This 5 Ingredient Gnocchi, Broccoli and White Bean Bake is ready in just 30 minutes and is perfect for a quick and easy vegetarian dinner that everyone will love!
Do you know what’s better than a 30 minute dinner? How about a 30 minute dinner that only requires 5 ingredients! I’ve been feeling really unmotivated when it comes it dinner lately and we seem to keep having the same meals over and over again.
I’ve been cooking a lot of meal prep recipes that I use for lunch and then when it comes to dinner I’m just tired and don’t want to spend too much time in the kitchen. Enter this 5 Ingredient Gnocchi, Broccoli and White Bean Bake 🙂
It pretty much crosses off all the boxes on my dinner checklist. It’s packed with veggies (and you could even add more if you like!) it has protein from the white beans and who doesn’t love pillowy gnocchi? One thing I love about cooking gnocchi for dinner is that it is so freaking easy.
I usually sautéed mine up in a little olive oil to get it nice and brown, but today we’re throwing it right in the boiling water with the broccoli so they can both cook at the same time, and you don’t have to dirty and unneeded dishes. Did I mention that I’m also feeling really unmotivated when it comes to doing the dishes lately too? 🙂
This dinner is one of those recipes that doesn’t take much time, energy or ingredients but it tastes pretty impressive! I like to pair mine with a big salad and thick slice of garlic bread for a complete meal. I hope you enjoy!
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5 Ingredient Gnocchi, Broccoli and White Bean Bake
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
Description
A delicious vegetarian dinner that only requires 5 ingredients!
Ingredients
- 4–5 cups broccoli florets
- 1 (16 oz) package gnocchi
- 1 (15 oz) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (24 oz) jar tomato sauce
- 1 cup grated cheese, divided (your favorite kind)
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add broccoli florets to the boiling water and let cook for about 2 minutes. Next, add the gnocchi and let cook until all the gnocchi has floated to the top, another 4-5 minutes.
- Drain broccoli and gnocchi and add them back into the pot. Add in the cannelloni beans, tomato sauce and 3/4 cup of the cheese. Stir everything together and pour into a large baking dish. Spread out with a large spoon and evenly sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup cheese on top.
- Place baking dish in the oven and bake until bubbly and cheese is melted, about 15-20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Dinner, Vegetarian
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I made this for dinner last night and it turned out great! I added mushrooms and onions and used Parmesan cheese. This will be one of those recipes I’ll use often and change up the veggies. Thanks!
I’m going to try this, but I wondered if it would be possible to use white kidney beans instead of cannellini beans. When you say Tomato sauce, do you mean pasta sauce, or actual tomato sauce you get in a can?
Of course!! I use pasta sauce but you could use tomato sauce too 🙂
Thanks! I did some Googling, and from what i understand, cannelini beans are white kidney beans. Is this right? That’s why I probably only see white kidney beans in the aisle, and not cannellni beans.
Thanks Izzy for the quick and easy, and also good recipe! This is def great for a weekday meal!
Awesome! I hope you enjoy! 🙂
For the love of God, don’t boil your gnocchi! They will disintegrate!
I only boil them for a minute or so, they did not disintegrate…
The recipie says to add your gnocci to the boiling water with the broccoli and leave for 4-5 min until they float to the top…. but here you’re saying you only boil them for a minute or two.. how long is it? I dont want to ruin mine lol
Oops! I would take them out as soon as they float to the top! Just keep an eye on them, shouldn’t be more than 4 minutes
Made this tonight and we really enjoyed it! A perfect, fast weekday meal. This will definitely be going into rotation during the cold, winter months. 🙂
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Jen! It’s one of my favorite easy dinners 🙂
Scrumptious!!! Thanks so much! I’ll be making this often.
Yah! So glad you enjoyed it!!
This was delicious! I added chilli flakes too, thanks for the inspiration. I am trying to move gradually to more vegetarian food and it is daunting at first, your website is going to prove useful ????
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Once you get the hang of it it will be much easier! 🙂
Made this meal two nights ago and it was a hit. Super easy to make.
