This mascarpone gnocchi has the most delicious creamy, herby sauce with some hidden veggies in there too! It's an easy vegetarian skillet dinner idea that comes together in about 25 minutes.
Much like my gnocchi with ricotta sauce recipe, we make the most of fresh cheese in this quick weeknight dinner! It's easy to melt in your skillet, and makes such a creamy smooth sauce.
Many gnocchi dishes have tomato as a key ingredient of the sauce, but to keep it low histamine we make this recipe without tomatoes and use tasty veggies and herbs instead.
Mascarpone recipes are a reader favorite here, as it's a low histamine cheese that is so versatile. So as well as this mascarpone gnocchi, have a peek at my mascarpone pesto pasta and mascarpone chicken pasta for more ideas!
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Ingredients
All the ingredients and their quantities are set out in the recipe card below.
Some notes on a few of them:
- Mascarpone - this is a fresh low histamine cheese that melts into a creamy sauce when heated in your skillet (see the SIGHI list for info).
- Gnocchi - you can either use store-bought if that is suitable for you (including gluten free options by brands such as Rummo) or there are homemade recipes such as this gluten free gnocchi and this egg free gnocchi.
- Zucchini and fennel - to add flavor, and make this a hidden veggie gnocchi sauce!
- Herbs - I really suggest to use fresh herbs if you can, as they are so much more fragrant. If using dried herbs, reduce to about a third of the quantity (or less, to taste).
How to Make Gnocchi with Mascarpone Sauce
It's very easy to make this mascarpone gnocchi with fresh cheese, veggies, herbs and pantry staples. All you need is regular kitchen equipment, as well as a blender to make the sauce.
All the instructions are set out in the recipe card below, but these step by step photos should help guide you.
Step 1: Cook the veggies
Cook your onion in olive oil in a skillet, then add in the zucchini and fennel and cook until softened (image 1).
Step 2: Cook the gnocchi
Cook the gnocchi to package instructions in salted water, then drain in a colander after reserving about a quarter cup of the cooking water (image 2).
Step 3: Make the sauce
Add the cooked vegetable mix, fresh herbs and a couple of tablespoons of the cooking water to a blender and blend. I find I have to scrape the sides down a couple of times (image 3).
Step 4: Make the mascarpone gnocchi
Pour the sauce into your skillet and add the mascarpone cheese. Cook on a low heat so the cheese melts and stir to combine into the green sauce. Add the cooked gnocchi, and spoonfuls of the cooking water, as needed, stirring so you have a creamy sauce that coats the gnocchi (image 4).
Recipe Tips and Notes
- Keep the heat fairly low when you are heating and melting the mascarpone cheese so it doesn't split.
- Don't forget to reserve the cooking water from the pot with the gnocchi, as the starch from the water helps give you a creamy sauce.
- If your veggies and herbs aren't blending easily, add a splash more cooking water to the blender.
Can I Freeze this Mascarpone Gnocchi?
I don't recommend to freeze it. The gnocchi can go a bit gummy and mushy, and the cheese a bit grainy after freezing. Best to cook fresh I think!
How to Serve Gnocchi with Mascarpone Sauce
Enjoy the gnocchi as a vegetarian lunch or dinner as it is with a larger serving, or as a smaller portion with some sides:
- Add a protein, such as my air fryer thin sliced chicken or rosemary thyme chicken recipe.
- Serve with some veggies, such as my roasted carrots and cauliflower, roasted asparagus and carrots or steamed pak choi.
- Enjoy with a refreshing salad, with my fennel cucumber salad or kale pomegranate salad being good options!
More Gnocchi Recipes
Cook up my roasted red pepper gnocchi as a comfort food dinner idea, or take a peek at these other gnocchi recipes!
I'm always in the kitchen, so come join me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest to be the first to hear of new recipes! And I love to hear from you, so please do leave a star rating and comment if you've tried the recipe!
📖 Recipe
Mascarpone Gnocchi
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ cup white onion diced
- ½ cup zucchini chopped
- ½ cup fennel stalks and fronds removed, diced
- pinch salt
- 3 cups gnocchi
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves loosely packed
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley
- ½ cup mascarpone
- pinch black pepper optional
Instructions
- Drizzle olive oil in your skillet, and cook the onion for 3-4 minutes until softened. Add the diced zucchini and fennel, along with a pinch of salt, and cook for 8-10 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Cook your gnocchi to package instructions in salted water, reserving about ¼ cup of the cooking water (this will be used later to thin the sauce).
- Add the cooked zucchini, fennel and onion to your blender cup, along with the fresh basil, thyme and parsley, as well as 2-3 tablespoon of the cooking water. Blend, adding a touch more water as needed, so you have a green sauce.
- Spoon the zucchini sauce into your skillet, and add the mascarpone cheese. On a low heat, stir the cheese and zucchini mix together so the cheese melts and it becomes a sauce. Tip in the cooked gnocchi and stir into the sauce, adding more of the cooking water, as needed, to get a silky sauce that coats the gnocchi. Season to preference.
Notes
- Make sure to have the heat fairly low when you melt the mascarpone cheese as it could split otherwise.
- Gnocchi is typically cooked when it rises to the top of the water in your pot. It takes 2-3 minutes.
- If store-bought gnocchi doesn't work for my MCAS readers, there are lots of recipes online using different foods.
- If it works for you, you can also add some minced garlic in with the zucchini and fennel.
- Nutritional information is auto-generated and should be understood to be an estimate.
- gnocchi, will depend upon ingredients used. There are many homemade gnocchi recipes online, including gluten free options.
- white onion scores 0, while other types score higher.
- black pepper, which scores 2. It is optional.
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