Today’s recipe for a main dish: cream cheese gnocchi Sorrentina style.
Sorrentina gnocchi is a traditional first course from Campania, particularly the Sorrento area. It is gnocchi first seasoned with tomato sauce, mozzarella, and parmesan and then baked in the oven in a small dish to create a delicious crust on top.
Sorrentina gnocchi is made with simple ingredients and is a very easy recipe to make, which guarantees success. The original recipe uses potato gnocchi, but this time we will prepare them using cream cheese gnocchi (Philadelphia) tossed with tomato sauce and mozzarella.
In the oven, the mozzarella will become stringy, and the sauce will become creamy, creating a sensational crust on top. These cream cheese gnocchi Sorrentina style are perfect for Sunday lunch or a holiday meal just like lasagna, baked pasta, or a creamy carbonara.
Let’s see together, step by step, how to make this recipe.
You can also make Sorrentina gnocchi using other types of gnocchi
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Stovetop, Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients for Cream Cheese Gnocchi Sorrentina Style
- 2 cups cream cheese (Philadelphia)
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 pinch fine salt
- 3 cups tomato sauce
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 onion
- 10 oz mozzarella (drained)
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 6 leaves basil
Tools
- 1 Scale
- 1 Pastry Board
- 1 Dough Scraper
- 1 Casserole
- 1 Bowl
- 4 Small Baking Dishes
Let’s Prepare the Gnocchi Together!
On a work surface, arrange the flour in a mound and place the cream cheese, egg yolks, Parmesan, and salt in the center. Start kneading the cheese with the eggs and then begin to incorporate all the surrounding flour. Let the gnocchi dough rest for about half an hour, then take a piece of dough, stretch it into a rope, and cut it into pieces that will be the gnocchi. You can find the detailed gnocchi recipe by clicking this link in purple.
In a pan or a casserole, put the tomato sauce, olive oil, coarsely chopped onion, and basil leaves. Add salt and turn on the heat, let it cook over medium heat until the tomato sauce thickens. Meanwhile, cut the mozzarella into cubes.
While the tomato sauce is cooking, bring water to a boil to cook the gnocchi. Once boiling, drop the cream cheese gnocchi in, shaking off any excess flour, and let them cook for four or five minutes until they rise to the surface.
When the gnocchi are cooked, put them in a bowl with the tomato sauce (remember to leave some for the base of the terrines), then add the well-drained gnocchi and also add half of the grated Parmesan, then stir to season the gnocchi.
Take the terrines and put a little tomato sauce in them, then pour a bit of gnocchi to make a first layer, add some mozzarella cubes, and cover with more gnocchi. Add some more mozzarella cubes and a good sprinkle of Parmesan. Prepare the other terrines as well.
Bake in a preheated oven at a temperature of 425°F for 5 to 10 minutes, (in the last minutes, switch to the grill function) and until we have a nice crust and the mozzarella inside becomes stringy. Serve our cream cheese gnocchi Sorrentina style hot. Before finishing them, take a photo of your plate and post it on social media tagging me (una riccia che pasticcia instagram and facebook) and show me how stringy your gnocchi are.
Una Riccia’s Tip
I prepared four single-serving terrines, but you can easily prepare a single dish to portion out later. For an even more intense flavor, you can add some pecorino cheese to the Parmesan.
