This ultra-cheesy baked gnocchi recipe takes only 20 minutes to make with only FOUR ingredients! It will be your new favorite weeknight dinner that the whole family will devour.
I’ve made this ridiculously easy vegetarian recipe countless times for my family and every time it’s a huge hit. And the BEST PART about it is you only need marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and pre-made gnocchi to make it!
And if I’m being honest, you don’t even really need the fresh basil. Which means you can have all the ingredients on hand for this comforting meal as an awesome backup for any busy weeknight.
Oh- AND you can assemble it in advance to make it even EASIER!
In this post, I’ll explain a little more about what gnocchi actually are (and how to pronounce it correctly), how to assemble this easy super cheesy baked gnocchi, and provide some recommendations for what kind of kind of sauce and cheese to use.
What are gnocchi?
Gnocchi are Italian dumplings made with either potatoes or ricotta cheese, along with some flour, formed into small little oval shapes. They’re similar to pasta in a lot of ways, but a bit more hearty and nutrient-packed because they have the added potatoes or cheese.
Um… how do you pronounce gnocchi?
A “gn” in Italian is similar to an “ñ” in Spanish. The g is kind of silent, but the n is drawn out. Kind of like “nee-OH-kee.” Some people say it more like “nee-AW-kee.”
Can you make your own gnocchi?
You can absolutely make your own gnocchi, and many people do! In fact, here’s a recipe for homemade ricotta gnocchi made with whole wheat flour. It’s a bit easier and faster to make ricotta gnocchi, but you can also make classic potato gnocchi, or even sweet potato gnocchi for a healthier option.
Is it WORTH making my own gnocchi?
That depends on how much you like cooking projects. I view gnocchi similarly to pasta in that, while I COULD make my own, and it may be tastier and more authentic, it’s not worth it to me.
I generally use store bought gnocchi for all my gnocchi needs. DeLallo is a good brand, and you can buy it on amazon! Trader Joe’s also has a low-carb cauliflower gnocchi that people swear by (but I have yet to try it).
How to use gnocchi
Besides using it for this cheesy baked gnocchi, you can use gnocchi in a variety of other ways. Serve it simply with your favorite sauce. Sautè it for crispy pesto gnocchi with goat cheese and cherry tomatoes. Make chicken gnocchi soup, or use them as a shortcut dumpling in Chicken and Dumplings or throw them into Chicken Noodle Soup in place of the noodles. The possibilities (or should I say PASTABILITIES hahaha) are endless!
How to make CHEESY Baked Gnocchi
- Boil the gnocchi in salted water. This is similar to cooking pasta, but it takes WAY less time- only about 2-3 minutes!
- Transfer the cooked gnocchi to a baking dish, casserole pan, or oven safe skillet.
- Top with fresh basil. I like to cut my basil chiffonade, but you can just give it a rough chop or even leave the leaves whole if you want.
- Top with marinara sauce. I recommend a high quality store-bought brand, such as Rao’s, or homemade marinara sauce.
- Top with LOTS of mozzarella cheese. I alternate between using grated whole milk mozzarella cheese, and using fresh mozzarella cheese. You can use either. Just make sure it’s evenly distributed across all the gnocchi.
- Bake! It only takes about 15 minutes, since the gnocchi is already warm, just until the cheese is melty. Cheesy gnocchi goodness awaits.
Variations
I love how simple the ingredient list is for this baked gnocchi, but it’s easy to put your own spin on it.
You can add veggies (such as sautéed mushrooms or cooked spinach), or even some added protein, like rotisserie chicken or shrimp.
You can also add other herbs, like oregano and parsley.
Other Easy Meals with around Four Ingredients
- Roasted Eggplant Parmesan Stacks
- Dutch Oven Whole Roast Chicken
- New England Baked Haddock
- Three-Ingredient Oven-Fried Chicken Tenders
- Orzo with Mushrooms, Browned Butter, and Thyme
- 15-Minute Poached Salmon with Chive Butter
- Pasta with Bolognese Sauce
Check out all my 5-ingredient recipes! Give or take :-)
Did you make this Cheesy Baked Gnocchi? Please comment below and Rate this Recipe
Baked Gnocchi with Marinara, Mozzarella, and Fresh Basil
Equipment
- 8x10 baking dish
Ingredients
- 1 lb pre-made gnocchi ricotta or potato- either will do
- 2 cups marinara sauce
- 1/2 cup fresh basil cut chiffonade or chopped, plus more for garnish
- 8 oz. whole milk mozzarella shredded (or sliced/torn if using fresh)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Cook gnocchi by placing carefully into boiling salted water. Remove with a slotted spoon when they float to the top and place into a medium-sized baking dish.
- Sprinkle fresh cut basil (1/2 cup) on top of the gnocchi.
- Spoon marinara sauce (2 cups) evenly on top of the basil.
- Sprinkle cheese (8 oz.) evenly on top of the sauce.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes, until cheese is completely melted.
- Allow to cool for a few minutes before serving. Garnish with extra basil if desired.
Notes
- Make ahead: You can assemble this baked gnocchi ahead of time and keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days before baking. When you bake, cover it in foil for 10 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 10-15 (since it will be cold, it will need more time).
- Money saving tip: Make your own gnocchi from scratch to save some money. You can also omit the fresh basil.
- Time saving tip: Don't bother cutting the basil- just add the whole leaves!
- The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
This recipe originally appeared on Bowl of Delicious in February 2014 as “Baked Gnocchi with Marinara, Mozzarella, and Fresh Basil.” It’s been edited with updated information, improved recipe instructions, and new photos.
