Spicy Beef & Gnocchi with Zucchini & Romano Cheese
Customer Favorite

Spicy Beef & Gnocchi

with Zucchini & Romano Cheese

25 MIN
2 Servings
Wellness at Blue Apron
Find recipes that suit your lifestyle with our new nutritionist-approved dietary tags.
Fri Delivery Only
Recipe only available for Friday delivery.
WW™ Approved
Our recipes that have the WW™ Mark of Wellness make vegetables the star of your meal, utilize lean proteins, keep calorie counts in mind and limit saturated fat, sodium and added sugar, and use simple, wholesome ingredients to make dinnertime a nourishing and joyful experience. Smart Point Values ® (SPVs) are assigned to recipes on an “as packaged” basis. To learn more about WW™ visit our partner’s website at WW.com.
Vegetarian
Our vegetarian recipes contain no meat, poultry, fish, or seafood, but may include eggs, and animal-based dairy products, such as cheese and sour cream, as well as honey.
600 Calories Or Less
All of these delicious recipes come in at 600 calories or less per serving, ideal for those who choose to monitor their caloric intake, without sacrificing flavor. The US Food & Drug Administration recommends a 2000 calorie daily intake for the general population. The 600 calorie cap equates to 30% of total 2000 calories per day based on 3 meals per day with 200 calories remaining for snack or beverage.
Carb Conscious
Our Carb Conscious recipes provide a balanced approach to carbohydrate consumption by replacing refined carbohydrates from sources like white flour, rice, and cane sugar with high-fiber foods like fresh vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. Our Carb Conscious recipes have 42g or less of net carbohydrates (total carbohydrates minus dietary fiber) per serving, a 25% reduction in net carbs compared to the average Blue Apron recipe served in 2019. Due to the natural variation in size of and contribution of produce in our recipes, some recipes can be badged as Carb Conscious at 45g or less net carbs per serving.
Mediterranean Diet
Our Mediterranean recipes are inspired by the Mediterranean Diet, a healthy eating plan recommended in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans published jointly every five years by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS). This eating plan highlights the flavors and cooking styles from countries along the Mediterranean Sea, including those in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. These recipes showcase a wide variety of vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, as well as lean proteins and moderate portions of dairy.
Plant-Forward
Our Plant-Forward recipes are designed by our chefs to help support a flexible diet that emphasizes plant-based foods like fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans and other legumes like lentils and soy foods, and includes occasional, moderate portions of meat, poultry, fish, and seafood.
Diabetes Friendly
Our diabetes friendly offering allows you to enjoy wholesome options while adhering to the guidelines set forth by the nutrition experts at our partner at the American Diabetes Association. A recipe with this badge features non-starchy, fibrous vegetables with a limit on calories, total carbohydrates, saturated fat, added sugar and sodium. For those chefs following ADA guidelines, it is recommended that no additional salt be added to this recipe when prepared and for chefs to skip all salting steps of a recipe. See nutrition information on your current page or at blueapron.com for sodium “as packaged”. To find out more about the American Diabetes Association's guidelines visit our partner’s website www.diabetes.org.

From the Test Kitchen

Plump gnocchi, ground beef, and tender zucchini get a delicious kick from Calabrian chile paste, a specialty ingredient from southern Italy known for its irresistibly sweet-hot flavor. We’re finishing it all with a bit of mascarpone cheese, which balances out the heat and provides creamy texture.

Get Cooking
  • Nutrition
    PER SERVING
  • Calories
    820 Cals (est.)
View Full Nutrition
Nutrition Label
Download

Please note nutritional information, including ingredients and allergens, may differ from above based on your location. Location-specific nutritional information is available for viewing upon subscribing, or by logging in if you are already a subscriber.

fresh
ingredients
Spicy Beef & Gnocchi with Zucchini & Romano Cheese
Title
  • 10 oz Ground Beef
  • ¾ lb Gnocchi
  • 2 cloves Garlic
  • 1 Zucchini
  • 2 Tbsps Tomato Paste
  • 2 Tbsps Mascarpone Cheese
  • ¼ cup Grated Romano Cheese
  • 1½ tsps Calabrian Chile Paste
time-saving
tips & techniques
Peeling garlic square1
How To: Peel Garlic
How to water salting sq
How To: Properly Salt Cooking Water
step-by-step
instructions
Cook Along Triangle Created with Sketch.
Prepare the ingredients:
1 Prepare the ingredients:

Fill a medium pot 3/4 of the way up with salted water; cover and heat to boiling on high. Wash and dry the zucchini; halve lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise. Peel and roughly chop 2 cloves of garlic. 

