going into the permanent POY rotation at this house!
You can easily layer other veggies in this very delicious casserole and trick your kids- peas, carrots, kale, broccoli, zucchini etc,. It looks gorgeous for company. Definitely serve with a salad. My family is gluten free and you can find gluten free gnocchi online if not from your local grocery. I used ricotta in place of Marscapone because I had it on hand.
This was absolutely delicious and a huge hit with my husband and one year old (my 4 yo refused to taste it but that’s a her problem lol). It was so easy but so yum!!! I doubled the recipe and sauteed up some chicken sausage first then added it when the gnocchi and spinach were added. So glad to have lots of leftovers for lunches.
Love gnocchi and spinach together! Can’t wait to try this recipe 😍
I’m wondering if this is able to be made earlier in the day then baked later? I work nights so I’d love to make this ahead of time and just toss it in the oven later that evening before work!
This recipe looks delicious and easy to make! I can’t wait to try it out at home. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
So yum! I made a few substitutions based on what I happened to have on hand, and it was still super delicious. Def earned a spot in the regular rotation. 🙂
I am not a huge fan of mascarpone cheese. Could you suggest a substitution? Maybe cream cheese?
Cream cheese or ricotta would be great!
My goodness, Lindsey. The blend of the cheeses melted perfectly with the gnocchi, and the spinach added such a fresh touch. This is really good stuff how all the flavors came together seamlessly. Thank you so much for sharing this gem of a recipe. Thanks for sharing such a delightful dish. Keep these amazing recipes coming! 💚🍴🧀🌿😊🧀🍽️
I love this recipe! The cheese and spinach are a great combination.
Very pleased with this dish – felt a little more special than dumping a jar of sauce on gnocchi but with not much more effort. I subbed heavy cream for the mascarpone and baked in 1-serving ramekins.
This was delicious and a really quick meal to throw together after a busy night at my child’s soccer game! This was really saucy for us though, next time I’ll double the gnocchi in the recipe.
AMAZING. Perfect amount of richness, so so delicious. I think the mascarpone really makes it. I couldn’t resist adding beans—I cooked a scant 1/2 cup flageolet beans from dry separately, and then used their broth in the broth step. They went really well w the gnocchi and added a little more protein and fiber.
This is delicious! Super simple and truly a one pot meal. It was perfectly cozy on this snowy MN evening. Thank you for sharing!
Hi! Do you think cauliflower gnocchi would also work?
We haven’t tried that before, so we don’t know if the bake time would change. It’s worth a shot though!
Heaven… I’m in (gnocchi) heaven 🙂
Hello! I’ve been wanting to make this for a while and finally going to – very soon today. For oven-safe skillets, I have a black cast iron and a stainless steel. Would you recommend either of these, or doing the stovetop portion in a non-stock skillet then transferring the rest to a ceramic casserole/glass baking dish? Thanks in advance for your response !
Hi, Jill! With the acid in this dish from the tomatoes, we wouldn’t recommend the cast iron unless it’s enameled. A stainless steel pan could work if it’s oven-safe; otherwise, your idea to cook in a non-stick skillet and transfer to a ceramic dish would also work! Enjoy!
I’m not worried about the video, the instructions clearly don’t mention the tomato puree listed in the ingredients. If I’m following the written recipe(which I was because I had it in “print mode” I shouldn’t have to look for a video to find out when to do what.
Hi Abrielle! Check step 1 of the recipe. I see the tomato puree or passata mentioned.