Recipe: Gnocchi Florentine

Because yesterday was Library Day in the Life, I didn’t get a chance to share a recipe. So I’m sharing this recipe today! It actually works out nicely because it’s what I had for dinner last night. My friend Ashley asked me to post this recipe as she is always looking for new ways to fix gnocchi.

Y’all know what gnocchi are, right? If you don’t, gnocchi are Italian dumplings, usually made from potatoes. And they are delicious.

This recipe came from a Weight Watchers meeting (or maybe the magazine, I don’t remember which) and can be very low-fat if it’s made with minimal oil, low fat (or fat free) tomato sauce, and extra lean ground beef.

But I don’t particularly like the way things taste when they are made that way. I really like my olive oil. 🙂

The point is, you can make this as healthy as you want. Just use less oil, whole wheat gnocchi, and extra lean ground beef.

Gnocchi Florentine
Print this recipe!

1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
½ pound lean ground beef
1¾ cups marinara sauce (homemade or your favorite jarred)
1 10-oz box frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 17-oz package gnocchi
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion until soft, but not brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Sprinkle in the Italian seasoning and then add the meat. Cook the beef until nicely browned and no longer pink anywhere. (At this point, you could also deglaze the pan with about ¼ cup red wine if you feel like it’s the right thing to do.)

Pour in your sauce, cover, and bring to a simmer. Stir in the squeezed dry (this is very important!) spinach and return to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper, taste, and then adjust seasonings as desired.

Cook the gnocchi according to the package directions; drain. Add gnocchi to the sauce, stir to coat. Serve with Parmesan cheese.