Pasta

Sheet Pan Gnocchi

~ SL

Sheet Pan Gnocchi is a super simple and versatile recipe you can make hands-free on a busy weeknight.

Gnocchi is rested on a bed of veggies, making it soft and chewy, yet toasted, giving it a wonderful texture.

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Choosing Vegetables for the Sheet Pan Gnocchi

The vegetables I chose to include in this recipe are easy to chop quickly and have varying textures. Mushrooms can be halved, while red peppers are sliced in 8ths and eggplant is chopped into 1-inch chunks. Keeping the skin on the eggplant allows the chunks to hold up while roasting. You can use any vegetables you prefer. Broccoli, cauliflower, butternut squash and grape tomatoes are also excellent options.

Meal Prep Tips

All of the veggies for this recipe can be prepped a day or two before you need them. Chopped vegetables will last a lot longer when stored separately from other veggies, so if you’re planning on prepping them more than a day ahead of time, store them in separate containers or bags. Additionally, to prevent the peppers from getting slimy, place a folded paper towel in the bottom of the container before storing them. For a complete list of how to prep and store vegetables, see pages 43 and 44 of your Ultimate Guide.

Sheet Pan Secrets

Sheet Pan Meals are flexible. Depending on the texture you want for your vegetables, you can choose to spread the ingredients out over one or two sheet pans. Crowding makes the vegetables soft and steamy, whereas spreading them out over two pans lets them crisp up.

For this recipe, I like to use one pan so that the steam created by the vegetables softens the gnocchi. Spreading the gnocchi out on top of the vegetables, allows the gnocchi to both steam on the bottom, and crisp up on the top.

Simple Seasonings

For this Sheet Pan Gnocchi recipe, all the ingredients are seasoned simply with olive oil, Italian Seasoning and salt and pepper. The flavor boost comes once it has been cooked, with a drizzle of three-herb pesto and balsamic reduction, like Nonna Pia’s. You can of course use store-bought pesto if you want.

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Sheet Pan Gnocchi

Vegetables and Gnocchi are roasted together on one pan for a quick and easy dinner

Course Main Course, pasta
Cuisine Italian
Keyword balsamic reduction, bell peppers, eggplant, gnocchi, mushrooms, pesto, roasted red pepper, roasted vegetables, sheet pan, sheet pan dinner, sheet pan meal, yellow pepper
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 1 eggplant
  • 2 bell peppers
  • 1 454g package cremini mushrooms Can use white button mushrooms
  • 1 package gnocchi Find it in the dry pasta section
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
  • 4 tbsp pesto homemade or store-bought
  • 2 tbsp balsamic reduction
  • parmesan cheese for garnish

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 425 F.

  2. Chop eggplant in 1-inch pieces, halve mushrooms and cut the bell peppers in 8ths.

  3. Spread out the vegetables on a parchment covered sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.

  4. Top vegetables with gnocchi (uncooked). Drizzle again with olive oil.

  5. Bake at 425 F for 25 minutes.

  6. Top cooked gnocchi and vegetables with a dollop of pesto and a drizzle of balsamic reduction.

  7. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Recipe Notes

You can swap out the vegetables for any vegetable you like. 

Serving suggestions for Sheet Pan Gnocchi

Serve this meal with Easy Weeknight Foccacia, cheesy breadsticks or a side salad. This makes a delicious lunch when reheated the next day.

Bake One, Freeze One – Chicken & Ricotta Lasagna Rolls

~ SL ~ Leave a comment

This post was written in a paid partnership with Manitoba Chicken Producers. As always, all opinions are my own and I only promote products and services that I use and love.

Spring break is just around the corner and that means kids are home from school and will at some point be a) hungry and b) bored. These Chicken Ricotta Lasagna Rolls are a great way to get the kids in the kitchen to keep them busy AND feed them.

a pan of cooked lasagna rolls in white sauce
These Chicken & Ricotta Lasagna Rolls are perfect for Spring Break: An activity for the kids and a meal for the family.

60-Second Recipe

As I mentioned in How to prep Chicken – One Pan Chicken Souvlaki, Manitoba Chicken Producers has 60-Second Recipe videos on manitobachicken.ca to teach you how to make over 50 of their recipes.  There is a video for these Chicken and Ricotta Lasagna Rolls too, so if you have older kids who are independent in the kitchen, you can set them up with the groceries and the link and let them have fun cooking dinner.

ingredients on a cutting board

Bake One, Freeze One

This recipe is a great one to double and freeze for another meal.  You can divide it in portions that are suitable for you. I like to use foil containers to freeze these, so that I don’t have to freeze my everyday baking dishes. 

