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Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup has a thick and rich broth with shredded carrots, celery, chopped spinach, gnocchi and chicken hidden throughout. This tastes even better than Olive Garden!
Bring restaurant quality soup to your home. I just love the Italian flavors in the slow cooker pasta e fagioli soup or creamy zuppa toscana too, so be sure to give them a try!
Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup
You guys are going to love the incredible creamy and rich broth. It is flavored with the perfect amount of seasonings and it even has one of my favorite herbs inside…. thyme. The added chicken and gnocchi (which I absolutely love) are so hearty. When you add in the freshness of the shredded carrots, celery, and spinach this soup is full of flavor! Put this on your list of must try soups! You will not regret it.
This chicken gnocchi soup is full of flavor in every bite. The combination of the vegetables, creamy broth and gnocchi give this soup 5 stars. It is simple to make and so delicious! Make this a complete meal by serving this favorite olive garden soup with homemade breadtwists and a side salad asparagus salad with lemon vinaigrette or antipasto salad.
Ingredients to Make Gnocchi Soup:
This Olive Garden Copycat recipe has been on my list of soups to make for a few years now. I love all of Olive Garden’s Soups but their Chicken Gnocchi soup is awesome. The best part is that it is so easy to make! It comes together in less than 20 minutes.
- Butter: Use the butter to make the roux.
- Olive oil: Add to the pan with the butter onion and celery and garlic.
- Onion: I keep frozen diced onion in my freezer so that I can easily add it to any dish.
- Celery: Diced celery gives this soup a great crunch and fresh flavor.
- Garlic cloves:Minced garlic adds a deep Italian flavor.
- All-purpose flour: The flour makes a roux which gives the soup its consistency.
- Half-and-half: The creaminess of this soup.
- Chicken broth: Add as much as you like depending on how thin you like your soup. For a thinner soup use more broth.
- Fresh thyme: Earthy and a little bit sweet, with a slightly minty
- Shredded carrots: I love the sweet flavor the carrots add!
- Spinach leaves: Chopped so that you don’t have big pieces in your spoonful.
- Chicken breast: Diced and cooked chicken. Cut into pieces before cooking so it will cook quicker. Cook it in a little bit of olive oil until it’s just done. Add a little salt and pepper to it if you like.
- Potato gnocchi: Hint- find this on the pasta isle.
- Salt and pepper: To taste!
How to Make Gnocchi:
Gnocchi is made from potatoes, flour, and eggs. It seems like an odd combination I would have never thought of, but I am so happy someone did! Although it does take time to make from scratch, making gnocchi can be so fun!
When I am in the mood and I have the time, I enjoy making it myself. However, it tastes great store bought too! If you are hoping to try it from scratch here is the breakdown:
- Boil Potatoes: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Peel potatoes and add to pot. Once cooked, scoop out inside.
- Combine: 1 cup mashed potato, flour and egg in a large bowl. Knead until dough forms a ball.
- Cook Gnocchi: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Drop in gnocchi and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until gnocchi have risen to the top; drain and serve.
Olive Garden Favorite Soup:
- Make a Roux: In a large pot add butter and olive oil. Over medium high heat sauté onion, celery and garlic until tender. Next, add the flour to create a roux and cook for another minute.
- Add In Liquids: Slowly add the half and half and chicken broth and stir until it starts to thicken.
- Spices and Ingredients: The thyme, carrots, spinach, chicken and gnocchi.
- Simmer: Allow to simmer for about 5 minutes or until gnocchi is cooked and soup is thickened. (If you want a thinner soup add another can of chicken broth.) Salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.
Tips for the Best Chicken Gnocchi Soup:
- Gnocchi: It is best to use mini gnocchi if you can find them (or make them mini), they’re the perfect size for soup.
- Sauce: Don’t let the sauce get too hot or it can separate. Continually stir the sauce to prevent any separation.
- Spinach: For best results use fresh spinach. The frozen spinach will become mushy in the soup over a long period of time.
- Vegetables: Dice vegetables small and the same size to have them cook through evenly in time.
Variations:
- Substitutes for Gnocchi: A great substitution is pasta. The small shells or orzo are perfect for adding to this soup as well as rice.
- Protein: Substitute Italian sausage instead of chicken in the soup. Before adding it to the soup, brown the sausage at the beginning, then add it in.
- Vegetables: Sneak in extra vegetables like peas, zucchini or asparagus.
- Thicker Soup: Add extra cream to make it even richer.
- Chicken: To save time use pre-shredded, cooked chicken from the grocery store.
Slow Cooker Adaptations:
I would still definitely use cooked, diced chicken. Also, go ahead and sauté the veggies and garlic. Then put the chicken and veggies all together in the bottom of your slow cooker. Add the liquids and all the other ingredients except the gnocchi, half and half, and spinach. Cook on low for three to four hours, adding the gnocchi in for the last hour of cooking. Before serving, add the half and half and spinach and stir to combine. The spinach should wilt quickly. Serve.
How to Store Chicken Gnocchi Soup:
It is a bummer that this soup does not freeze well but it does reheat well. Place back on the stovetop and reheat on a low setting and slowly stirring it. This will help the soup from separating.
- Freezing: Unfortunately you cannot store this soup because of the dairy and gnocchi, it won’t freeze well. The gnocchi will become soggy and the dairy mixture will separate.