I”m so glad you enjoyed it!!
Can this be made vegan? Which cheese would you then use (or could I omit the cheese)?
Definitely! You could omit the cheese or either use your favorite vegan shredded cheese or a vegan ricotta cheese would be good too!
Are you using fresh or dry gnocchi, and is 4-5 minuets the full cooking time?
The recipe sounds awesome and I can’t wait to try it!
I used dry gnocchi, but you could use fresh if you have some. You just cook it in the water for about 4-5 minutes and then it also bakes in the oven 🙂
Thanks. I’m going to try it this week. Do you think I could make everything in morning up to point it needs to go into the oven and then refrigerate it until the night or next day and bake?
You most definitely can do that! I hope you enjoy!
Hi there – what size pan should I be using for this recipe?
I think I used one that’s a little bit smaller than 9×11 but 9×11 would work great too!
Planning on making this tonight! What size dish works best?
Yah! 9×11 would work great! I think the one I used was a little smaller but I definitely wouldn’t go bigger 🙂
My Deep 7×11 works perfectly!
Yah!
Hi, can this be frozen? Thanks!
Yes, I would freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Would you freeze before or after baking?
I would freeze before!
Looks amazing, we’re trying it tonight. I’m making my own sauce so putting in onion, carrot, celery, red pepper, garlic and a tin of chopped tomatoes on first. Freelancing at home today so have that option. Also swapped brocooli for cauliflower as the old man hates little green trees 😉 Anyway, it looks delicious and a great vegan or veggie option and we’re all for swapping out meat these days. Thanks for posting.
I hope you both enjoyed it!!
Is it better to use potato or ricotta gnocchi?
I’ve only ever used potato gnocchi but I think Ricotta would be good too!
My oven is currently out of commission for a little bit. Do you think if I tightly covered this in a large skillet, I could finish it on the stove top instead of the oven?
Yes, definitely!
Hi, I’m planning on making this for a class assignment (I’m studying early childhood) and have to include 2 or more veggies. Do you know what other vegetables work well in this dish?
Thanks
Hi! A few easy options that come to find are spinach, kale, fresh tomatoes or cauliflower. I hope that helps!
Hi, what other veggies would work well in this dish?
Hi! In case you didn’t get my response from yesterday, some easy ones would be spinach, kale, cauliflower, fresh tomatoes, peas, corn or carrots 🙂
I have been looking for an easy (yet filling) meal I can eat over and over again, and this recipe did the trick! I look forward to experimenting with adding or subbing in other vegetables in the future. 🙂
Yah! So glad you liked it!!
I’m going to try this but what is the tomato sauce? Is that passata?
Yes, it’s the same as pasta sauce 🙂
Hi! This looks delicious. Can I use 3 cheese tortellini instead of the gnocchi?
Sure!!
Fantastic recipe thank you!
Quick and easy and my 5 year old finally ate broccoli and didn’t mind it 🙂
Looking froward to trying your other recipes.
Awesome!! It’s so nice when we can get them to eat veggies!
Hey! This looks so yum, I’m excited to try it this week. Do you think I would be able to get it all prepped and into my baking dish in the morning so I just need to heat the oven and bake it at night? Or would that ruin the structure of the cheese?
Yes!
Do you think I would be able to prep this recipe in the morning so all I need to do at dinner time is bake it?
Definately!
I am in Portugal and can’t find gnocchi…what can I substitute?
You could use roasted potatoes or regular pasta 🙂
Looks great. Would this work with a different pasta?
Sure! You could use any kind of pasta you like 🙂
Local store was out of gnocchi so I was going to sub with fresh ones I’m going to make myself. Do I cook them first or put them in the dish raw and then bake?
Yes, I would cook them first!
How would you make this with frozen gnnochi?
I’d probably thaw the gnocchi on the counter for a few hours and then just follow the regular recipe directions
You know, I’m going to try this tonight, but I’m going to use the Green Giant frozen cauliflower gnocchi instead. I’m really looking forward to this.
