This Baked Gnocchi with Sausage is a quick and easy one-pot meal. It has a creamy sauce made with pillowy gnocchi, sautéed onions, Italian sausage, garlic, and spinach, baked until tender and bubbly.
If you love Italian sausage, try my Italian Sausage Soup recipe, this Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta, or my Sausage Orzo Soup next!
Table of Contents
This Baked Gnocchi with Sausage is so flavorful, packed with simple ingredients, and made in just one pot. The best part is that it only takes 5 minutes to prep!
Gnocchi is one of my favorite ways to make a one pan meal!
They are little pillowy bites of deliciousness, generally thought of as pasta but made with mashed potatoes (or sometimes ricotta) plus flour instead of just four.
They’re a fun alternative to pasta that makes this dish a little more cozy!
Why you’ll love this one-pot meal:
- Quick: This recipe takes under an hour to make, perfect for a last-minute dinner when you need something easy to throw together!
- Easy clean up: We’re using one skillet for this recipe, so you only have one dish to clean up, making this recipe perfect for busy weeknights!
- Comfort food: Tender gnocchi and Italian sausage combined with a rich cream sauce create the perfect comforting dish.
Ingredients for this Italian Sausage Gnocchi recipe:
- Italian Sausage: just use your favorite variety. Sweet or spicy Italian sausage will add tons of delicious flavor! You can use Italian sausage links and remove the casings or buy ground sausage to make things easier.
- Onion and Garlic: a classic combination to create a flavor base. Use freshly chopped garlic for the best flavor.
- Seasonings: we’re heightening the flavors in the sausage with a little bit of Italian seasoning, salt, and black pepper.
- All-Purpose Flour: helps to thicken the cream sauce.
- Chicken Broth: I prefer to use low sodium chicken broth. If you use regular, you may want to add less salt yourself. That way, you can add it to taste before serving.
- Heavy Whipping Cream: heavy whipping cream creates the richest flavor. Feel free to use a lighter cream or milk, but it may not be as creamy.
- Potato gnocchi: no need to cook it first! The gnocchi bakes right in the oven. Frozen or shelf-stable gnocchi will both work!
- Chopped Fresh Spinach: for some color and nutritional value.
- Cheese: shredded mozzarella and grated parmesan cheese.
How to make Baked Gnocchi with Sausage:
This delicious Baked Gnocchi is a simple, complete meal that’s ready with just 5 minutes of prep! Scroll down to the recipe card for the full list of recipe instructions.
- Brown the sausage and aromatics: Cook the sausage and onion together in an oven-safe skillet until browned, then stir in garlic and seasonings.
- Make the roux: Sprinkle in the flour, then cook and stir until no white remains.
- Make the sauce: Add the chicken broth and cream and cook until slightly thickened.
- Add gnocchi: Stir in the gnocchi and spinach and mix to combine.
- Sprinkle with cheese: Mozzarella and Parmesan, or choose your favorite varieties.
- Bake and broil: Cover the skillet and bake. Before removing from the oven, uncover and broil to brown the cheeses if desired.
Variations and Substitutions:
- Use another meat. Feel free to swap the Italian sausage out for turkey or chicken sausage. If you do this, though, add 1-2 tablespoons of oil to the pan while sautéing so it doesn’t get too dry.
- Add other veggies. You can totally round out this meal by sautéing other veggies with the onion. Try mushrooms, diced bell peppers, chopped kale, etc.
- Make homemade gnocchi. If you’re one of those people who likes to make their own gnocchi, go for it! They will cook more quickly than the shelf-stable variety.
- Add fresh herbs. Sage, thyme, and rosemary pair perfectly with this recipe! Use fresh or dried herbs in place of the Italian seasoning for a bolder flavor.
- Use a different kind of gnocchi. Sweet potato gnocchi or spinach gnocchi can add a fun flair to the dish!
Tips and Notes
- Use a large oven-safe skillet. This is the key to the one-pan meal. You can use the skillet on the stovetop and thentransfer it straight to the oven.
- If you don’t have an oven-safe skillet, you can use a regular sauté pan, then transfer the mixture to a baking dish to cook in the oven.
- Don’t want to turn on the oven? You can simply cover the skillet and simmer on medium-low heat for the same amount of time until the gnocchi is tender. Keep in mind you will still need to broil the top to brown the cheese if desired.
How to store:
Leftover Gnocchi with Sausage will last in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
To reheat, add a splash of water or broth and warm either in the microwave or on low in a sauté pan until heated through. I do not recommend freezing it because the gnocchi will get too mushy.
Where can I find gnocchi?
I’m always able to find dried gnocchi in the pasta aisle of my grocery store. If you can’t find it there, check with the fresh pastas or in the freezer section!
Serving Suggestions
I know we all love a complete meal in one pot, but if you’re up for it, there are plenty of ways you can fill out your meal up even more.
Serve this gnocchi with a side of Garlic Bread, Green Beans with Bacon, Air Fryer Broccoli, or any of your favorite side dishes.
More One-Pot Meals You’ll Love
Baked Gnocchi
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
- ¾ pound ground Italian sausage, mild or spicy (375g)
- 1 medium onion (finely chopped)
- 3 cloves garlic (finely minced)
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 pound dry gnocchi
- 2 cups chopped fresh spinach
- 1½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat, cook the sausage and onion until browned, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute or until no white remains.
- Stir in the broth and cream. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring, until thickened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings as desired.
- Add the uncooked gnocchi and spinach and stir to combine. Sprinkle with the mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover and bake for 20 minutes.
- Uncover and broil to brown slightly if desired. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Information
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Jen T says
Absolutely delicious! I added extra Italian seasoning (because why not?), red pepper flakes and when I added the gnocchi and spinach it needed more chicken stock. What a hearty, delicious dish. We will be bringing this one back, especially in the cold winter months!
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Jen!
Lisa Wood says
Can I use frozen gnocchi? Or do I have to boil it first ?
Ashley Fehr says
Frozen should work just fine!
Christina V says
Can I make this ahead and keep in the fridge before baking? I want to make this Christmas Eve to bake on Christmas. TIA
Ashley Fehr says
Hi Christina! Unfortunately I haven’t tried making it this way. It’s possible, but the gnocchi will soak up the liquid as it sits so you may have to add more.
Krystal says
This was so great! Made it exactly as directed and my picky eaters had seconds!
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so glad!
DM says
Comfort food+
Tasty, easy, filling, and plenty!
Ashley Fehr says
Thank you!
Bonnie says
Delicious but the liquid completely dried up! Definitely double the broth!
Ashley Fehr says
Hi Bonnie! I definitely wouldn’t recommend doubling the broth, as additional liquid is something that’s pretty easy to add as it is cooking.
Christa says
The only issue I had was, since I doubled the recipe it had issues thickening..any suggestions? Other than that it was delicious!
Ashley Fehr says
When doubling it may just take a little longer to thicken. I’m glad you liked it!
Kelly says
I doubled the recipe and used 4 tbsp of flour, turned out great!
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks for sharing Kelly!
Jodi waller says
Would using chicken sausage cut down on the salt content? It was delicious but seemed to be very heavy on salt. Maybe I will try subbing the chicken broth with white wine as someone else suggested?
The Recipe Rebel says
Maybe. I think it would be based on your specific preferences.
Mary Beth says
I’m making this for my daughter to serve her family as she has a new baby. Just wondering if I should go ahead and bake it or put it together and let her bake and broil it. Thank you!