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I know it’s only Thursday, but this Sunday night gnocchi Bolognese bake needs to be on your dinner menu for this weekend.
And hey, we all know it’s never too early to start planning the weekend!
So here’s the deal. I am in comfort food mode (as if you haven’t figured this out) and this gnocchi bake is all things comforting. As you guys know it’s been a little busy around here, with multiple things happening behind the scenes. And then you know, launching the cookbook! It’s been a roller coaster of anticipation, fun, stress, and um tiredness…tons of different emotions. Don’t get me wrong, I’m loving every minute of this ride (ok, well most of it), but some of the stress has just left me craving all the comforting things I love. Things like my favorite pumpkin candle, fuzzy sweaters, and cheesy gnocchi.
Plus, as mentioned earlier this week, the weather in Colorado at night has definitely gone from chilly to just cold, and that means cheesy gnocchi is just what needs to happen for Sunday night dinner this week. I mean, obviously.
I first had the idea for this recipe a few weeks back, but waited until the end of September to tell you guys about it because it just feels like the most perfect autumn Sunday night dinner.
Sunday night dinners have always been my favorite, which is kind of odd since I used to hate Sundays. It’s a long story, but in short, Sundays just meant back to school the next day, which for me was a pretty big issue.
Anyway, dinners on Sunday were always special. My mom would make a point to make a good meal (probably her Potato Chip Chicken, which is a recipe in the cookbook), bake a loaf of bread, and bake fresh cookies. The entire family, meaning all eight or nine of us (depending on the year and who had been born…) would actually sit at the same table and all eat together at the same time. If you’re a Gerard family member then you know this kind of thing definitely did not happen every night of the week, but when it did happen it was always a nice thing. Sometimes football would be playing in the background, but most of the time it was just the family. It was loud and a little chaotic, but it was always the best.
Sunday nights are not quite the same over here since we’ve all gotten older, moved out of our parent’s house, and you know, grown up. But I still love making a good dinner and lighting a candle or two, especially during the fall and winter months…
Which brings me to this gnocchi Bolognese bake. It’s the perfect dinner to simmer on the stove and let your house fill with delicious smells, then bake and eat.
Like a lot of recipes I’ve been creating these days, this dish is made all in one pot. Make the Bolognese sauce in a large skillet, then stir in the gnocchi, add some cheese and bake.
So simple, but yet the most amazing dish. Almost like in Italy…but then what do I really know, I’ve never been there. Someday though!
A few notes. My recipe calls for ground beef or spicy Italian sausage. I like to use spicy Italian sausage for an extra layer of spice and flavor. You could also use ground chicken or turkey if you prefer. To make the sauce rich but flavorful, I use a mix of red wine and milk. The wine adds a fruity flavor while the milk keeps the sauce creamy and rich. If you don’t drink wine or prefer not to use it in your sauce, just use an equal amount of water.
And lastly? The cheese! Mozzarella and provolone are my favorites with this type of Italian meal, but you could also use ricotta, maybe even cheddar or really whatever you love that melts well. Then top with basil and all will be good.
It’s a pretty simple and straight forward recipe, but delicious none the less! Excited to make this on Sunday for a cozy night back home after traveling. I am off again on Monday morning, so a good dinner is totally needed.
Kind of already dreaming about it…
Sunday Night Gnocchi Bolognese Bake
Servings: 6 servings
Calories Per Serving: 729 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small sweet onion, diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- kosher salt and pepper
- 1 pound lean ground beef or spicy Italian sausage
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 1 28 ounce can San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup red wine
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 sprigs fresh oregano
- 16 ounces potato gnocchi
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese, torn
- 1 cup shredded provolone cheese
- fresh basil, for topping
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet set over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the onions and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the beef and garlic and cook until the beef has browned all over, about 8-10 minutes. 3. Stir in all of the tomatoes, wine, and milk. Add the bay leaf and oregano and simmer the sauce for 15 minutes or until it has thickened slightly. 4. Stir in the gnocchi and 1/3 cup water. Bring the sauce to a boil and cook another 5-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and remove the bay leaf and oregano. Top the dish with cheese. Transfer to the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese has melted. Top with fresh basil. Enjoy!
