Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi Soup (Olive Garden Copycat)
User Reviews
4.9
Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi Soup (Olive Garden Copycat)
Description
The recipe starts by sautéing diced onion, carrot, and celery in olive oil, adding garlic towards the end. Chicken broth is added along with rosemary, thyme, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Chicken breasts cook directly in the broth until fully cooked, or shredded rotisserie chicken can be added later for convenience.
Separately, a roux is made by melting butter and stirring in flour, then whisking in milk until thickened and smooth. Heavy cream enriches the mixture, which is then combined into the soup base. Once the chicken is cooked, it is removed, shredded or diced, and returned to the soup along with potato gnocchi and chopped fresh spinach.
The soup offers a creamy texture with delicate herbal and nutmeg notes, balanced by the tender chicken and the soft yet slightly chewy gnocchi. Fresh spinach adds mild flavor and color. This dish can serve as a filling lunch or dinner, pairing well with bread or salad.
Homemade or mini gnocchi are preferred for the texture, and fresh spinach is recommended over frozen for best results. Variations include substituting cooked Italian sausage for chicken or using pasta or cooked rice instead of gnocchi.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups yellow onion finely chopped
- 1 cup carrot small diced
- 1 cup celery small diced
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced (1 Tbsp
- 2 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth low-sodium
- 1/2 teaspoon rosemary or 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh, dried
- 1/2 tsp thyme or 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh, dried
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
- salt freshly ground
- black pepper freshly ground
- 1 lb chicken breast pounded evenly to nearly ½-inch thickness, or 2 1/2 cups cooked shredded rotisserie chicken, boneless, skinless
- 1 (16 oz) pkg potato gnocchi I like to use mini, or homemade gnocchi
- 5 Tbsp butter
- 6 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk then more to thin as needed
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 2 cups (2 oz) spinach roughly chopped, packed, fresh
- Romano cheese for serving (optional, shredded, or parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrot and celery and sauté 6 minutes, add garlic sauté 1- 2 minutes longer.
- Pour in broth, add rosemary, thyme, nutmeg and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add in chicken breasts (if using rotisserie chicken wait to add at the end) and bring soup to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover and allow to simmer until chicken is cooked through (it should register 165 in center), about 8 - 12 minutes.
- Meanwhile, while chicken is cooking, melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add flour, cook and stir constantly 1 minute.
- While whisking vigorously pour in milk then continue to whisk vigorously to smooth any lumps. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- While whisking constantly, cook until mixture thickens and lightly boils. Stir in cream, remove from heat.
- Once chicken in soup has cooked through remove chicken from soup and allow chicken to rest 5 minutes then dice or shred into pieces. If veggies aren't nearly soft let that soup simmer a few minutes longer before adding gnocchi.
- Add gnocchi to broth mixture, cover and simmer for recommend time directed on package, about 5 minutes. Reduce to low heat.
- Stir milk mixture into broth mixture, then add in cooked chicken (shredded rotisserie or cooked chicken breasts) and spinach. Cook until spinach wilts, about 1 minute.
- Serve warm with Romano cheese if desired.
Notes
- Use fresh spinach to maintain texture; frozen spinach may become mushy.
- Mini or homemade gnocchi work best for desired texture.
- Pasta or cooked rice can be used instead of gnocchi as alternatives.
- Cooked Italian sausage is a suitable substitute for the chicken if preferred.
- Yields approximately 9 cups of soup.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
4.9
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