Turkey And Spinach Gnocchi Alfredo Bake Recipe

Part pasta and part potato, gnocchi is perhaps the perfect, starchy comfort food for anyone looking for a deeply satisfying meal. Originating from Northern Italy, these pasta dumplings are known for their chewy and pillowy texture and have been consumed in a wide variety of variations since the 16th century. While gnocchi are a wonderfully versatile ingredient that can be baked, fried, or boiled, we think that they are at their best when smothered with a delicious sauce and heaps of cheese. Who can resist the appeal of a creamy and rich gnocchi dish?

This turkey and spinach gnocchi Alfredo bake, created by Tasting Table's Jennine Rye, is a perfect comfort food offering that can be enjoyed any time of the year. Soft and pillowy gnocchi are baked in a thick and creamy Alfredo sauce along with juicy chunks of turkey and wilted spinach to give you a full meal in one bowl. The dish is topped off with mozzarella and Parmesan, which become beautifully gooey and golden in the oven and add heaps of texture and flavor to the meal. 

To begin this turkey and spinach gnocchi Alfredo bake recipe, first you will need to gather the ingredients. For the Alfredo sauce you will want butter, garlic, all-purpose flour, chicken stock, heavy cream, whole milk, dried thyme, and grated Parmesan. To assemble the rest of the dish, you will need olive oil, diced turkey breast, salt and pepper, spinach, gnocchi, and fresh mozzarella.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Heat the oil in a large, oven-safe pan to a medium-high heat.

Add the turkey to the pan and season well with salt and pepper.

Fry for 5 to 6 minutes, until the turkey is cooked through.

Remove the turkey and set to one side.

Lower the heat to medium and add the butter to the pan.

Add the crushed garlic and fry for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until fragrant.

Add the flour and stir it in to make a roux.

Add the chicken stock, milk, cream, and thyme to the pan, and allow the mixture to simmer for 3 to 4 minutes.

Add ⅓ cup grated Parmesan and stir it in.

Add the spinach and let it wilt for 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the gnocchi and the cooked turkey to the pan and stir well to coat everything in the sauce.

Top with the sliced mozzarella and the remaining ¼ cup Parmesan.

Bake for 20 minutes, until golden on top.

Serve immediately.

Gnocchi are a wonderful and versatile ingredient, and they work well in this recipe due to their shape and texture. However, there are other alternatives available to you that you may want to try for something a little different. As this recipe is essentially a pasta bake, it is very simple to substitute out the gnocchi for your preferred type of pasta. Though, to do this, you will need to precook and drain the pasta before adding it to the Alfredo sauce. We recommend choosing pasta types that will be of a similar size to the turkey chunks in the dish, so anything that is shorter and thicker will work well, such as penne, rigatoni, or orecchiette. These pasta types will also capture and carry the delicious sauce well, due to their specific shapes.

For something a little different, why not substitute the gnocchi for spaetzle? Similar in concept, spaetzle is a German-style pasta dumpling made of flour, egg, and salt. Although it doesn't contain potato like gnocchi, it does have a somewhat similar, dumpling-like texture, and, like gnocchi, it can easily be made at home. Often paired with creamy sauces, spaetzle could be a great way to add variety to this turkey and spinach Alfredo pasta bake recipe.

For the as-of-yet uninitiated, Alfredo sauce is a deliciously decadent, calorie-dense sauce consisting primarily of butter, cream, and plenty of Parmesan cheese. Undeniably rich and silky smooth, this popular sauce is most often paired with fettuccine and can be found on most Italian restaurant menus in the U.S.A. If you like your pasta sauces creamy and cheesy, this is the sauce for you. 

However, the Alfredo sauce as we know and love it today isn't the classic Italian sauce we might like to think it is; Alfredo in its original form was in fact much simpler. If you visit an authentic Italian restaurant in the heart of Italy, you'll likely find that fettuccini Alfredo is a much less creamy and far more pared-down dish than the American version. The original fettuccine Alfredo was simply pasta tossed in butter and Parmesan and seasoned with a bit of salt and pepper.