Creamy chicken and gnocchi

A flavourful and satisfying meal!

This is one of those dishes that is exponentially greater than the sum of its parts, in my opinion. One of the things I like most about it is that it can be partially prepared up to 24 hours in advance. Simply cook the chicken and gnocchi then refrigerate until ready to assemble the dish. The alfredo-style sauce can similarly be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated (right in the pan, if you have room in your fridge). When it’s mealtime, just reheat the sauce before adding the gnocchi, chicken and spinach then transfer the skillet to the oven. Note that if you’re not a fan of spinach, peas would be a great alternative and you could omit the chicken for a vegetarian version. Last tip: if you prefer you can also use shelf-stable gnocchi and add it directly to the sauce in the skillet with the cooked chicken; that would make this meal a one-pan wonder! If you’re a fan of gnocchi, you might also enjoy my French onion soup-style gnocchi, my baked meatballs and gnocchi or my crispy gnocchi poutine.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon (15 mL) olive oil
• 2 small boneless chicken breasts (about 8 oz/225 g), cut into bite-sized pieces
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons (20 g) finely minced shallot
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons coarse sea salt
• 3 cups (500 g) fresh or frozen potato gnocchi
• 2 tablespoons (28 g) butter
• 2 tablespoons (15 g) all-purpose flour (regular or gluten-free)
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) white wine (optional)
• 2 cups (500 mL) milk
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 cup (30 g) chopped fresh spinach leaves
• 1 cup (85 g) finely grated Parmesan, divided *
• Grated lemon zest of half a lemon
• 1 tablespoon (30 mL) freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Handful minced fresh chives or parsley, to garnish
• Lemon wedges, to serve

* Be sure to use freshly grated Parmesan from a block, not the crumbly, shelf-stable kind sold in canisters.

Method

• Heat the olive oil in a 10 inch (25 cm) oven-safe skillet placed over medium heat. Note: if you don’t have an oven-safe skillet of the appropriate size, you can cook the chicken and sauce per the instructions here and transfer everything to a casserole dish; sprinkle with reserved parmesan then bake/broil as directed.
• Add the chicken to the skillet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until chicken is cooked through (registering 165F with an instant-read thermometer). Remove chicken from pan with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl; refrigerate if making ahead. Do not wipe out pan.
• Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil then cook the gnocchi until just tender, according to package directions. Drain well and transfer to a platter or baking sheet, spreading the gnocchi out so they don’t stick together. Refrigerate if making ahead.
• Preheat oven to 400F, with upper oven rack positioned 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) below element (because you’ll finish the dish by broiling for a few minutes). If preparing components ahead of time, don’t preheat oven until ready to bake.
• Make the sauce by melting butter in the skillet you cooked the chicken in. Add shallot and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly, then add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Sprinkle flour over top and whisk for 2 minutes to cook the flour. Whisk in the white wine then slowly whisk in the milk. Cook, whisking almost constantly, until sauce is simmering and thickened (about 5 minutes). Stir in parmesan, lemon zest and lemon juice then and add salt and pepper, to taste. Remove the pan from the heat. If making ahead, let sit at room temperature for up to an hour or refrigerate if not continuing within the hour. Re-warm sauce on stovetop when ready to proceed.
• For final assembly, stir chopped spinach, cooked gnocchi and chicken into the warm sauce. Sprinkle remaining Parmesan over top.
• Carefully transfer the skillet to the oven and bake until sauce is bubbling (about 10 minutes). Leaving the skillet in the oven, turn broiler on to high; watch the pan carefully and remove it from the oven when the top is just beginning to turn golden brown (about 3-4 minutes).
• Garnish with chopped fresh herbs and serve hot, with lemon wedges on the side.

Serves 4.