I hope you enjoyed it!!
I’m just wondering if this can be made with frozen gluten-free gnocchi from Trader Joe’s and how would you modify it for that. I saw that you answered a question about frozen gnocchi leaving it out to thaw for a few hours, but would it be the same for gluten-free? Thanks
Yes, I think that would work great with gluten free gnocchi too! I’d just let it thaw a bit and then add it in.
HI there should I use fresh or frozen broccoli?
Either will work. If using fresh just make sure to cook it in the water with gnocchi for a minute or two
I made this last night, my kids loved it and had 2nds! I added diced pumpkin and 4 bean mix and more cheese! Was delicious and will definitely have this as a regular on our dinner plan!!
That’s so nice to hear!!
I have made this probably 30 times since I first discovered your recipe. I use it whenever I want a “lazy” meal and modified it to be a 1-pan recipe.
I don’t pre-cook the gnocchi or broccoli and put everything in a pan together raw (or frozen sometimes in the case of the broccoli). It takes a little bit longer to cook, but I only have 1 pan to clean instead of a pan, a pot, and a colander.
I first preheat the oven to 350F instead of 400F. I drizzle some pasta sauce from a 28oz jar and coat the bottom of a 9×13 pan, then add in (1) 17.6oz package of gnocchi and 2 cans of white beans (great northern or cannellini both turn out fine) and a little more sauce and mix together. Then I add in (1) 12oz bag of frozen broccoli or an equivalent amount of fresh chopped broccoli. I top with the rest of the sauce then shred and add ~5oz of mozzarella cheese to cover the top. Then I add black olives on top of the cheese because we are olive lovers haha.
I bake at 350 for 20-25 min for fresh broccoli or 25-30 min for frozen, then broil for a couple of minutes at 450 to brown the cheese. Comes out fully cooked and I only have 1 pan to clean at the end 🙂
Thank you so much for this recipe because it has become a go-to for me, as I nearly always have the ingredients on hand.
That is so nice to hear!!! Thank you!!
Hey,
I hope to try this recipe this week, as I want to put more vegetarian recipes in our rotation for our two year old.
I was just wondering about spices, as nothing is added besides salt and pepper. I had expected to see garlic, onion, maybe some italian spices or fresh basil. Will the passata not taste a bit bland? (There is nothing added to jars of passata here, don`t know if that is the case in the US.). We cook with as little salt as possible for our son, so flavor has to come from spices.
Any tips?
Hi Carlette, I wanted to keep it as a simple 5 ingredient recipe so I didn’t go crazy with any seasonings but you are more than welcome to add them in! Especially if your sauce isn’t already seasoned. I hope that helps!
We love gnocchi and avoid meat, so I’m definitely going to try this. Since I want to add sauteed mushrooms, I’ll just saute the gnocchi along with the mushrooms while I steam the broccoli florets. Then I’ll toss it all together with the white beans and my homemade pasta sauce in a casserole dish. It’s a couple of extra pots, but for anyone who is concerned about overcooking the gnocchi, this is a good solution and prevents them from getting soggy. Thanks for the recipe.
Sounds perfect! I hope you enjoy!
I tried this tonight as recipe is written. I loved this recipe and look forward to making it again. There is so much flexibility in your recipes which are a home run for me. I can’t have spicy food and I have to eat vegetarian so this recipe is perfect for me. I look forward to trying another recipe.
That is so nice to hear, Charlotte! Thank you!
This was very yummy. I used pasta sauce and used chickpeas instead because we didn’t have beans (although I think it would be more delicious with the beans). My partner and I both thought it would be very good with some kale chopped and mixed in too.
My 3-year old is pretty special and was not interested in touching it but I will try again in a couple weeks. Made great leftovers for lunches too!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!
Your recipe calls for 24oz tomato sauce. Is it actually “tomato sauce” or pasta sauce? Thanks
Either will work, whatever you prefer 🙂
Just curious, would alfredo sauce work?
Yeah, I think that would work great!