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Gnocchi with alfredo is creamy, cheesy, and easy to make! Add fluffy gnocchi to an easy homemade alfredo sauce before baking it in the oven until bubbly and golden.
This Gnocchi with Alfredo Sauce is comforting and filling! Pair with either peppery arugula salad or a veggie like roasted asparagus or garlic green beans.
Table of Contents
Why We Love This Gnocchi Alfredo Recipe
- Creamy and Cheesy – You can’t beat creamy alfredo sauce and the golden cheese on top of the dish.
- Only 7 Ingredients – It uses only a handful of simple, easy to find ingredients.
- Easy Alfredo Sauce – Making homemade alfredo sauce is so easy! No need to make a roux as it thickens on its own from simmering and adding cheese.
Ingredients
- Packaged Gnocchi – You can find this in the dry pasta aisle of most grocery stores
- Unsalted Butter – I like using unsalted butter because the cheese is pretty salty
- Minced Garlic – Fresh is best, but you can use the pre-minced kind in a jar
- Heavy Cream
- Fresh Grated Parmesan Cheese – Freshly grated makes a big difference!
- Grated Fontina Cheese – Freshly grated off the block for the best melt.
- Ground Black Pepper
How To Make Gnocchi Alfredo
See recipe card below for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Boil the gnocchi according to package instructions. Drain well and set aside.
- Make the Alfredo Sauce with butter, cream and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Use a which for stirring to help fully incorporate the cheese.
- Toss the gnocchi in the sauce until it’s completely coated.
- Pour into a baking dish and top with more Parmesan. Bake until golden and bubbly.
If you love gnocchi, you should really try my Chicken Gnocchi Soup. It’s a fantastic Olive Garden Copycat that’s perfect paired with Olive Garden Salad and Garlic Breadsticks.
Recipe FAQs
You can swap in gnocchi instead of pasta in many recipes. Pasta is made from eggs and flour while gnocchi is made from eggs, flour, and potatoes. While the texture of gnocchi is different from pasta, it pairs well with most pasta sauces including alfredo.
Gnocchi can be served with so many things! It’s great with pasta sauces like alfredo sauce, marinara sauce, pesto, or even a simple butter sauce. Gnocchi is also a great addition to soups like this Chicken Gnocchi Soup.
In some recipes you can cook gnocchi in the sauce, but the sauce has to have a high enough liquid content. In this gnocchi alfredo recipe, it’s best to pre-cook the gnocchi before adding to the sauce.
Variations
- Breadcrumb Topping – For a crunch, try topping the dish with panko breadcrumbs.
- Add Protein – Try adding in cooked and cubed chicken. It’s a great way to use up leftover chicken!
- Add a Veggie – This is a great recipe to sneak in some veggies for kids. Cooked broccoli is a perfect addition!
- Other Cheeses – You can omit the fontina and the recipe will turn out just fine. Alternatively, you can use 1 cup of preferred cheese over fontina but using 2 cups of parmesan as the base is necessary to make it a true “alfredo”.
Storage
Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days. If you are reheating in the microwave, I recommend microwaving at 50% power and stirring often until warmed through. Reheating slowly is best to prevent the cream sauce from breaking.
Helpful Tips
- Pre-Cook Gnocchi – Make sure to cook the gnocchi before baking as it needs the extra moisture and cooking time. But don’t overcook it as it will cook more in the oven.
- Fresh Grated Cheese – Use freshly grated cheese – powdered parmesan will not melt into the alfredo sauce.
- Baking Dish – I used a 9×13 inch baking dish, but you can use any size dish that will fit all of the pasta. Or you can put it into two smaller baking dishes.
More Italian Recipes
- Burrata Pizza
- Crockpot Spaghetti
- Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta
- Baked Italian Sub Sandwiches
- Slow Cooker Sausage and Peppers
Baked Gnocchi Alfredo
Ingredients
- 2 16-ounce packages gnocchi
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 2 ½ cups heavy cream
- 2 cups fresh parmesan cheese grated
- 1 cup fontina cheese grated
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- Optional: fresh parsley chopped for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare a baking dish with cooking spray.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and prepare gnocchi according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Add the minced garlic and cook for one minute or until fragrant.
- Slowly pour the heavy cream into the garlic butter and bring to a simmer, whisking constantly. Once all of the cream is incorporated, allow to simmer for 3 minutes or until the mixture begins to thicken.
- Add the cheese to the pan, reserving ½ cup of the fontina for the top of gnocchi.
- Whisk the cheese until fully melted and continue cooking at a simmer for about 3-5 minutes or until the sauce is nice and thick.
- Add the gnocchi to the pan and stir to coat.
- Pour the gnocchi and alfredo sauce into the prepared baking dish and top with the remaining ½ cup cheese.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes or until thick, bubbly and golden brown on top.
- Garnish with fresh parsley if desired and serve.
Notes
- Make sure to cook the gnocchi before baking, it needs the extra moisture and cook time.
- Variations: You can top the dish with panko crumbs, cheese, herbs, etc., or add chicken, shrimp, broccoli, spinach or other preferred protein and veggies.
This looks great. Do you think it would be okay to prep it the day before and bake it right before serving?
Hi Cat, I haven’t tested this specific recipe, but generally Alfredo sauce is best served immediately, because the sauce tends to break upon reheating. If you’re trying to save time, I’d suggesting prepping everything in advance, including measuring ingredients and cooking the gnocchi and then making the sauce fresh just before baking.
Wonderful recipe! I wonder if adding cooked Italian sausage could also compliment this dish?
You could serve it with Italian sausage links and that would be delicious, but adding crumbled sausage would make it too greasy.
I cooked this tonight and we loved it! We’ve never had gnocchi but we love alfredo so the two together were wonderful. My daughter who is sometimes a little picky about trying new things even went back for seconds! Thanks Kristin!
You are so welcome Marla! Love the feedback, thanks for stopping by.