Ingredients
Ingredients, Shopping List amounts, and highlighted step quantities follow your servings. Keep temperatures, piece sizes, and cooking times as written; larger batches may need more pans. Check any flagged step against the ingredients.
Check off ingredients as you prep.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound shelf-stable potato gnocchi
- 14 ounces fully cooked smoked sausage, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
- 2 medium bell peppers, seeded and thinly sliced
- 1 jar (24 ounces) marinara sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup shredded low-moisture mozzarella cheese, divided
- 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon Salted Perfection SIMPLY ROSEMARY as an optional upgrade, or 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt plus 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Allergen check: Milk, Egg recognized in these ingredients. Check package labels and substitutions.
Step by step
- Heat the oven to 400°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with the olive oil—the good stuff should smell grassy and fresh, not tired.
- Add the gnocchi, smoked sausage, bell peppers, marinara, water, optional Salted Perfection SIMPLY ROSEMARY or its pantry alternative, and crushed red pepper directly to the dish. Stir thoroughly, making sure every gnocchi is glossed with sauce, then spread everything into an even layer.
- In a medium bowl, stir the ricotta, egg, 1/2 cup mozzarella, and 1/4 cup Parmesan until smooth. Spoon this mixture over the casserole in small dollops, then gently marble it into the top layer. That egg is the binder—the cheese stays creamy and lush instead of separating into an oily little tragedy.
- Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Carefully uncover and stir from the edges toward the center. The peppers should be softening and the sauce should be bubbling around the perimeter.
- Scatter the remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan over the top. Bake uncovered for 10–15 minutes, until the cheese is melted, the sauce bubbles across the center, the gnocchi are tender, and the casserole reaches 165°F in the middle.
- Rest for 5 minutes so the sauce settles around the gnocchi, then spoon into warm bowls while the peppers are sweet and the rosemary aroma is still rising. DUNZO!
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A little more about this recipe
Timing
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
Yield & storage
Original yield
Storage
Cool leftovers promptly and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat covered in a 350°F oven or microwave individual portions until they reach 165°F; add a spoonful of water if the sauce has tightened.
From Tony’s kitchen
Pillowy potato gnocchi, smoky sausage, and sweet peppers bake together under a properly bound veil of ricotta and mozzarella. The rosemary salt is optional, but its clean, piney perfume cuts through the richness beautifully—use a measured hand, because smoked sausage, marinara, and cheese already bring plenty of salinity to the table.
Nutrition • per serving
Ingredient notes
Ingredients & allergen check
Major-allergen signals: Milk, Egg
- Olive oil
- shelf-stable potato gnocchi
- fully cooked smoked sausage
- bell peppers
- jar () marinara sauce
- water
- whole-milk ricotta cheese
- egg
- low-moisture mozzarella cheese
- Parmesan cheese
- Salted Perfection SIMPLY ROSEMARY as an optional upgrade, or kosher salt plus dried rosemary
- red pepper flakes
Simply Rosemary blend: Sea salt, Rosemary
Check every package label. Brands, substitutions, shared equipment, and cross-contact can change allergen exposure.
