This baked gnocchi with pumpkin sauce is comfort food at its finest! It’s simple yet sophisticated, with creamy goat cheese dollops and sage.

We’re better together. Have you heard of Scarcity versus Abundance mentality? The Scarcity mentality is a belief that there’s a limited amount of resources, like money, opportunity, and recognition. Everything becomes driven by fear, and it’s difficult to be happy for other people’s success. On the other hand, the Abundance mindset is that there’s enough to go around for everyone. People with this mindset see others in the same arena as friends instead of foes. They’re genuinely happy for other people’s successes.

Why is the Scarcity mentality such a natural first instinct? (Ugh, right?). But I’ve found a secret to the easiest way to cultivate the abundance mentality in life and business. Simply spend time around other people who practice abundance. Now, just how does this relate to baked gnocchi? Keep reading.

First, why we are better together

This baked gnocchi is a recipe I brought to a potluck for a group I co-founded called Indy Women in Food. We created this group under the notion: We are better together. It’s a group of women entrepreneurs working in food in Indianapolis. Instead of competing with each other, the goal of the group is to lift each other up. We encourage one another, spread the word about our achievements, and collaborate on shared passion projects. In short: the group exists to practice abundance in action. And you know what? Being around others with the Abundance Mentality makes it 100% easier to mirror it yourself.

The world of food blogs is another place where Abundance is part of the culture. Instead of a feeling of competition, “We are better together” is the mantra of this community. Food bloggers and food influencers are some of the most generous, encouraging people I know. So it is only fitting that this baked gnocchi recipe is in honor of a Virtual Pumpkin Party! Sara from Cake Over Steak organized over 90 blogs to post new pumpkin recipes on the same day. Celebration of each others’ work and platforms: that’s abundance in action. (Head over for the links to all recipes.)

How to make baked gnocchi

Sometimes you stumble upon things better than you bargained. This baked gnocchi with pumpkin sauce turned out much better than we were hoping. Of course, Alex and I stand behind all of the recipes we post in this space! But this one has become a hands-down favorite. Gooey gnocchi drenched in savory pumpkin sauce with creamy pockets of goat cheese is like a cozy fall hug. We find ourselves sneaking bites from the pan after we think we’re done.

This baked gnocchi is made with packaged gnocchi for ease of preparation: and these days, you can find some really great packaged gnocchi at the grocery. Of course you can make your own if you’d like, too!

Here are the main steps on how to make baked gnocchi (see the full recipe below):

Make the pumpkin sauce: Mince garlic, then heat olive oil in a skillet. Saute the garlic for 1 to 2 minutes, then carefully add canned pumpkin puree, vegetable broth, chili powder, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Simmer about 10 to 15 minutes until the sauce becomes thick. Then stir in a bit of Greek yogurt.
Meanwhile, boil the gnocchi in a large pot of salted boiling water, about 2 to 3 minutes, until they float.
Place the gnocchi and pumpkin pasta sauce in a baking dish. Top with dollops of goat cheese and fresh thinly sliced sage. Bake 15 minutes until heated through and bubbly.

We hope you’ll find it as tasty and cozy as we do. It’s perfect as a fall dinner, or even a vegetarian Thanksgiving main dish.

What’s a substitute for goat cheese?

Goat cheese features prominently in this recipe. But if you’re not a goat cheese fan, never fear! You can substitute other cheeses in this recipe. For this use of goat cheese, we’d use fresh mozzarella torn into pieces: then it would become gooey when baked in a similar way to the goat cheese.

Another option could be ricotta cheese: but we’d add some salt and pepper to season it first, since it has a much more bland flavor than goat cheese. Or, you could try our Easy Creamy Gnocchi recipe instead, which uses Pecorino Romano cheese.

Is goat cheese healthy?

You might be wondering, is goat cheese healthy? Or at least, is it better for you than cow’s cheese? There are several great things about goat cheese versus a standard cow’s cheese like cheddar or mozzarella. Goat cheese:

Has more vitamins and minerals than cow’s cheese. Goat’s milk is richer in essential nutrients than cow’s milk (like vitamin A & B, calcium, iron, magnesium, and potassium).
Has slightly less calories than cow’s cheese. Goat cheese has just 75 calories per ounce—less than cow cheeses like mozzarella (85), Swiss (108), and cheddar (115).
Is easier to digest. Goat cheese has less lactose than cow’s milk and a slightly different protein structure. That means even people who are lactose intolerant many times can digest goat cheese.

Source: Prevention

This baked gnocchi recipe is…

Vegetarian. For gluten-free, find gluten-free gnocchi.

Related: Try using our Homemade Vegetable Broth for this recipe!