Ben gifted me an Apple Watch for my birthday earlier this summer and I am HOOKED. If you’re looking for inspiration to get off your butt and get moving, this watch will definitely do it. Let’s just say this ol’ gal doesn’t move as much as she thought and I’ve been much more motivated to fit more workouts into my week.
That said, I feel zero guilt downing bowl after bowl of this decadent, gluten free dinner recipe – Cheesy Gnocchi Florentine, aka HEAVEN IN A SKILLET. This quick and easy dish is like pumped up mac and cheese packed with spinach, tomatoes, sausage, gluten free gnocchi and, of course, cheese. Get your shovels ready!
Ground Italian sausage is browned with shallot or onion, Italian seasoning, and garlic then canned diced tomatoes, packaged gluten free gnocchi, and half & half are added. Simmer until the gnocchi are tender, stir in lots of baby spinach, then finish with a sprinkling of mozzarella cheese. It is SO easy, and it is SO good. Such a tasty treat and again, made in just one skillet. You can’t beat it!!
This recipe is very rich and decadent so I loved the pieces of juicy tomato that brightened and lightened up each bite. If you’ve got fresh herbs like parsley or basil laying around, you could add a scattering at the end, but part of the impressiveness of this dish is that it’s so simple. A “dump and cook” kind of dish, if you will. Add a big side salad and you’re set.
Alright, let’s cook!
How to Make Cheesy Gnocchi Florentine
Start by browning ground sweet Italian sausage (here’s my recipe) with chopped shallot or onion in a large, 12″ skillet over medium-high heat. Once browned, add Italian seasoning and minced garlic then saute until very fragrant, 1-2 minutes.
Next add canned Italian-style diced or petite diced tomatoes plus half & half and shelf-stable gluten free gnocchi. I used Red Gold brand diced tomatoes, which I snipped with kitchen shears to turn into “petite diced”, and the label said tomatoes flavored with basil, garlic, and oregano – ie Italian-style. Just look for something similar and you’ll be set.
Bring the mixture to a simmer then turn the heat down to medium and continue simmering until the gnocchi are nearly tender, 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
This is the gluten free gnocchi I use. The package says “mini gnocchi” but they are standard sized in my experience!
Note: non-gluten free gnocchi generally come in 16oz packages (vs this gluten free brand’s 12oz) so if you don’t need to eat gluten free and are using regular gnocchi, you will need to up the amount of half & half and/or add some chicken broth to cook the extra 4oz of gnocchi.
Once the gnocchi are nearly tender, add baby spinach that’s been roughly chopped then continue to cook until the gnocchi are fully tender and the spinach has wilted, 1-2 more minutes. If you feel the gnocchi needs more liquid to fully cook through, add a few glugs of chicken broth.
Last step is to take the skillet off the heat then stir in shredded mozzarella cheese. I am telling you – this gnocchi dish is good without the cheese, but it is STELLAR after it’s stirred in. Ah, the power of cheese!
Scoop the Cheesy Gnocchi Florentine into bowls then dig in!! I hope you love this easy, decadent, and delicious gluten free dinner recipe! Enjoy!
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Cheesy Gnocchi Florentine
Description
Cheesy Gnocchi Florentine is a quick, easy, and delicious weeknight meal! This gluten free dinner recipe is made in one skillet, in 30 minutes.
Ingredients
- 3/4lb ground sweet Italian sausage
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 1-1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 15oz can Italian-style diced or petite diced tomatoes (see notes)
- 1 cup half & half
- 12oz package gluten free gnocchi (see notes)
- 4 cups lightly packed baby spinach, roughly chopped
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/4 - 1/2 cup chicken broth (optional)
Directions
- Heat a large, 12” skillet over medium-high heat then add Italian sausage and shallots and brown. Add garlic and Italian seasoning then saute for 1-2 minutes or until garlic is very fragrant. Add canned tomatoes, half & half, and gluten free gnocchi then bring mixture to a simmer. Turn heat down to medium then continue simmering until gnocchi are nearly tender, 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add baby spinach then stir to combine and continue cooking until spinach is wilted and gnocchi are tender, 1-2 minutes, adding splashes of chicken broth if necessary if sauce gets too thick. Remove skillet from heat then sprinkle in mozzarella cheese and stir to combine. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Look for diced tomatoes that are flavored with basil, garlic, and oregano, ie "Italian Style".
