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This Creamy Pumpkin and Sausage Gnocchi Recipe is an easy 30 minute dinner.  Using pre-made gnocchi, pumpkin, kale and sausage makes this a hearty and flavorful one pan dinner for any night of the week.
Bowl of Gnocchi with kale and sausage in creamy pumpkin sauce with a fork.

Happy October, friends.  Are you ready for all the comfort food?  I have been getting the strong urge to GET COZY, which means all the creamy, comforting pasta dishes.  But wait – this one is a little different.  This recipe uses store bought gnocchi.  Have you ever used premade gnocchi?
Skillet with creamy pumpkin Sausage gnocchi

Lately I have been wanting a creamy, savory pumpkin dinner recipe. But I wanted it to be quick and easy, and most of all satisfying. My friend Natasha is the queen of creamy gnocchi recipes, and so I was inspired by her to use gnocchi in this recipe.

What is Gnocchi?

Gnocchi are small Italian dumplings, often made of potatoes and/or flour.  They are often treated as a pasta.  Gnocchi can be made from scratch, but are also available prepackaged in grocery stores, and can be fresh, frozen or dried.  For this recipe I used vacuum packed gnocchi that was in the pasta aisle at my grocery store.

Close up of finished Pumpkin and Sausage gnocchi with kale

How to make a sauce for Gnocchi

I love pumpkin in a dessert recipe but pumpkin puree is also wonderful in savory dishes. I decided to make a savory pumpkin recipe by making a creamy pumpkin sauce for gnocchi.  Adding sausage is an easy way to get lots of flavor with little effort – and I threw some kale in there so we could get our greens.

For this recipe I simply made a flavorful sauce using onions, garlic, chicken broth, cream and pumpkin puree.  The gnocchi cooks right in the sauce so you don’t been to boil it before hand.  That saves you a step and makes this a one pan dinner!  Fewer dishes, less cleaning up.

Sausage and gnocchi with a creamy pumpkin sauce in a bowl with Parmesan cheese

How to cook packaged gnocchi

In this recipe we cook the gnocchi right on the sauce, so there is no need to cook it before hand.  However, if you wish to cook gnocchi for another use, bring a pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the gnocchi.  They should float to the top in 2-3 minutes, indicating that they are done.

If you like this recipe, you will LOVE my Creamy Basil Parmesan Chicken and my Creamy Sausage and Tortellini Soup.

 

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Creamy Pumpkin Sausage Gnocchi

4.62 from 18 votes
Prep 5 minutes
Cook 30 minutes
Servings 6 Servings

Ingredients 

  • 16 oz mild Italian sausage ground
  • 1 TBSP butter
  • 1/2 yellow onion finely minced
  • 4 Garlic cloves minced
  • 1/2 cup white wine or chicken stock
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie filling
  • 1 tsp italian seasoning
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 4 cups kale chopped tough stems removed
  • 16 oz fresh or frozen gnocchi uncooked
  • ½ cup chicken stock low sodium
  • 1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan
  • salt to taste
  • black pepper to taste
  • 1/4 cup fresh basil thinley sliced (Chiffonade)

Instructions 

  • Heat a large skillet over medium high heat.
  • Brown sausage. Once cooked through, remove from pan and drain fat.
  • Return skillet, to heat, reduce to medium. Add 1 tablespoons butter. Add onion, season with a little salt. Saute for about five minutes, until onions and is softened. Add garlic and Italian seasoning, saute for 30 seconds
  • Add wine to deglaze the skillet and bring to a gentle simmer until reduced by half.
  • Reduce heat to medium low. Add chicken stock and cream and whisk in pumpkin until a creamy sauce forms. Stir gnocchi and kale into sauce until combined. Cover and cook for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until kale is wilted and gnocchi is tender and pillowy.
  • Add sausage back to the sauce. Taste sauce and add more salt and pepper if needed. Add Parmesan, stir until melted into sauce. Stir in basil. Remove from heat and serve.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 594kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 40g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Cholesterol: 122mg | Sodium: 934mg | Potassium: 437mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 8575IU | Vitamin C: 20.8mg | Calcium: 186mg | Iron: 4.7mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Italian
Did you like this recipe?Please comment, rate and share! And don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @foxandbriar AND #foxandbriar so I can see what you made!
Hello! I’m Meghan.

I am so glad that you are here! I am the recipe developer, photographer, and writer here at my blog Fox and Briar. I am a passionate, self-taught home cook and believe that most things are better homemade and that good food doesn’t need to be complicated.

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28 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Delicious! I baked the kale so it would be crispy and topped the dish with it. I also had to double the sauce since it was super thick initially. I also used shallots instead of an onion and added some sage and rosemary. I substituted the heavy cream with milk and melted butter. This recipe was super simple and delicious, it will be on our rotation for sure!

    1. Hi Rebecca – I haven’t tried freezing this so I am not sure how it would hold up. My main concern is sometime when freezing and thawing creamy recipes, the cream sauce will “break” and get weird. If you do try it, let us know how it turns out!

  2. 5 stars
    Made this for the first time. We did substitute spinach instead of kale. Cooked everything else exactly like the recipe and it was fabulous! Full of layered flavors. It tasted very bright savory and fresh! My husband ate over half and said it was delicious! I agree. Will make again soon!

  3. 5 stars
    This recipe will now be in our rotation of favorites! Bare with me as I only ever use recipes as guidelines. We wanted a bit healthier recipe so we omitted the butter, the cream and used some left over smoked chicken breast instead of the sausage. We added green pepper and a jalapeño to spice it up a bit and I do not prefer cooked Kale (due to it’s fish flavor when cooked) so we used fresh spinach instead. It was absolutely delish!!! Thank you Meghan for the amazing recipe!!

  4. 5 stars
    I made this dish for the 3rd time last evening! It is a definite hit and will stay on my “repeat” mode. The only addition is that I added mushrooms this time around which also added some additional flavor. All in all, an easy and great meal!

  5. 5 stars
    This turned out really tasty. I served it with roasted broccolini to get some extra vegetables and a crunch to the meal. It is hearty and flavorful. I meal prepped it for the week, and though I haven’t had a chance to reheat it and try it, it does look like a dish that would be easy to reheat. I will either microwave it for ease, or throw it in a pan with a little bit of leftover chicken stock and saute until warmed through. This is a great fall meal.

  6. Made this last night for dinner, everyone enjoyed it, including my 2 and 3 year olds. I did not have any kale or spinach, but will definitely add for next time. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!

  7. Hi!

    How would you adapt to the cauliflower gnocchi (green giant)? It comes frozen, so I am concerned cooking it in the sauce will obviously make the sauce too watery. Should I cook the cauliflower gnocchi according to package and then add in?

    1. Hi Erin – Yes, I would try it that way and see how it goes. I haven’t tested this with cauliflower gnocchi but I have read that it can make the sauce watery. Cooking it prior to adding it to the sauce may be the best bet! Let me know how it turns out!

      1. Turned out really good! I tried it with normal gnocchi and cauliflower gnocchi and couldn’t tell a difference between them! Cooked the cauliflower gnocchi per package (boil for 2 minutes) and then added them to the sauce (package says to sauté them in oil or butter so I just Sautéed in the sauce). Thanks for this yummy recipe!

    1. Hi Gail – Yes, that should work! Just add it in the last 2 minutes of cooking, as spinach cooks much faster than kale.