Vegetarian squash gnocchi bake with sage and mozzarella

Vegetarian squash gnocchi bake with Hokkaido squash, a cream cheese sauce, sage, mozzarella and hard cheese. A one-dish dinner from the oven that you can make ahead for three days.

At a glance

• Serves 4
• Prep time: 20 min
• Cooking time: 30 min
• Total time: 50 min
• Calories: 669 kcal per serving
• Protein: 23 g
• Fat: 24 g
• Carbs: 87 g

Ingredients

• 600g Hokkaido squash
• 1 onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 200ml vegetable stock
• 150g cream cheese
• 800g gnocchi
• 125g mozzarella
• 30g vegetarian hard cheese (Parmesan-style)
• 1 pinch of nutmeg
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 pinch of pepper
• 1/2 bunch of sage

Method

You’ll need: oven · saucepan · baking dish · chopping board · knife · grater · wooden spoon

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C (180 °C fan). Deseed the squash and cut it, skin on, into 2 cm pieces.
2. Peel the onion and garlic, dice both and soften them in the olive oil for 3 min. Add the squash and fry for 5 min.
3. Pour in the stock and cook the squash, covered, for 8 min. Mash a third of it in the pan, stir in the cream cheese and season with nutmeg, salt and pepper.
4. Stir the uncooked gnocchi into the squash sauce and tip everything into a baking dish.
5. Pick the sage leaves and lay them on the gnocchi with the torn mozzarella. Grate the hard cheese over the top.
6. Bake at 200 °C for 20 min, until the cheese is golden brown. Portioned, it keeps for 3 days in the fridge.

Good to know

The gnocchi cook right in the squash sauce, so you save a pan. Part of the squash is mashed and makes the sauce creamy. The sage turns slightly crisp in the oven.

Swaps

Gnocchi → wholemeal penne (boil for 5 min first). Cream cheese → ricotta. Mozzarella → scamorza (smokier). Hokkaido squash → butternut squash (peel it).

Cooking tips

Gnocchi from the chiller cabinet don't need cooking first – the liquid in the sauce is enough. Make sure they're completely covered with sauce.

Storage

The bake keeps for 3 days in the fridge; the gnocchi soften as they stand – to reheat, put it in the oven at 180 °C for 10 min.

Allergens

Vegetarian; contains wheat (gluten, gnocchi) and milk; no nuts. Chilled gnocchi often contain egg too – check the packet.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a squash gnocchi bake keep in the fridge?

The bake keeps for 3 days in the fridge; the gnocchi soften as they stand – to reheat, give it 10 min in the oven.