The perfect cheese pull. Get’s me every time.
ps. I will be on Hallmark Home and Family tomorrow at 10am EST/9am C.
Hi Tieghan,
This looks amazing and I’m excited to make a vegetarian version! Will it freeze well?
HI! This freezes beautifully! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much!! xTieghan ?
Hi, can you make this in advance?
Hey Jill! Yes, you can assemble the night before and then cook the next day. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much! xTieghan
This looked so good but we were very dissapointed. The ratio of sauce to gnocchi was far too much. I thought that would be the case as I was making it. Gnocchi doesn’t really expand. Those little pillows looked lost in all of that sauce. Next time I will halve the tomatoes and maybe reduce the milk and wine to 3/4 cups each. Or I might add 1/2 pound of tortellini to add some substance. The flavors were wonderful. Ingredients just weren’t balanced.
Hi Annie! I am so sorry about that! I hope this turns out better if you try this again!
Mmmmm…my family made it but we didn’t have time to put it in the oven,so we put the chesse in our own plates!still very flavourfull! Loved it!
Thank you so much Sara! I am so glad you loved this! Thank you!
Just tried this last night and it was delicious! My entire family loved this meal! One thing I did differently, was I put the gnocchi in the pan with some olive oil and toasted the gnocchi up to a golden brow color and put it to off to the side until adding it in at end to keep it from getting that gummy texture it can sometime have.
I am so glad you liked this! Thank you!!
Made this last night. Even better this morning!
Thank you Teena!
this has become a weekly staple in our house. SOOOOO good!
So happy to hear that! Thank you!
This was very tasty, but I ended up with way too much sauce – the gnocchi were swimming in it! Some changes I’d do next time around is to omit the water with the gnocchi, and i’ll also add the wine to the veggies and sausage and reduce it down before adding the tomatoes and milk.
I am glad you still enjoyed this Debbie! Thanks!
Hi- this looks amazing but my husband cannot have milk, what would you recommend as a substitute? Thank you!
Any non-dairy milk will work great. I like coconut milk! Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
Also, you can use water too.
My son picked this out as a meal to make for the family! We made fresh gnocchi… the problem we ran into was the gnocchi seamed to fall apart when we stirred into the sauce. Also 16 ounces. Did not seam like enough gnocchi. What did we do wron. Other then gnocchi seaming really mushy the taste of the sauces was amazing. We followed directions to a T.
HI! What brand gnocchi did you use? I have never had gnocchi fall apart before, so I am not sure what happened. Sos sorry for the trouble!
No trouble … we loved the sauce. We actually made our own gnocchi from scratch.
What size skillets do you use for your one pot recipes?
Mine are 12 inch. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
What type of tomatoes are needed (puree, whole, diced)?
This was a very tasty, rich and comforting sunday dinner. I made it for my lasagna loving husband to switch things up a bit. I simmered the sauce with the lid on for about an hour, then with the lid off for another 10 min. I would use this sauce recipe again for a variety of other dishes, it was so good (I used hot italian sausage). Thanks for the recipe!
I am happy you loved this! Thank you!
Can I use red wine vinegar as a substitute for red wine?
HI, I do not recommend doing that. I would use chicken or beef broth. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Happy Holiday’s ? 🙂
I made this last night and it was DELICIOUS! I used 3/4 lb of sausage and I added a bit of mushrooms and broccoli and wow, the veggies soaked up the sauce and had tremendous flavor. My only problem was I had to switch to a bigger pot half way through…my largest skillet is apparently not very large haha. What size pan do you use? Awesome recipe thank you so much for sharing!!!
So happy you love this recipe! I use a large 12 inch skillet (but mine has pretty high sides for a skillet)> Please let me know if you have other questions.Happy Holidays!! 🙂