'Cheesy' One Pot Baked Italian Meatballs and Cauliflower Gnocchi
An easy weeknight dinner with ZERO chopping required. Gluten, Grain, and Dairy-Free.
Hi! Welcome to my newsletter and favorite corner of the internet to connect with my community. I develop and email a new grain-free recipe each week for paid subscribers (less than $1 per recipe!) and share cooking tutorials, private chats, and updates. Print this recipe for free at the bottom of this post until January 5, 2025— and subscribe to unlock 84 posts and every new recipe going forward!
Happy Thursday everyone!
This week’s recipe has become a staple for my kids, especially on busy sports nights. Crispy grain-free gnocchi, marinara sauce, instant meatballs, and dairy-free creamy ricotta cheese on top. It’s all store-bought and requires no chopping at all. Besides possibly for a salad, which you should serve alongside because we all need greens and fiber. And the cook in your life will be so happy it’s all made in one skillet (Ryan, our resident dishwasher, is equally thankful). Who doesn’t love a meal all created in one vessel?!
Thank you for being here!
Danielle
Love my recipes? Immediately unlock 84 posts here, with recipes and videos that aren’t published elsewhere for only $5/month or $45/year!
Instant Meatballs
We start by making little mini meatballs from bulk sausage. I love using sausage as a shortcut because it’s already so well flavored and eliminates the need to knead (see what I did there) ground meat with a bunch of various seasonings (which would make the ingredient list significantly longer).
If you can, buy “bulk” sausage, which just means it’s loose, raw sausage, not in casings. I love to buy organic chicken mild Italian sausage from Whole Foods, but pork or beef would be great as well. ButcherBox also sells a lot of great sausages.
Grain-Free Gnocchi
Let’s chat about the gnocchi. I tried the Trader Joe’s cauliflower gnocchi for years and didn’t love the gummy texture. But when I started pan frying it first and then finishing it off in a hot convection oven until it was crispy, I changed my mind.
Speaking of Gnocchi. When we were in college we went to our favorite Italian restaurant at the time in San Francisco. They had bocce courts inside and we always went with groups of friends when we visited home from college. I ordered gnocchi and pronounced it like “donkey” and Ryan still teases me about it to this day. My Italian grandmother doesn't know. Please don’t tell her.
Back to TJ’s - you really could get this entire ingredient list at Trader Joe’s if you use dairy ricotta. Just pick a sauce that doesn’t have sugar or soybean oil in it.
Enjoy the recipe this week, friends!!
xo
Danielle
A Winter In New York - A silly wintery Rom Com that I was supposed to read over Christmas but opted for puzzling instead. I just finished this light read and it was entertaining and sweet. Up next is the new #1 NYT bestseller by my favorite author of all time - Kristin Hannah’s The Women.
Beauty Lip Balm - It’s a bit high priced, but it’s so thick and creamy and I use it all the time. It gives your lips a nice little sheen too for the days where I don’t wear makeup (which is 95% of the days).
TJ’s chili onion crunch - I used to be fully a wuss when it came to spicy things but have grown to love all things spicy in the past 5 years or so. Hormones and lack of pregnancy/nursing? I have no research to back that up. Just curiosity. At any rate. I put this stuff on everything I make for my kids mild to spice it up and add a pop of flavor. And it’s made with a healthy oil for once! I even put it on this meatball recipe we’re making below.
Broadway Tunes - If we’re new friends. Hi. I’m Danielle and I’ve always been a musical theater nerd. Asher recently went to see Hamilton on Broadway on his school trip to DC and NY and so, of course, the soundtrack is on again for me nonstop after taking a break for a couple of years. “Some say that I’m intense or I’m insane.” I’m also doing all the Peloton runs and rides to it again and it’s bringing me joy this week. Oh and the soundtrack for &Juliet. If you’re a child of the 90’s, you will love.
'Cheesy' One Pot Baked Italian Meatball and Cauliflower Gnocchi
Servings 4 to 6
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Make It Good with Danielle Walker to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.