Creamy chicken gnocchi with cream cheese is the stuff dinner dreams are made of. This ultimate comfort food is ready in just 20 minutes for the easiest ever midweek treat.
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This one-pan creamy chicken gnocchi with cream cheese is the very definition of comfort food. Pillowy gnocchi are paired with golden bits of chicken and smothered in a creamy sauce that will leave you wanting for more.
I do love a gnocchi sauce with cream, but this time I chose the healthier version. Instead of making the sauce with heavy cream, I used cream cheese. Trust me, the result is beyond delicious.
As with any of my other gnocchi recipes, you can use either fresh gnocchi or the long-life shelf ones you can typically find in the pasta aisle in supermarkets.
I made this recipe with the gnocchi from Garofalo, as I always seem to have a pack of them in the pantry.
What do you need to make creamy chicken gnocchi?
Besides your favourite gnocchi, you also need the following ingredients to make this chicken and gnocchi recipe:
Olive oil and butter — A mix of quality extra virgin olive oil and unsalted butter is perfect for crisping those chicken pieces.
You can use just one of these if you want, but when you combine them, you get a mixture that has butter flavour but allows you to sear the meat at higher temperatures than you could by using just butter.
Chicken breast — Dice the chicken breast into 1-inch pieces so they cook quickly. I like my chicken on the golden-brown side in recipes like this, but feel free to cook them exactly as much as you like.
Cream cheese — It wouldn’t be cream cheese gnocchi without some Philadelphia. I’m in the UK and plain full-fat Philadelphia is what I use for this type of sauce.
Use any kind of cream cheese you want, but don’t opt for a light version. While you may be reducing the number of calories, the sauce won’t be nearly as creamy.
Plus, you may find that low-fat cream cheese splits when you add it to the sauce.
Italian seasoning mix — This is a blend of herbs such as oregano, basil thyme, rosemary and marjoram and it’s a very quick way to infuse flavour into your cream sauce.
You can substitute it with ½ teaspoon of oregano and ½ teaspoon of dried basil instead.
Baby spinach — This is optional, but I like how it adds a bit of colour to the creamy gnocchi. You can substitute it with kale.
Parmesan — Freshly grated Parmesan is always the best choice for this type of sauce. You can also sprinkle some Parmesan on individual bowls before serving.
How to make chicken gnocchi?
Heat the olive oil in a large, deep pan and then melt the butter in it. When the butter has completely melted and is foaming, add the diced chicken breast and cook for 4-5 minutes over medium heat until golden.
Stir in the garlic and continue to cook for another minute until fragrant.
Add the white wine and cook for 1-2 minutes until the alcohol mostly evaporates. Stir in the Italian seasoning and stock. Bring to a simmer.
When the stock is bubbling gently, stir in the cream cheese. Break it down with your spoon and stir continuously until you get a smooth, creamy sauce.
Add the gnocchi and baby spinach, cover the pan with a lid and cook for 3-5 minutes.
Turn off the heat and stir in the grated Parmesan. Season with freshly ground pepper and salt to taste and serve immediately.
Recipe tips and notes
- If you don’t want to cook with alcohol, you can use the same quantity of chicken stock instead of dry white wine.
- Transform this chicken gnocchi recipe into a gnocchi bake by placing the pan into the oven and baking for 10-12 minutes until bubbly.
- Have some more chicken stock ready so you can add a bit to the sauce if it looks too thick after you add the gnocchi to the pan.
- You can make this recipe with frozen gnocchi, but you’ll need to up the cooking time to 10 minutes.
- If you want to have a drink with your creamy chicken gnocchi, a Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc will do nicely.
FAQ
This creamy chicken gnocchi is perfect on its own, but if you want a side to go with it, some garlic bread slices are an excellent idea.
This recipe is really best served immediately. You can reheat the leftovers in the microwave, but the cream cheese sauce will thicken a lot and the taste and texture won’t be the same.
No, gnocchi is not pasta. It’s a dumpling made from a mix of mashed potatoes and flour. They look very much like pasta, hence the confusion.
If you liked this creamy chicken gnocchi, you might also like some of my other easy midweek meals:
- Easy Barley Soup with Vegetables
- Creamy Chicken and Chorizo Pasta
- Creamy Italian Sausage Gnocchi Soup
- Easy Thai Red Fish Curry
- Penne al Baffo (Ham Pasta with Cream Sauce)
- Creamy Vegetarian Tortellini Soup
Looking for more delicious inspiration? 😄 Follow Skinny Spatula on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest!
