Spicy Sausage Baked Gnocchi

Spicy sausage baked gnocchi in a creamy tomato sauce with lots of melted mozzarella, garlic and fresh basil. This recipe is so easy to put together and is so comforting and good. The solid dish when you're craving some comfort food!

This is the solid dish to make when you're craving something cosy and comforting but also quick and easy.

This is our slightly more indulgent take on Gnocchi alla Sorrentina using spicy Italian sausages (or use regular if you don't like spice) in a rich, creamy garlic tomato sauce.

Like Gnocchi alla Sorrentina, there's lots of fresh mozzarella involved. One ball of mozzarella is mixed into the sauce and the other is for topping the gnocchi which melts and gets bubbling and golden in the oven.

Serve it with some crusty bread to mop up all that yummy sauce and a glass of vino rosso Buon Appetitio!

Ingredient notes and substitutions

• Spicy Italian sausages – we use Calabrian sausages made with Calabrian chilli paste but use whatever spicy/hot Italian sausage that is available to you.
• Passata – known as tomato puree in the US. We love to use Mutti as it's good quality and reasonably priced. Go with a brand you know and trust.
• Garlic – We always recommend using a fresh garlic clove if you can instead of using garlic powder. You can add more garlic if you prefer.
• Mozzarella – the quality of the mozzarella is quite important here as it's mixed through the sauce and you don't want that 'gummy' texture that low-quality mozzarella has. We like to use buffalo mozzarella which has a creamier/wetter consistency which means it may need to be baked for a few minutes longer.

Step by step photos and instructions

This is a visual guide to help you with each step. For the full written recipe, ingredient amounts and tips scroll to the recipe card below.

1. Prep – Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well. Pre-heat your oven to 200C (400F).
2. Brown the sausage – remove the sausages from their casings and brown them in for a few minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant (photos 1 and 2).

1. Add tomato and cream – add the passata (tomato puree US) and the cream and stir to combine. Add a pinch of salt and pepper and simmer for about 8 minutes (photos 3 and 4).
2. Add gnocchi – add the gnocchi to the boiling, salted water and cook until they float to the surface.
3. Add to sauce – add some torn basil leaves to the sauce then add the cooked gnocchi. Stir in the the mozzarella (chopped) then top with the remaining mozzarella torn into chunks (photos 5-7).

1. Bake – bake the gnocchi in the oven for 15-20 minutes until bubbling and golden then serve (photo 8).

More good gnocchi recipes to try

Gnocchi

Gnocchi alla Sorrentina

Gnocchi

Gnocchi Carbonara

Gnocchi

Pesto Gnocchi

Sauces & Dressings

Walnut Sauce – Salsa di Noci

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

• 17 oz (500g) gnocchi
• 10.5 oz (300g) spicy Italian sausages ((about 3 fat sausages))
• 1 garlic clove (finely chopped)
• 1.5 cups (400g) passata ((tomato puree US))
• 1/2 cup (125ml) cream
• Basil leaves
• 8 oz (250g) fresh mozzarella ((2 balls))
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well. Pre-heat the oven to 200C (400F)

2. Meanwhile, heat a drizzle of olive oil in a pan on a medium heat. Remove the sausages from their casings and add them to the pan.

3. Brown the sausages while breaking them up into crumbs with the side of a wooden spoon.

4. Once browned, add the garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes.

5. Next, add the passata and stir in the cream with a pinch of salt and pepper.

6. Let the sauce simmer gently for around 8 minutes then add the gnocchi to the salted, boiling water and cook until they float to the surface.

7. Add a handful of fresh basil to the sauce then add the gnocchi and toss them in the sauce. Turn off the heat then add half of the mozzarella (1 ball) chopped into medium sized pieces and stir it into the sauce.

8. Tear the remaining half of mozzarella (1 ball) into chunks and scatter it over the top of the gnocchi. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until bubbling and golden. Serve.

Kitchen notes

• Prep in advance make the sauce but don't add the mozzarella. When ready to bake, cook the gnocchi and reheat the sauce. Add the mozzarella, gnocchi and remaining mozzarella then bake.
• Storage leftovers will keep well in the fridge for 1-2 days and can be reheated in the oven uncovered for 10-15 minutes until piping hot.
• Variations if you don't like spice you can use regular Italian sausages. Instead of mozzarella why not try smoked scamorza for a smokey flavour. You can also use a short pasta shape instead of gnocchi.