This chicken and gnocchi soup makes a great weeknight dinner, as it takes just 30 minutes from start to finish. The chicken and veggies make it perfect for a meal all on its own but it can also be served as the first course to another meal. Or be like Olive Garden and enjoy a dinner of soup, salad, and breadsticks!
What Are Gnocchi?
Gnocchi are Italian dumplings made from potatoes. They also usually contain some flour, eggs, and salt. Each one is soft, pillowy, and bite-sized. You can find them used in a lot of different dishes, including this easy gnocchi soup.
What You’ll Need
This Olive Garden copycat recipe is made with a handful of veggies, chicken, gnocchi, and just a few other ingredients. See the recipe card below for measurements.
Olive oil – For sauteing the vegetables.
Vegetables – We’ll be adding onion, celery, carrots, and spinach to this recipe.
Salt & pepper
Garlic
Thyme – You can use fresh or dried thyme. Note that fresh thyme will need to be discarded before serving.
Chicken – I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts but a rotisserie chicken will work too.
Chicken broth – The base of this easy soup recipe.
Potato gnocchi – You can find it in the pasta aisle or make your own.
Half and half – Makes the broth nice and creamy.
Can I Use Frozen Gnocchi for This Soup?
Yes, frozen gnocchi, homemade gnocchi, and shelf-stable gnocchi will all work for this recipe. If you are using frozen gnocchi, be sure to thaw it first before adding it to the soup.
How to Make Chicken Gnocchi Soup
From start to finish, this soup comes together in just 30 minutes.
Saute the vegetables. Cook the onions, celery, and carrots in the oil over medium heat, until the onions are translucent. Season with salt and pepper as desired. Add the garlic and thyme. Saute for an extra minute until fragrant.
Add the chicken. Add the cooked chicken and broth to the pot. Bring to a boil.
Add the gnocchi. Reduce the broth to a simmer, and stir in the gnocchi. Cook for 10 minutes.
Add the half and half. Stir in the half and half and fresh spinach. Cook for an additional 2 minutes until the spinach wilts.
Enjoy. Ladle into bowls and serve.
Tips & Variations
Here are a few tips and suggestions for making this copycat Olive Garden gnocchi soup.
Use rotisserie chicken. Feel free to grab a rotisserie chicken at the store and use that instead of chicken breasts. It often adds a bit of extra flavor as well!
Don’t boil after adding the spinach. Once you add the spinach and half and half, it’s important to keep the soup at a gentle simmer so as not to curdle the half and half.
Try it with another protein. Instead of chicken, you can also make gnocchi soup with leftover turkey, sausage, or even ham.
Keep in mind it’ll continue to thicken. Note that the longer you simmer the soup, the more it will thicken.
