Ham and Cheese Baked Gnocchi is a recipe that makes good use of leftover ham.
Who likes to make ham for a holiday meal? Me! Ham is my favorite main dish to serve on holidays. It’s so easy to get one already spiral-cut… just heat it up, add the glaze, and it’s good to go! So easy to prepare and serve, so you can focus on getting the rest of the dinner ready. We like to serve it with roasted asparagus, creamy mashed potatoes and oven roasted cauliflower for a big family dinner. We always have some leftovers so we can use that leftover ham in this Ham and Cheese Baked Gnocchi.
My son Brooks is a ham fanatic. I make him a ham and cheese sandwich for lunch every single day. When I was making this recipe, his little fingers kept sneaking in to grab pieces of ham to nibble on. I had to keep cutting more for my recipe! You’ll need 1 3/4 cups for this dish.
How to make Ham and Cheese Gnocchi:
This recipe is extremely simple to make. Gnocchi, ham and peas are mixed with an easy-to-make, homemade cheese sauce.
The gnocchi- cheese mixture is spooned into a casserole dish and topped with buttery breadcrumbs, then baked until golden brown and bubbly.
Here’s a spoonful for you to taste. See all of that creaminess?? It’s perfect with the crispy buttered breadcrumbs.
The addition of ham to the gnocchi dish gives it some added protein, and it’s a major flavor anchor.
It’s comfort food at its finest, and it’s such an easy dinner to make with your ham leftovers. I’m going to have to add that it’s family-friendly too, since my kiddo cleans his plate with this dish and then asks for more. Enjoy!
Ham and Cheese Baked Gnocchi
Ingredients
SAUCE:
- 2½ cups nonfat milk
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 ounces shredded Swiss cheese
MAIN DISH:
- 2 pounds (about 5 cups) gnocchi (cooked according to package instructions, and then drained)
- 1¾ cups chopped ham
- 1 cup frozen peas
TOPPING:
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- ⅓ cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400℉. Spray an 8x10-inch pan (or 8½ x 11 is okay too) with nonstick spray.
PREPARE THE SAUCE:
- In a medium saucepan, whisk together the milk, flour, mustard, salt and pepper. Heat over medium-heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a low boil. Continue to stir until the sauce is thickened, about 3 to 4 more minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in the Swiss cheese. Stir until melted.
PREPARE THE MAIN DISH:
- In a large bowl, combine the gnocchi, ham and peas. Add the sauce and stir to combine. Spoon the mixture into your prepared pan.
PREPARE THE TOPPING:
- In a medium bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, cheese and butter. Sprinkle the topping over the gnocchi mixture in the pan. Cover with foil.
- Bake, covered, for 10 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 15 minutes, or until the cheese sauce is bubbling and the topping is golden brown. Serve immediately!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Now this is my kind of dinner! It looks delicious!
My family loves anything with ham and cheese. This recipe is also creamy and include gnocchi, which is sure to be a hit in my house. I can’t wait to make it.
Hi Lori – this looks so good!! We love gnocchi and this combination sounds great! Good idea for leftover ham and I love the idea of using swiss cheese in the sauce since for a change.
This looks amazing!! My daughter loves gnocchi!! I can’t wait to try it. Thanks so much for the recipe!!
This looks like such a yummy dish! Love how it is kid friendly too!
I love gnocchi! And this is definitely the perfect way to use leftover ham from Easter. Love all that cheese! Pinned 🙂
You posted this in perfect timing! I just bought a package of gnocchi and I have never cooked it before,so it’s just sitting in my fridge wondering what I will do with it…this looks like a fab idea! Thank you! Pinned 🙂