- Storing: If you are planning on lots of leftovers you can cook the gnocchi separately and add to individual servings.
Warm, Comforting Soups to Try:
- Creamy Sausage Tortellini Soup
- Crock-Pot Lentil Soup
- Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon
- Cheeseburger Soup
- The Best Broccoli Cheese Soup
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Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup (Olive Garden Copycat)
Equipment
- Want to make this even easier? Here are a few products that I LOVE:
- Calphasdon Cookware Set
- Cuisinart Stainless Steel
- Chopper Utopia Kitchen Cookied
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup onion diced
- 1/2 cup celery diced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 1 14 ounce can chicken broth for a thinner soup use 2 cans
- 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1 cup fresh spinach leaves chopped
- 1 cup diced cooked chicken breast I used rotisserie
- 1 16 ounce package potato gnocchi on the pasta isle
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large pot add butter and olive oil. Over medium high heat sauté onion, celery and garlic until tender. Add the flour to create a roux and cook for another minute.
- Slowly add the half and half and chicken broth and stir until it starts to thicken. Add the thyme, carrots, spinach, chicken and gnocchi. Simmer for about 5 minutes or until gnocchi is cooked and soup is thickened. (If you want a thinner soup add another can of chicken broth.) Salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I saw the reply saying she froze some of the soup. I would like to know if that is possible. I would expect it to get watery due to the cream sauce. Any ideas.
You can freeze this soup. It is best to freeze gnocchi uncooked as soon as they are shaped.Freeze until solid, about 3 hours. Gather the frozen gnocchi into resealable freezer bags. Frozen gnocchi can be stored in the freezer for 4 to 6 weeks. Sometimes soups with a milk or cream base will separate during the freezing process, but you can whisk it back together.
This is a fantastic recipe much better than Olive Gardens. I also doubled the recipe and froze it in individual containers to eat at a later time. Shared with family and friends. They all loved it! Thank you. This recipe is definitely a keeper.
We really love this recipe, always delicious, thanks
Instead of a tablespoon of thyme, I will nex time go with only a teaspoon.
Did you use fresh or dried thyme. That might make a difference.
I just made this for lunch. I only wanted 2 portions, so I scaled down the recipe. I used homemade chicken stock that I had in the freezer. I used homemade gnocchi I made last night. I didn’t have any celery, so I just skipped it…but my stock had been made with celery in it so I still got all the flavor. I ended up using more stock…not so much to make the sauce thinner, but to increase the amount of sauce because my portions looked too small. Even with the addition of stock, I only got a small bowl of soup. I wished I’d made 4 portions because I was left wanting more. And it was super yummy. My husband gave it an A+. I will definitely be making this again.
Lisa!
Thanks so much. I am so happy that you all loved it. Thanks for following along with me and for commenting.
How many people will that feed roughly? we got invited to a soup party and this is my favorite lol
Douglas,
Typically this will feed six to eight people. I hope they love it. Please let me know how it goes! Thanks for following along.
Can this soup be frozen?
Shannon!
Yes, it can. It will still taste great when you warm it back up. Thanks for commenting and for following along with me.
How many servings in the gnocchi soup?palua
This will serve about 8 to 10 people on average.
Do you have to use the flour?
It helps thicken the soup to perfection!
I have used instant mashed potatoes. Gluten intolerances was why I tried it, and now that is what I use to thicken any soup.
My favourite soup!!
Mine came out tasting a little bit too floury. What do I do???
HMMM! I am so sorry! I am not sure why it would taste more like flour. I would recommend adding little less than a cup of the flour for the next time and see if that helps or makes a difference. Thank you for sharing! XOXO
Pretty sure that was because you didnt cook the roux long enough
I have always heard when making a roux that you need to cook it for a minute or so to cook the flour taste out. Perhaps she didn’t cook her roux long enough.
Maybe you did not cook the flour enough with the vegetables to get the flour taste out ? then add the liquids.
You need to cook the flour for longer when making the roux.
Will the gnocchi get soggy in the crockpot?
You will want to cook everything in the crockpot then at the end you will add in the gnocchi to warm. Enjoy your soup!! XOXO
This is my daughter’s favorite, she orders this when she’s out with friends. She requested this when she came home from break. I found this recipe and gave it I try. She said it taste better. I marinated chicken breast overnight and baked the next day…chilled and diced, everything else is the same. I have to say I’m addicted and make this once a month.
I would like to make this and take it to my school for our “Souper” Bowl luncheon. I would need to put it in a crockpot for the day. Thoughts?
That is a great idea! You will make it all together like the recipe and let it sit on low until cooked and then warm once it is warmed up and cooked all the way. Enjoy! That sounds like a fun event! XOXO
Delious soup. I could have ate the whole pot myself.
This soup is SO much better than Olive Garden’s and I love that soup! I have made this many times and personally skip on adding the thyme because it’s not something we normally buy and it still taste fantastic without it. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
could this soup be made in a slow cooker, or would the pasta be too mushy?
Yes, it can be. You will just want to adjust the Gnocchi and not have it in the crockpot until the very end.
Made this tonight. It was a rousing success. Only changes I made was to use 1½ tsp dry thyme. I cooked the carrots for 2-3 minutes, before adding the flour. And added another ¾ cup of water to thin it out a bit.