This recipe is a spin on an old family favourite, Gnocchi and Chickpea Skillet Dinner. I love to combine gnocchi in a skillet with whatever veggies and protein I happen to have on hand. In the original post, it happened to be chickpeas, mushrooms, broccoli, and a little bit of turkey bacon. This time I used bacon again (but the real kind!), cherry tomatoes, baby spinach, yellow peppers, and sundried tomato pesto. I had to share it, because it turned out even better than the original one.

Sometimes I use packaged gnocchi, which is perfectly fine and so incredibly fast. If I happen to have leftover mashed potatoes on hand, I’ll make homemade gnocchi. It’s actually faster than you’d think it is, especially when you already have mashed potatoes ready. Check out my recipe for Leftover Mashed Potato Gnocchi, or Spinach Ricotta Gnocchi. You can even make Yam Gnocchi! If you haven’t clued in by the number of gnocchi posts I have, I’m a fan of gnocchi.

Cole, on the other hand, is not a fan. I don’t understand it, and frankly, he doesn’t understand it either. He loves potatoes and he loves pasta, so what’s the problem with gnocchi? He’s also not a lover of perogies, which are sort of similar, so I guess it’s just the texture of them or something. He did still eat this meal, but picks out the gnocchi. Bennett absolutely loves them, and looks forward to our gnocchi skillet meals.

Then there’s Ayla. She doesn’t seem to want to eat dinner at all lately, no matter what it is. She is truly my little “Whine” Critic. I’m not going to stress about it though, because I know it’s just a phase. When I look back on my older posts of the boys at her age, I know they were the same way. She eats a good breakfast and lunch, so I don’t worry too much about dinner. More for me!

Ingredients

• 4 strips bacon, diced
• 1 package (16 – 18 oz) of gnocchi 
• 1 yellow bell pepper, diced
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 2 handfuls baby spinach
• 3 tbsp. pesto (I like sundried tomato pesto)
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Cook diced bacon in a skillet over medium heat until browned. Set bacon aside and drain fat, leaving about 1/2 tbsp. of bacon fat in the skillet.
2. Boil gnocchi according to package directions, then drain water and add the cooked gnocchi to the skillet.
3. Add bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, spinach, pesto, and cooked bacon.
4. Stir and cook until peppers have softened and spinach has wilted (approx. 5 minutes).
5. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and serve hot.

And as usual, I’m including a meal template, for those of you that like to experiment. This will give you some ideas of meals you can make using gnocchi and a skillet.

Gnocchi Skillet Meal Template

Gnocchi:

• Potato
• Yam
• Ricotta

Protein:

• Chickpeas
• Beans
• Lentils
• Ground meat
• Italian Sausage
• Bacon
• Chicken

Vegetables:

• Onion
• Spinach
• Kale
• Tomatoes
• Bell peppers
• Broccoli
• Cauliflower
• Mushrooms

Seasonings/Sauces:

• Pesto
• Pasta Sauce
• Alfredo Sauce
• Lemon Zest/ Lime zest
• Garlic
• Italian Seasoning: oregano, basil
• Mexican Seasoning: chili power, cumin. cilantro