The protein cooking time listed in this recipe has been updated.
As of December 2025, we’ve revised cooking times for all our proteins to reflect improved food safety guidance.
Check out the latest recommended times in our Cooking Guidelines.
Beef Meatball Gnocchi with Mediterranean Roast Veg & Tapenade Drizzle
Flavourful British beef meatballs are the star of the show in this vibrant weeknight dinner, topping veggie-packed, Mediterranean-inspired gnocchi. Add a generous drizzle of fresh black olive tapenade to finish. Comfort food in a bowl!
High protein
5 plants
Low sat fat
Family classics
Serving size
Ingredients
- 1 unwaxed lemon
- 60g pitted black olives (Olives, Water, Red Wine Vinegar, Sea Salt, Grape Must)
- 600g potato gnocchi (Potato Puree (Water, Potato Flakes and Potato Starch Equal To 98% Of Potatoes), Salt, Rice Flour.)
- 1 handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley
- ½ tsp chilli flakes
- 2 tbsp sundried tomato paste (Tomato Puree, Sundried Tomatoes, Rapeseed Oil, Water, Pine Kernels, Salt)
- 200g passata (tomatoes, salt, citric acid)
- 10g chicken stock powder (Chicory Extract, Yeast Extract, Natural Flavouring, Salt, Onion Powder, Chicken Stock Powder, Rapeseed Oil.)
- 1 garlic clove
- 500g beef mince (british beef mince (10% fat))
- 2 courgette
- 200g baby tomatoes
- 2 onion
Nutritional Information
Calories: 597
Protein: 33g
Carbs: 60g
Fat: 25g
Beef Meatball Gnocchi with Mediterranean Roast Veg & Tapenade Drizzle
Flavourful British beef meatballs are the star of the show in this vibrant weeknight dinner, topping veggie-packed, Mediterranean-inspired gnocchi. Add a generous drizzle of fresh black olive tapenade to finish. Comfort food in a bowl!
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Cooking Instructions
Before you start
- Preheat your oven to 240C / fan 220C / gas 9
- Boil a half-full kettle
- Pull out a a large baking dish, a large non-stick frying pan, a large bowl, a small bowl, a measuring jug & a grater
Oven time
- Cut each onion into 6 wedges. Slice the courgettes into 1cm thick discs
- Add the beef to the large bowl, then lightly season with salt and pepper. Mix and shape into 12 meatballs
- Add the prepped veg and meatballs to the large baking dish, along with the whole tomatoes. Toss with 1 tsp oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Roast for 18 mins
Add the sauce
- Finely chop or crush the garlic. Dissolve the stock in the jug with 125ml boiling water
- In the jug, combine the passata, sundried tomato paste, chilli flakes (for those who'd like the heat) and half the garlic
- After 18 mins, add the stock mixture to the baking dish. Mix well to combine and roast for another 8-10 mins, until the meatballs are cooked through and the sauce has thickened
Make the tapenade
- Meanwhile, finely chop the parsley and olives. Zest and halve the lemon
- Place the parsley and olives into the small bowl and mix with the juice and zest from half the lemon (or to taste), the remaining garlic and 2 tsp olive oil. Season with salt and pepper
Cook the gnocchi
- Heat the large non-stick frying pan with 2 tsp oil on medium-high heat. Once hot, add the gnocchi and cook for 3-4 mins, tossing regularly, until golden brown. Season with a pinch of salt
Plate up
- Check your meat is cooked through; it should be golden brown, steaming hot, the juices should run clear when cut and there should be no pink / rare meat inside
- Mix the gnocchi through the meatballs and sauce, then serve into bowls, drizzled with the tapenade. Sprinkle with the remaining lemon zest and garnish with the remaining lemon, cut into wedges
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