Creamy Chicken Gnocchi
Creamy chicken gnocchi with cream cheese is the stuff dinner dreams are made of. This ultimate comfort food is ready in just 20 minutes for the easiest ever midweek treat.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 30 g (2 tablespoons) unsalted butter
- 350 g (12 oz) chicken breast, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 75 ml (⅓ cup) dry white wine
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning mix
- 400 ml (1 ½ cups) chicken stock
- 180 g (6.3 oz) cream cheese
- 500 g (1 lb) gnocchi
- 100 g (3.5 oz) baby spinach, roughly shredded
- 30 g ( ¼ cup) grated Parmesan
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Heat the olive oil in a large, deep pan and then melt the butter in it. When the butter has completely melted and is foaming, add the diced chicken breast and cook for 4-5 minutes over medium heat until golden.
Stir in the garlic and continue to cook for another minute until fragrant.
Add the white wine and cook for 1-2 minutes until the alcohol mostly evaporates. Stir in the Italian seasoning and stock. Bring to a simmer.
When the stock is bubbling gently, stir in the cream cheese. Break it down with your spoon and stir continuously until you get a smooth, creamy sauce.
Add the gnocchi and baby spinach, cover the pan with a lid and cook for 3-5 minutes.
Turn off the heat and stir in the grated Parmesan. Season with freshly ground pepper and salt to taste and serve immediately.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 732Total Fat: 33gSaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 182mgSodium: 526mgCarbohydrates: 61gFiber: 3gSugar: 4gProtein: 43g
Nutritional information is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator.
Rebekah says
This is literally by far my favorite recipe I have come across. I make it mostly in the winter months as it's the perfect comfort food! The recipe is wonderful as is, but sometimes I'll adjust it by adding some shrimp or even red pepper flakes to give it a little kick. Can't say enough good things about this recipe, so glad I found it. It's a staple in my house 💕 10/10
Alice says
Hi Rebekah, thank you so much for your lovely comment. I'm so happy this recipe was a winner — it's one of the favorites in our home, too!
Bethany says
Does the gnocchi go in uncooked?
Alice says
Yes, they go in uncooked.
Ali Bosquet says
My husband sort of made this tonight. I told him the recipe was in my Pinterest and he pulled a recipe that looked like this one. I think he only got as far as adding paprika and sun dried tomatoes when he realized it was not the right recipe. That said, I highly recommend adding a teaspoon of paprika and some sun dried tomatoes and using broccoli in place of spinach. This is our new favorite at our house. Amazing comfort food!!
Alice says
Hi Ali, I'm so happy you enjoyed this recipe. The paprika and sundried tomatoes sound like wonderful additions.
Gina says
I made this for dinner tonight and it was really good, even though my ratios were a bit off. I wanted to double the recipe because I love having leftovers, but I had to just use what I had. I didn’t have white wine, so I used two cups of chicken broth. I used three good size chicken breasts, one 8 oz block of cream cheese, two bags of 14.5 oz frozen gnocchi, threw in a 8 oz bag of fresh spinach, and just guessed when adding garlic, seasoning, and parmesan. I was worried that the sauce was too thin, but as the pan cooled a bit it thickened right up. Very enjoyable and I will definitely make again!
NickTheHomeChef says
Thank you for posting this recipe! It's been so fun cooking this for family over the last year who have never had gnocchi before - everyone loves the dish and asks me to make it for them when I visit LOL. Delicious! I have an affinity for peppery arugula, so I use that instead of spinach, but that's just a personal preference. Oh, and I use garlic chive powder (low fodmap) in a quick marinade of the chicken breasts, which adds such a nice flavor to the dish (since I can't eat garlic.) Seriously though, even with no modifications this recipe is fantastic!
James Schoonmaker says
Absolutely amazing. This is an absolute staple in our menu planning now. Used Pinot for our dry white wine & added sliced baby bella mushrooms with the spinach and gnocchi.
Katie says
First time ever making anything with gnocchi! This recipe was fantastic my husband and I both loved it. I added some broccoli to get some more veggie in it and it didn’t compromise the flavor at all. 10/10
Seanna says
Great recipe for when we’re craving comfort food. So delish.