Brown the zucchini:
2 Brown the zucchini:

In a large pan (nonstick, if you have one), heat a drizzle of olive oil on medium-high until hot. Add the sliced zucchini in an even layer; season with salt and pepper. Cook, without stirring, 4 to 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Transfer to a bowl. Wipe out the pan.

Cook the beef & make the sauce:
3 Cook the beef & make the sauce:

In the same pan, heat a drizzle of olive oil on medium-high until hot. Add the beef; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently and breaking the meat apart with a spoon, 4 to 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Carefully drain off and discard any excess oil. Add the chopped garlic, tomato paste, and as much of the chile paste as you’d like, depending on how spicy you’d like the dish to be. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, 1 to 2 minutes, or until thoroughly combined and the beef is cooked through. Add the browned zucchini and 3/4 cup of water; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, 2 to 3 minutes, or until the sauce is thickened. Turn off the heat.

Cook the gnocchi:
4 Cook the gnocchi:

Meanwhile, add the gnocchi to the pot of boiling water. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, or until the gnocchi float to the top of the pot. Drain thoroughly.

Finish & serve your dish:
5 Finish & serve your dish:

Add the cooked gnocchi and mascarpone to the pan of cooked beef and sauce. Stir to thoroughly combine. Taste, then season with salt and pepper if desired. Serve the finished beef and gnocchi garnished with the romano. Enjoy! 

Tips from Home Chefs

About Blue Apron

Ba hero

Blue Apron delivers original, step-by-step recipes and fresh ingredients to customers nationwide. Our menus change every week, so with each delivery you learn to cook inventive new dishes with seasonal ingredients. By letting us source these hard-to-find ingredients for you, you'll get food that is fresher and cheaper than you can get at your local supermarket, and there's no waste because we only send you what you need for each recipe.

We named our company “Blue Apron” because chefs around the world wear blue aprons when they're learning to cook, and it has become a symbol of lifelong learning in cooking. We believe you're never done learning in the kitchen, so we design our menus to ensure you're always learning new cooking techniques, trying new cuisines, and using unique ingredients.

Blue Apron is a weekly subscription service with no commitment - you can skip a week or cancel at any time with a week's notice. We can't wait to cook with you!

Get This Recipe Delivered

Spicy Beef & Gnocchi

Prepare the ingredients:
1 Prepare the ingredients:

Fill a medium pot 3/4 of the way up with salted water; cover and heat to boiling on high. Wash and dry the zucchini; halve lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise. Peel and roughly chop 2 cloves of garlic. 

2 Brown the zucchini:

In a large pan (nonstick, if you have one), heat a drizzle of olive oil on medium-high until hot. Add the sliced zucchini in an even layer; season with salt and pepper. Cook, without stirring, 4 to 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Transfer to a bowl. Wipe out the pan.

Brown the zucchini:
Cook the beef & make the sauce:
3 Cook the beef & make the sauce:

In the same pan, heat a drizzle of olive oil on medium-high until hot. Add the beef; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently and breaking the meat apart with a spoon, 4 to 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Carefully drain off and discard any excess oil. Add the chopped garlic, tomato paste, and as much of the chile paste as you’d like, depending on how spicy you’d like the dish to be. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, 1 to 2 minutes, or until thoroughly combined and the beef is cooked through. Add the browned zucchini and 3/4 cup of water; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, 2 to 3 minutes, or until the sauce is thickened. Turn off the heat.

4 Cook the gnocchi:

Meanwhile, add the gnocchi to the pot of boiling water. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, or until the gnocchi float to the top of the pot. Drain thoroughly.

Cook the gnocchi:
Finish & serve your dish:
5 Finish & serve your dish:

Add the cooked gnocchi and mascarpone to the pan of cooked beef and sauce. Stir to thoroughly combine. Taste, then season with salt and pepper if desired. Serve the finished beef and gnocchi garnished with the romano. Enjoy!