This one-pan meal features succulent shrimp cooked with potato gnocchi, spinach, and mushrooms in a spicy, creamy, cheesy sauce! Your family and guests will be requesting this dish again and again!
One-pan meals are a saving grace for busy families and this one is elegant, flavorful, and looks way fancier than it is. Flavored with a house-made cajun spice blend, this dish has just the right amount of heat. Cajun meets Italian in this delicious gnocchi skillet, and it's a match made in heaven!
Table of Contents
- Ingredients You Need to Make This Recipe
- How to Make This Recipe
- Watch How to Make This Recipe!
- Variations of This Recipe
- Make-Ahead and Storing Instructions
- Can I Use the Cajun Spice Blend in Other Recipes?
- What Shrimp Work Best for This Recipe?
- Recommended Tools for This Recipe
- Here Are Some Other Easy Dinner Recipes You Will Love!
- 📖 Recipe
Ingredients You Need to Make This Recipe
Cajun Seasoning Blend
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Gnocchi Skillet
- Extra virgin olive oil. The vegetables are cooked in oil until softened before the other ingredients are added. You can also use light tasting olive oil.
- Sliced baby bella mushrooms. This recipe calls for one cup of sliced baby bella mushrooms. The baby bellas give this dish a delicious earthy flavor and add nice color. You can also use sliced white mushrooms if you prefer.
- One small yellow onion. Chop your onion for this recipe as it will be sauteed with the mushrooms.
- Fresh garlic. This recipe calls for 3 cloves of fresh minced garlic.
- Unsalted butter. Butter helps us create a light roux base for our creamy sauce. This recipe calls for 4 tablespoons.
- All-purpose flour. Flour is cooked with the butter and veggies to create a light roux, which will act as the base for our creamy sauce.
- Half and half. This is the liquid that is combined with the roux to create our cream sauce. You can also use whole milk.
- Chicken broth. 1 cup of chicken broth is also added to the sauce for some added flavor.
- Potato gnocchi. This recipe calls for one 16-ounce, or one pound, package of potato gnocchi.
- Large shrimp. This recipe calls for one pound of large peeled and deveined shrimp. You may leave the tails on if you prefer for presentation. I prefer to remove the tails to make eating easier. You can buy your shrimp already peeled and deveined or you can buy shell-on shrimp and do so yourself.
- Sharp white cheddar and parmesan cheeses. This recipe calls for ¼ cup of each cheese, shredded. I recomemmed freshly grating the cheese with a box grater as pre-shredded cheese has anti-caking agents added which can affect the way they melt. However, if you are tight on time pre-shredded cheese works just fine!
- Fresh squeezed lemon juice and fresh chopped parsley. These are mixed in right at the end to finish the dish.
How to Make This Recipe
- In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, paprika, and cayenne pepper with a small whisk or fork and set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. I used a 12-inch cast iron skillet. This Lodge Cast-iron Skillet is my favorite!
- Add chopped mushrooms and onions and cook until veggies begin to soften, about 2-3 minutes. Next, add garlic and cook for about another minute, until garlic is fragrant.
- Add butter to the skillet and cook until the butter is melted, stirring with a wooden spoon as needed. Next, add flour to the skillet and stir constantly with a wooden spoon to mix the flour into the butter. Continue to cook while stirring for about another minute to get rid of the raw flour taste.
- Reduce the heat to medium and slowly pour the half and half or milk into the skillet while constantly stirring so that no lumps form. Continue to cook while stirring until sauce starts to thicken, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add chicken broth while stirring constantly to combine all ingredients. Next, add the cajun spice blend and continue to cook while stirring until sauce is thickened and smooth, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add gnocchi and shrimp and stir everything to combine all ingredients. Continue to cook until the shrimp are pink and opaque, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add spinach and season with more salt and pepper to taste. Cook until spinach is wilted, about another minute or two. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in cheeses until melted. Lastly, add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and fresh chopped parsley and give everything one final stir.
- Garnish with more fresh chopped parsley and grated parmesan if desired. Serve immediately.
