Roasted tomato gnocchi
What’s easier than a quick pasta meal? Turning it into a tray bake! Throw all the ingredients on to a baking tray, pop it in the oven and in no time there’s delicious comforting carbs ready just for you.
This is what my roasted tomato gnocchi traybake is all about.
The perfect solution to a glut of summer tomatoes
It feels a bit silly writing about summer tomatoes given I’m publishing this article at the end of winter. But, I am mainly doing it for my friend Marja who lives in Finland. It’s summer there and soon she’ll have her summer harvest.
I first made this recipe at the end of summer. My dad grows vegetables in his garden and while my parents were away on holiday I was tasked with picking (and eating) everything that was ripening. I had kilos of tomatoes. Way too many.
In desperation I started looking for recipes can came across a gnocchi tray bake. With a few tweaks to the volumes and ingredients I was able to make it work for me, my husband and our baby daughter.
Ingredients
Like with most cooking, and unlike baking, there is flexibility in the ingredients. I’ll list them all here and give a range of how much I’d recommend using.
- Gnocchi (two to four serves – most gluten free gnocchi is 2.5 to 3 serves per packet)
- Cherry tomatoes (one to two punnets or 200g – 400g)
- Olive oil (two to three tablespoons)
- Garlic (two to two hundred cloves)
- Red onion (zero to a whole onion)
- Basil (or parsley, or both)
- Rocket (or baby spinach, 60g or so)
- Lemon wedge (or lemon juice)
- Parmesan (or any other cheese you fancy, like marinated goat’s cheese)
For this recipe I have used Simply Wize gluten free gnocchi as well as a GF gnocchi made by San Remo. It’s no different from regular gnocchi, so there’s no adjustments to make in the recipe if you’re using an alternative gnocchi.
I haven’t put volumes for the salad leaves because it’s up to you. One handful? Sure! Two? Why not! And it’s the same for the herbs, a little or a lot it’s up to you and what’s in your fridge (or garden).
Method
Start off by preheating your oven to 220°C (425°F).
The good thing is there’s zero prep in this dish, not even cutting a tomato if you’re using cherry tomatoes. If you are using larger tomatoes, simply halve or quarter them.
In a large roasting pan add the gnocchi, tomatoes, garlic cloves (whole, unpeeled), onion (if using) and three tablespoons of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
Roast the mix in the oven, stirring once or twice. The gnocchi are ready when they are golden and starting to crisp, the tomatoes have burst, and onion is golden. Anywhere from 20–30 minutes depending on your oven. Remove the tray from the oven.
Take the garlic cloves and squeeze them onto the tray, mash with a fork. Squeeze the lemon wedge so the juice evenly coats the tray add another tablespoon of olive oil and mix well.
Add the rocket (arugula), basil and parmesan. Give a light stir and serve.
Serving and storing roasted tomato gnocchi
I’d highly recommend eating this dish fresh, that way you get to enjoy the different textures of the crunchy gnocchi alongside the just wilted leaves and herbs.
I’ve made this a few times now and it works with other ingredients. The last time I made it I used Meredith goat’s cheese instead of parmesan. The benefit of this cheese is that it comes seeped in a delicious flavoured oil which I could also drizzle over the gnocchi.
When my daughter ate it I added some green peas to her dish, just to increase the vegetable content – she loved it!
Gnocchi tomato tray bake
Equipment
- 1 Large roasting pan
Ingredients
- 1 Packet gnocchi
- 2 punnets of tomatoes approx 400g
- 1/2 red onion, cut in wedges optional
- 2 large cloves of garlic whole, unpeeled
- olive oil
- 1 wedge of lemon or 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- basil leaves handful
- 1 cup rocket about 60g
- parmesan to garnish
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 220°C (425°F).
- In a large roasting pan combine gnocchi, tomatoes, garlic cloves and three tablespoons of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.1 Packet gnocchi, 2 punnets of tomatoes, 1/2 red onion, cut in wedges, 2 large cloves of garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper
- Roast the mix in the oven, stirring once or twice. The gnocchi are ready when they are golden and starting to crisp, the tomatoes have burst, and onion is golden. About 25–30 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven.
- Take the garlic cloves and squeeze them onto the tray, mash with a fork. Squeeze the lemon wedge so the juice evenly coats the tray add another tablespoon of olive oil and mix well.1 wedge of lemon
- Add the rocket (arugula), basil and parmesan. Give a light stir and serve.basil leaves, 1 cup rocket, parmesan
Hungry for more easy gluten free recipes? Check out these!