What I’ve essentially done here is taken the traditional tuna pasta bake and, for want of a better phrase, tarted it up a bit. Pasta bakes are one of my absolute favourites but it seemed a natural evolution to try swapping out pasta for potato gnocchi to make something a little lighter and more interesting to eat!
If you’ve tried my Oven baked gnocchi with cherry tomatoes then you may have already fallen in love with gnocchi like I have. They are like a blank canvas – taking on and complementing whatever they are served with. Combined with some tinned tuna, vegetables, oozy mozzarella and melted cheddar they create a light but luxurious and filling bake which is stunning served with a simple fresh side salad or some Herb and cheese topped focaccia for dipping and mopping up sauce!
Kieran was sat in the kitchen with me, working on the laptop when I was trying this out the very first time and Luna didn’t want to miss out on the action (or the possibility of being able to scrounge some tuna when she heard the can opener going). As you can see in the picture, she decided that daddy was paying far too much attention to the laptop and not nearly enough to her so she resolved to show us just how pretty she is! She’d probably be quite embarrassed by the sheer volume of pictures we have of her being a plonker – if she cared obviously!
As I know some of you may have issues with balance or certain movements like I do, I wanted to tell you about my electric can opener. It’s battery powered so you sit it right on the can lid and press the button and once it’s in the right position where the blade can engage, it just goes and opens it for you. I won’t deny it takes some getting used to and it makes a horrendous noise while it’s working but it’s super convenient and well worth the money.
This recipe does take a little time in the kitchen, chopping, cooking and preparing the bake’s component parts but then you pop it in the oven and you’ve got about 20 minutes to relax before it’s ready. Fair warning – it comes out of the oven at roughly the temperature of molten lava which is why I’ve advised to let it sit for 10 minutes before even attempting to serve it up!
So please let me know what you think via the comments or feel free to use the Contact Me form on the site – I love hearing from you! I’m also on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter so tag away and show me your bakes! Enjoy DDx!
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Creamy Tuna, Mushroom and Gnocchi Bake
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Tuna, peppers, sweetcorn, mushrooms and potato gnocchi in a creamy sauce with oozy mozzarella and melted cheddar.
Ingredients
- 300 g potato gnocchi
- 150 g sweetcorn
- 200 g mushrooms, sliced
- 1 red onion, diced
- 1 red pepper, cut into small chunks
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced/crushed
- 4 basil leaves
- 2 cans of tuna, drained
- 300 ml vegetable stock (1 stock cube per 300ml boiling water)
- 2 tablespoons cream cheese
- 40 g cheddar, grated
- Salt and pepper
- 125 g mozzarella, cut into small chunks
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 50 ml white wine (I used alcohol free)
- Olive oil
Instructions
- Spray an oven dish with cooking spray (or oil or butter it). Preheat the oven to 220℃ / fan 200℃ / 425℉.
- Heat a tablespoon of olive oil over a medium heat. Add the onion and sweetcorn and fry until the onion is soft. Add the garlic, pepper and mushrooms and cook gently until cooked through.
- Pour over the white wine and simmer until almost all the of liquid is gone, stirring frequently.
- Add the tuna, oregano and torn up basil leaves to the pan and cook for a few minutes.
- Carefully drop the gnocchi into a pan of lightly salted boiling water and cook for 3-4 minutes until they start to float up to the surface. Drain thoroughly.
- Add the stock to the tuna and vegetables and mix well. Increase the heat to bring it up to a gentle simmer and simmer until the liquid is reduced right down.
- Add the gnocchi, cream cheese and a good pinch or grind of black pepper and stir until the cream cheese is melted to make a creamy sauce.
- Spoon the gnocchi mixture into the prepared oven dish and scatter over the mozzarella and grated cheddar.
- Bake for 20 minutes until the cheese has melted and is turning golden. Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes before serving.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