- Note: regular, non-gluten free gnocchi are usually sold in 16oz packages. If you don't need to eat gluten free and are using regular gnocchi, you may need to add more half & half and/or chicken broth to the dish.
- Click here for my Homemade Ground Italian Sausage recipe >
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
Made this for dinner tonight. So good. It’s going into my rotation!
Thrilled to hear that, Angela! Thank you so much for your feedback and recipe rating!
Do you use skillet gnocchi or the ones you are supposed to boil? Thanks.
Hi Nancy! I usually use Delallo brand GF gnocchi in this dish: https://amzn.to/3kOTJIE
Made for dinner tonight. As you said, quick, easy and delicious! My grocery store was out of frozen gnocchi so I used a package from the dry pasta aisle. Cooked up just fine. Will be making this again. Thanks for another great recipe
I really enjoy and use your GF recipes, but.. there is always a but.lol.. there are too many pictures and directions to scroll thru to get to the recipe. Can you please condense and do away with all the extra words and all the pictures, they are irritating and imo unnecessary . Other than that I do love your recipes.
This was amazing! I honestly didn’t know what to make for dinner tonight and then received your email in my inbox. Luckily I had all the ingredients on hand, so it worked out perfectly. I ended up doubling the recipe and instead of using canned diced tomatoes and the italian spices, I used a jar of marinara sauce. Otherwise I kept the other ingredients the same and it was so, so good! Thank you for a great, easy recipe that was so satisfying!
I made this tonight and not only was it delicious, my husband & toddler both loved it, but best of all it seriously only took 30minutes which is always a win! This will definitely be added to the rotation.
YES! So glad it was a hit with the whole family. Thank you so much for your recipe rating and review, too, Jen!
Made this for the first time last week–my husband LOVED it! He said I could make it again anytime. (no kiddos or grand-kiddos at our house) I enjoyed it too but was having a bout of GI pain so I didn’t enjoy it as well as when I would have no GI pain. But am SO grateful for such an easy (and delicious) recipe.
SO glad it was a hit with the husband, Mariann!! I hope you’re able to enjoy it when you’re feeling better. <3
Since my husband is not a big fan of cheesy dishes (except grilled cheese & mac-n-cheese–go figure), I sprinkled some parmesan after scooping his serving into a dish and zapping in the microwave to further melt the cheese–he said it was excellent and I should definitely make it again! I love it too–delicious combo of flavors. Thanks Kristin for another hit!
Love it!! Yes, this is a super versatile and hard to mess up dish. I’m glad you were able to make it work for the both of you!
My son loves this stuff. LOVES. I’ll make gnocchi in other ways and he’ll say, “this is good, but next time make it the cheesy way.”
This absolutely thrills me to hear – love when the kids are the one giving a recipe the highest praise. Thanks for sharing with me. :) :)
This is absolutely delicious!! A hit with the whole family! Thank you!
Thrilled to hear it, Katie!! Thank you so much for your recipe review and rating!
OMGoodness this recipe is amazing.. Just got home from a long day at work and made this recipe. This might be my new favorite comfort food.
The only gnocchi I could find was frozen. Will it work the same?
Yep that should be fine! :)
This was absolutely fabulous! Even found the gnocchi at Wegmans so was thrilled about that. Coming from a newly gluten cooking wife, we had no idea this was a gluten free dish. Fabulous! And thank you!
I never leave reviews, but omg this recipe was so good. Super simple to make, and only took a few minutes to make. It was a winner all the way around.
So amazing! Thank you for the great recipe!
I just made this! Delish! You haven’t let me down yet ?
Delicious!
What suggestions would you have for doing this DF? Usually we substitute almond milk or canned coconut milk for things…do you think either of those would still work well?
Hi Megan! You bet – I think unsweetened almond milk and vegan “mozz” shreds would be your best bet. I like SoDelicious brand vegan cheese best. I hope this helps!
My husband and I loved this and it was even better the second day. I opted to use gluten free elbow pasta adding a little more stock and cooking a little longer because the only gluten free gnocchi was too costly.
Hi! My husband isn’t a fan of gnocchi. Any chance I could use a ziti or something in place? I love your recipes and so does my toddler which is always a win!
Hi Lyn! You bet – that sounds delicious!! :D