Protein Packed Super Green Crispy Gnocchi — a plant-based Italian recipe by BOSH!
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Protein Packed Super Green Crispy Gnocchi

This one has become a bit of a weeknight obsession for us. Crispy golden gnocchi tossed in a creamy, super green sauce made with silken tofu, peas, spinach and a hit of nutritional yeast; it's the kind of meal that feels indulgent but is secretly packed with protein and goodness. The lemon zest and juice lift everything and stop it from feeling heavy, and the crispy gnocchi adds this brilliant texture you just don't get from boiled. We keep coming back to it because it's genuinely delicious and comes together in 20 minutes, which still amazes us every time we make it.

Cook: 20 min
Serves 4

Before You Start

  • Food processor
  • 2 frying pans
  • Microplane or fine grater (for garlic and lemon zest)

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 300g silken tofu
  • 150g baby spinach
  • 200g garden peas
  • 1 lemon
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 500g gnocchi
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • fresh basil
  • plant-based parmesan
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • black pepper

Method

1

Prepare the sauce

  • Peel and grate the garlic
  • Zest and halve the lemon
  • Warm the olive oil in a frying pan, add the garlic and lemon zest and fry for 30 seconds
  • Add the silken tofu and fry for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly to break up the tofu
  • Add the peas and stir for 2 minutes
  • Add the spinach, squeeze over the lemon juice (catching any pips in your free hand), sprinkle over the nutritional yeast and stir until the peas are cooked and spinach is wilted
  • Take the pan off the heat and leave to cool to room temperature
  • Add the contents of the pan to a food processor and blitz until smooth
  • Set to one side
2

Prepare the gnocchi

  • Peel and grate the garlic
  • Warm the olive oil in a the second pan over medium heat, add the gnocchi and stir for 3-4 minutes
  • Add the garlic and stir for 2 minutes
  • Reduce the heat to very low
3

Finish and serve

  • Pour the sauce into the frying pan, warm up over high heat and stir for a couple of minutes, you may need to add a splash of water if the sauce thickens too much
  • Spoon the gnocchi into a pasta bowl, finish with basil, plant based parmesan, extra virgin olive oil, black pepper and salt if you would like

Tips & Variations

  • Get the gnocchi really crispy: Make sure your pan is properly hot before you add the gnocchi and don't move them around too much. Let them sit and get golden on each side; that's the magic right there.
  • Swap the greens: We love this with spinach and peas but it works brilliantly with kale or edamame if that's what you've got in the freezer. Any combo of greens you like will do the job.
  • Nutritional yeast is key: Don't be tempted to leave it out. It adds this amazing savoury, almost cheesy depth to the sauce that makes the whole thing taste way more complex than it has any right to for a 20-minute dinner.

Why This Works

The trick here is frying the silken tofu until it starts to break down into the sauce. It goes all creamy and coats everything beautifully without any dairy. Don't skip crisping up the gnocchi first either; that golden crust is what takes this from good to really, really good. Trust us on this one.