Creamy Pesto Gnocchi
Uncomplicated Creamy Pesto Gnocchi recipe, ready in under 20 minutes, makes the most delicious and flavorful bowl of rich and creamy basil pesto flavored pillows of potato pasta.
If I have to summarize this dish in one statement, it would be – lots of YUM, no fuss cooking! Because even though it is straightforward with minimal ingredients, you can expect big punches of incredible flavors.
If you love pesto, check out some of my other pesto favorites: Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta and Pesto Pasta Salad!
A Pesto Gnocchi Recipe
I have quite the love for a good gnocchi recipe.
Gnocchi pasta are soft, pillow-like pasta made from potatoes. They are starchy and soft in texture, and fairly mild in taste. The true flavors come from whatever sauce they are coated in.
Bring together these potato pasta and basil pesto, and you get a simple yet loaded-with-flavor dinner. This is one of my favorite ways to cook and serve gnocchi pasta…and perfect for pesto lovers!
This is a very straight forward method for making gnocchi in pesto, from thickening the pesto sauce to getting those pillows perfectly coated in the creamy and decadent sauce.
A few things to know about this awesome creamy pesto gnocchi recipe:
- Only takes 15 minutes to make!
- Minimal pantry-friendly ingredients.
- simple process and straight forward, yet big flavors and delicious.
- Easy one-bowl meal
- Saves well as leftovers – can freeze it for later too
This pesto gnocchi recipe is a twist between Italian and American cuisine and it is a favorite on both my dinner and dinner party repertoire.
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you will need to throw together delicious gnocchi in creamy pesto. You will be pleased to know it doesn’t get much more straight forward!
- Gnocchi – Ready-made gnocchi can be found in the freezer or non-refrigerated section in most mainstream grocery stores. It’s fast, easy and delicious. All you gotta do is boil and cook for a few short minutes. If you are interested in making gnocchi from scratch, check out this recipe.
- Basil pesto – A flavorful sauce typically made from pine nuts, basil and olive oil. Picking a good, quality basil pesto makes all the difference, especially since store-bought ones taste different from each other. Here is my favorite homemade pesto recipe.
- Half & half – Half & half produces a creamy and rich sauce. If you want a leaner sauce, use 2% or whole milk, or, if you want a more decadent sauce, switch to heavy cream instead. Half & half is a way to get your gnocchi in pesto creamy yet not overly heavy.
- Chicken broth – this will help lighten the sauce and give it some additional flavor.
- All purpose flour – used to thicken the sauce
- Butter – salted butter is my top choice, but using unsalted butter and adding salt separately works as well. olive oil can also be used in place of butter.
How to make it
This gorgeous pesto gnocchi comes together in under 20 minutes, and is one of the easiest recipe to master!
Here is how you make it:
Cook gnocchi: this can be done ahead of time , or as you are making the sauce. To cook gnocchi, submerse gnocchi in boiling water, cook for a few minutes until they float to the top, then strain.
Most gnocchi packages will have instructions to boil gnocchi, so be sure to check out package instructions and follow that if needed.
Make creamy pesto sauce for gnocchi: Melt butter in a large skillet and add flour by whisking continuously until lumps are no longer visible. Then slowly add half and half and chicken broth, and continue whisking until sauce thickens. Finally, stir in the pesto.
The sauce should be fairly thick. If it thickens too much (you want it to be the consistency of regular spaghetti sauce), bring to a boil and add more chicken broth.
Combine: After creamy pesto sauce is made, add gnocchi to the sauce toss until gnocchi is fully coated in sauce.
Remove promptly once gnocchi is coated is sauce.
Note that gnocchi is already cooked so there’s no need to cook it longer than it needs to. Overcooking gnocchi will make it mushy.
Serve: Garnish with grated parmesan cheese and serve. And enjoy promptly! Creamy pesto gnocchi tastes best when warm!
You really cannot go wrong with delicious and dreamy pesto gnocchi…
The pesto sauce is creamy and luscious, boasting a fragrance from the basil, and a yummy flavor profile making it somewhere between Italian and American.
Gnocchi is soft and chewy, and it pairs so well with the creamy sauce and grated parmesan cheese.
It makes the easiest delicious dinner and will also impress your guest at dinner parties.
One of my favorite things about pesto gnocchi is how easy it is to make and to clean up afterwards.
It takes me about 15-20 minutes to prepare this dish from start to finish, and you don’t even need a large list of ingredients.
I love to serve my pesto gnocchi with some crusty bread on the side, a glass of chill white wine and a fresh salad…It’s so simple and yet so delicious!
Truly one of my favorite light and yummy summer meals. Reminds me of being back in Italy!
Tips and Tricks
Here are a few additional notes to ensure success when making pesto gnocchi:
- Do not overcook the gnocchi: Gnocchi should be soft but still have a bit of bite. When gnocchi is overcooked, it can become mushy. To avoid this, remove the gnocchi from the boiling water as soon as they begin to float to the top, and do not leave creamy gnocchi on the skillet over heat for too long.
- Use homemade pesto or good quality pesto: pesto best makes or break this dish! Use good quality for best flavor. Homemade is always the best but there are some good store-bought pesto out there.
- Adjust consistency: if creamy pesto sauce is too thick, add chicken broth to dilute it. If you’ll like it thicker, continue cooking and sauce will thicken.
- Use salt to open up flavors: after pesto gnocchi is done, taste to see if flavor is to your liking. if flavor is bland, add a pinch or two of salt to open up the flavors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Oh yes! Homemade pesto is probably the best kind of pesto. Here is my favorite pesto recipe.
Absolutely! This recipe freezes well.
Most likely, gnocchi is mushy because it is overcooked. Do not boil in the water for too long, remove it once gnocchi floats to the top. Also, don’t overcook gnocchi tossed in creamy pesto sauce in the skillet as well.
DID YOU ENJOY THIS RECIPE? Please comment below and give us a 5-star rating! This will help others find this recipe on Google and Pinterest. We very much appreciate your help! 🤍
More Pasta Recipes
- Pasta Pomodoro
- Brown Butter Sage Pasta
- Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta
- Cajun Sausage Alfredo Pasta
- Pumpkin Pasta
Pesto Gnocchi
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb gnocchi
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp flour
- ½ cup half & half
- ½ cup chicken broth
- ⅓ cup pesto
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prepare gnocchi by boiling hot water in a pot and adding gnocchi pasta. Cook according to package directions. When done, drain water and set aside.
- In a medium sized skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Once melted, whisk flour until fully incorporated.
- Add half & half and chicken broth whisking as you do so to prevent clumps from forming.
- Add pesto and stir to fully mix in.
- Add gnocchi and toss to coat in the pesto sauce. Remove from heat promptly once they are coated in sauce.
- Serve and enjoy!