Watch How to Make This Recipe!
Variations of This Recipe
The beauty of one-pan meals like this one is that you can typically substitute or add in a number of different veggies or proteins. Feel free to try this gnocchi skillet with some of the following ingredients:
- Sun-dried tomatoes
- Cherry or grape tomatoes
- Bell peppers
- Sweet corn
- Kale
- Sweet or spicy Italian sausage
- Chopped chicken breasts
- Crawfish tails
Make-Ahead and Storing Instructions
I do not recommend preparing this dish ahead of time as the sauce is best when mixed with the other ingredients right away.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. You may reheat leftovers in the microwave or in a skillet on the stovetop.
Can I Use the Cajun Spice Blend in Other Recipes?
Absolutely! Feel free to double, triple, or quadruple the cajun spice blend ingredients and store it in a spice jar for future use in all your favorite dishes! This really is an all-purpose spice blend, and you adjust the level of spice by adding more or less cayenne pepper.
What Shrimp Work Best for This Recipe?
I recommend large shrimp for this dish as they are the perfect bite-size and make for the best presentation. You can also use medium or extra-large shrimp if you prefer.
Whatever size shrimp you use, just make sure that they are peeled and deveined. This is a great step-by-step guide on how to peel and devein shrimp at home.
Recommended Tools for This Recipe
Here Are Some Other Easy Dinner Recipes You Will Love!
📖 Recipe
Creamy Cajun Shrimp and Gnocchi Skillet
This one-pan meal features succulent shrimp cooked with potato gnocchi, spinach, and mushrooms in a spicy, creamy, cheesy sauce! Your family and guests will be requesting this dish again and again!
Equipment
Ingredients
Cajun Spice Blend
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon parika
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Shrimp and Gnocchi Skillet
- 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin or light tasting
- 1 cup baby bella mushrooms sliced
- 1 small yellow onion chopped
- 3 cloves fresh garlic minced
- 4 tablespoons butter unsalted
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups half and half or milk
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1, 16-ounce package of potato gnocchi one pound
- 1 pound of large shrimp peeled and deveined
- 2 cups packed baby spinach leaves
- Salt and cracked black pepper to taste
- ¼ - ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup sharp white cheddar cheese shredded
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese shredded
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- ¼ cup fresh chopped parsley
- more chopped parsley and grated parmesan for topping
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, italian seasoning, paprika, and cayenne pepper with a small whisk or fork and set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Add chopped mushrooms and onions and cook until veggies begin to soften, about 2-3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for about another minute, until garlic is fragrant.
- Add butter to the skillet and cook until the butter is melted, stirring with a wooden spoon as needed. Add flour to the skillet and stir constantly with a wooden spoon to mix the flour into the butter. Continue to cook while stirring for about another minute to get rid of the raw flour taste.
- Reduce the heat to medium and slowly pour the half and half or milk into the skillet while constantly stirring so that no lumps form. Continue to cook while stirring until sauce starts to thicken, about 2-3 minutes. Add chicken broth while stirring constantly to combine all ingredients. Add the cajun spice blend and continue to cook while stirring until sauce is thickened and smooth, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add gnocchi and shrimp and stir everything to combine all ingredients. Continue to cook until the shrimp are pink and opaque, about 3-5 minutes. Add spinach and season with more salt and pepper to taste and red pepper flakes. Cook until spinach is wilted, about another minute or two. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in cheeses until melted. Add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and fresh chopped parsley and give everything one final stir.
- Garnish with more fresh chopped parsley and grated parmesan if desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. You may reheat leftovers in the microwave or in a skillet on the stovetop.
- See blog post for other important tips and suggestions.
Nutrition
Serving: 1servingCalories: 518kcalCarbohydrates: 50gProtein: 26.9gFat: 24gSaturated Fat: 11.7gCholesterol: 192mgSodium: 673mgPotassium: 342mgFiber: 2.7gSugar: 2.9gCalcium: 169mgIron: 5mg
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