Shari
This turned out, absolutely delicious. I added a touch of Cabernet to my marinara sauce too. I also like that this dish was easy to make and fast. Will definitely make this again.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
RS
I’ve heard you don’t need to boil packaged gnocchi. Do you think that would work with this recipe? Can I simply bake it?
Elizabeth Lindemann
I would boil them – I think they would be much too dry without cooking them. I’ve never heard you don’t need to cook them before – maybe for some recipes like in soup where they will absorb liquid, but for this one I would definitely cook them up before! Hope that helps.
Leslie
Do you cover it with aluminum foil if you don’t make it ahead?
Elizabeth Lindemann
No need – just bake it as is!
Paweł
After your chicken gnocchi soup, which was legit 10/10 I’ve made this today, with those fancy gnocchi filled with mozzarella and tomatoes. Used a mix of both low moisture and watery mozz and topped everything with parmigiano. Also I’ve also added chunks of Cod fillete between gnocchi (was testing mu new tefal optigrill and its fish mode)and leftover jarred original Mexican jalapeños, diced. Seems like a weird combo but it was absolutely delicious. I find jalapeños to be a perfect match to a mild cheese like mozzarella.
The idea of using fresh basil to cover the gnocchi is great. Again, the meal turned out delicious.
Loving your recipes so far Elizabeth! Ill definitely keep making them ;) Thank you again!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! Thanks so much for your kind words!
Cheryl Schuh
Made this with truffle gnocchi from a local market and it was AMAZING! Thanks for sharing!!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Yum, that sounds absolutely amazing! So glad you liked it!
Nick
Made this tonight and my girlfriend was very impressed! Definitely will be a repeat dish!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your girlfriend liked it!
Sam
Hi I am going to try this dish for friends onSaturday. Could I use Pan fried Gnocchi and then reheat in oven?
Thank you
Sam
Elizabeth Lindemann
I don’t see why not! Pan frying the gnocchi would make it deliciously crispy, and probably hold up to the sauce even better as a make-ahead option. (to pan fry gnocchi, make sure you cook it first in boiling water, then pan fry it in olive oil)
Sam
Thank you so much. I will let you know how it tastes . It sounds delicious xx
Diane
This looks wonderful!
Can you use the cauliflower gnocchi from Trader Joes?
Elizabeth Lindemann
I don’t see why not! I STILL haven’t tried their cauliflower gnocchi but I hear great things. Next time I’m at TJs, I’m going to pick some up and try it with this recipe! I’d love to hear how it turns out if you give it a try.
Diane
Thank you for the quick response…I will try it and let you know. :)
Mikki
Love this recipe! I prefer meat protein dishes so I added minature italian sausage meatballs for an extra pop of flavor. Also, don’t mean to offend but gnoccihi I believe is pronounced “nyawk-kee”.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! LOVE the idea of adding meatballs. I’ll have to try that next time. So, the way gnocchi is pronounced definitely varies from region to region, both within Italy and worldwide. “nyawk-kee” is very common, but according to my research and experience, an “oh” sound rather than an “aw” sound is *slightly* more authentic. Take a look at this article- https://spoonuniversity.com/how-to/how-to-pronounce-gnocchi-like-a-true-italian – it helps explain everything and cites the Oxford English Dictionary too :-)
Mikki
This is where we will have to agree to disagree. You might want to listen to Italian speakers pronounce it here:
https://forvo.com/word/gnocchi/
Regardless of how it is pronounced it is sooo good!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Yes! It’s delicious, which is the most important thing! ?
Mae
What size baking dish would be better? 2 qt square or bigger rectangle?
Looks so yum!
Elizabeth
The square should be fine! I usually use a small rectangular dish, about 6×8, when I don’t use the mini skillets. Hope you like it!
Sheila
This is my absolute favorite recipe so far! Thank you for sharing!!
Elizabeth
Yay! So happy you like it!
LB
Very easy and so simple.
Elizabeth
So glad you liked it! I’m all about the easy simple recipes :-)
Anne
This was great. I could coordinate the timing when I served it with when my oldest son had to eat before leaving for hockey training and the youngest returned from his piano lesson. I made the marinara sauce from scratch which I suspect made the dish a little watery, but it tasted awesome nevertheless. I added some grated cheddar cheese with the mozzarella because I had to save it from getting more mouldy, but that was the only tweak.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! Watery sauce can also happen from having too much water clinging to the gnocchi. Give them a good shake before adding them, or you can also just let the baked gnocchi sit uncovered for a while to cool off after you’re done with the whole thing and that should help some of the water evaporate and the whole thing will thicken up a bit. Hope that helps!
Jessica
I pan fry the shelf stable gnocchi in oil and butter till GB then add it and continue and it comes out perfectly tender and a bit roasty tasting with no watery sauce. Plus i don’t have to haul out a big pot of water!
Elizabeth Lindemann
This sounds amazing! Thanks for sharing!
Anett
Do you think this could be assembled beforehand (like few hours in advance) and baked before eating or would the gnocchi be a mess with the moisture of the tomato sauce sitting around?
Elizabeth
You can definitely make this in advance! Make sure you drain the gnocchi really well (or even pat them dry with a paper towel) so there is a little less moisture.
Lindsay @ Pinch of Yum
Looks so delicious!!! All that cheese. yummm.
Elizabeth
I may or many not have made this twice within a three-day period. And I plan on making it again next week, at least once :-)
Melissa
What temp do you cook this at. 325?
Elizabeth Lindemann
The recipe specifies 400 degrees F.