Versatile & Adaptable

Chicken & Ricotta Lasagna Rolls are adaptable, and you can tweak the flavors based on ingredients you already have on hand. For my take on this recipe, I substituted the swiss chard with sundried tomatoes and the thyme for my Three Herb Pesto. You could also use spinach, shredded zucchini, or mushrooms instead of the swiss chard.  If using zucchini or mushrooms, be sure to sauté them first, to release some of the moisture.

ingredients in a bowl being mixed with a spatula

Since I doubled the recipe, I made half with the cream sauce, as stated in the original recipe, and used marinara sauce for the other half. You can also use different pasta shapes for these Chicken & Ricotta Lasagna Rolls. I tested this recipe using fresh lasagna sheets and oven-ready cannelloni shells. You could also use jumbo shell pasta or regular lasagna noodles (be sure to cook them and cool them before filling).

lasagna rolls in red sauce in a baking dish

Tips for Assembling Chicken & Ricotta Lasagna Rolls

This recipe is so easy to prepare. Younger children can help mix the ingredients and dollop the filling on to the lasagna sheets.  When I was using the oven-ready cannelloni, I used a piping bag to fill the tubes.  This technique might be tricky (but fun!) for tiny hands but will make filling them a breeze for a teen or an adult.

a hand holding a canneloni bring filled with a piping bag

Also, be sure to cover the rolls completely with whichever sauce you choose to use.  I made the mistake of leaving some of the edges uncovered and they got a bit crispy.

cream being poured from a pitcher over lasagna rolls

Tips for Freezing and Storing Chicken & Ricotta Lasagna Rolls

There are two important food safety tips you need to know for making and freezing these lasagna rolls.  First, when you bring the ground chicken home from the store, be sure to use it within two days.  Second, when freezing the lasagna rolls, they will keep in the freezer for up to three months.  Be sure to label your foil pans with the name of the recipe and the date so you know how long they have been in your freezer.

foil pans with cooking instructions written on the top

When thawing the rolls before cooking them, be sure to thaw them in the refrigerator the night before you would like to cook them.

These Chicken & Ricotta Lasagna Rolls are delicious leftover as well.  I thought they were even better the next day! Be sure to consume leftovers within two days. For more chicken-related food safety tips, head to the Cooking School section at manitobachicken.ca and click Cooking, Storing or Handling in the dropdown menu.

How to Serve Chicken & Ricotta Lasagna Rolls

a plate of food beside a baking dish of cooked lasagna rolls

These lasagna rolls pair well with a Caesar salad and garlic or focaccia bread.  Which variation will you make? Head to manitobachicken.ca for the recipe and to watch the 60-Second video.

Slow Cooker Marinara

~ SL ~ 2 Comments

This recipe has limited hands-on prep time. All you have to do is pop the ingredients in the slow cooker and let it go all day. Leftovers can be portioned and frozen for later.

Serve this marinara over pasta or chicken parm. It can also be used as a chunkier pizza sauce.

Slow Cooker or Stove-top

You’ll save the most time on this recipe by making it in the slow cooker, however, it’s also quite simple to make on the stove. I prefer the slow cooker method because it allows the flavors to develop and is hands-off.

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Uses

This sauce can be served over your favorite pasta and can be used to top your chicken parmesan. Feel free to add veggies, cooked ground meat, or meatballs to customize it. I love adding cooked Italian sausage, mushrooms, and peppers to make it hearty.

Portion and freeze the leftovers

Allow the sauce to cool before portioning and freezing it. I like to store it in medium-sized Ziploc bags, and frozen flat so the store and stack nicely in the freezer. One cup portions would be great if using for a dish like chicken parmesan, and 2-3 cup portions are better for using it as a pasta sauce if you’re adding veggies or meat. In the end, choose portion amounts based on how you intend to use the sauce in the future.

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Slow Cooker Marinara

A hands-free marinara recipe using pantry staples.

Course Main Course, pasta, sauce
Cuisine Italian
Keyword easy meals, marinara, quick meals, slow cooker, slow-cooker meals
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 6 hours
Servings 7 cups
Author SL

Ingredients

  • 1 onion
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 can diced tomatoes 28 oz.
  • 1 can crushed tomatoes 28 oz.
  • 1 Tbsp dried basil
  • 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Instructions

  1. Diced onion and mince garlic.

  2. Add all ingredients to the slow cooker.

  3. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

  4. Allow sauce to cool before portioning and freezing.

Recipe Notes

This recipe can be made on the stove-top.  Sauté onions and garlic in a bit of olive oil, add remaining ingredients and simmer on low for 20-30 minutes.  It can also be pureed with an immersion blender for a smoother sauce.