Serve an Italian dinner with this comforting copycat Olive Garden chicken gnocchi soup!
The Olive Garden is one of our favorite restaurants.
It’s no surprise their chicken gnocchi soup is one of their customers’ favorite dishes.
It’s a soup with tender chicken and gnocchi, a creamy broth, and spinach, all balanced with just the right mix of spices.
When a Facebook reader shared this recipe last year, it quickly became a family favorite. I’m not sure it’s technically a “copycat Olive Garden chicken gnocchi soup recipe,” but it’s mighty close!
It’s so delicious and special, and it would be perfect for Christmas Eve dinner.
How to Make Copycat Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Ingredients you’ll need:
- 4 Tablespoons butter
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1/2 cup diced celery
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 quart (4 cups) half n half (or, if you don’t have half and half, mix 1/3 cup butter with milk to equal 4 cups)
- 28 oz (900 ml) chicken broth
- 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp. dried parsley
- 1 cup carrots, shredded
- 1 cup spinach leaves, coarsely chopped
- 1 large chicken breast (to equal 1 cup diced, cooked chicken)
- 16 oz fresh gnocchi, ready to use
What is gnocchi?
You may be wondering what gnocchi is. Good question! I’d describe it as a cross between a dumpling and pasta. It’s made with potatoes, flour, and eggs. You can make it from scratch, but I chose the ready-to-use kind for convenience.
How do I make chicken and gnocchi soup if I don’t have half n half cream?
Great question! I asked myself the same thing when I made it today. I quickly looked up a half and half substitute and ended up mixing 1/3 cup melted butter with milk to equal 4 cups.
I’d definitely recommend half n half if you have it, but this substitute worked just fine, and the soup tastes divine!
Step one: Heat the butter and oil in a large soup pot and add the diced chicken. Cook until the chicken is no longer pink and cooked through. Remove it from the pan, then add the onions, celery, and garlic. Sauté until tender.
If the vegetables start to look dry while sautéing, add a little more butter.
Step 2: Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
Step 3: Whisk in the half and half and keep whisking until the mixture thickens.
Step 4: Whisk in the chicken broth and stir until the mixture thickens again.
Step 5: Add the spices, carrots, spinach leaves, gnocchi, and chicken to the broth. Simmer until heated through, about 20 minutes.
Other options for this chicken gnocchi recipe:
To make this recipe even quicker, you can use cooked, diced chicken or rotisserie chicken from the store instead of cooking from raw.
For a heartier, thicker soup, use twice as much gnocchi as the recipe calls for. It’s really yummy!
What to serve with chicken gnocchi soup:
- These bread machine dinner buns would be delicious!
- English muffins toasted with butter are really good, too.
- You might want to do what Olive Garden does and serve it with a yummy salad with veggies and Italian dressing.
Other hearty soup recipes:
- Comforting Chicken Noodle Soup – I’m sharing my mother-in-law’s “secret ingredient” that she swore would help when you were feeling under the weather!
- Minestrone Italian Soup
- Taco Soup
- White Chicken Chili
- Hamburger Barley Soup
- Creamy curry carrot soup
- Spicy pumpkin soup
- Potato Soup & Dumplings
- Easy ham and bean soup
- Instant Pot chicken noodle soup
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Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Serve an Italian dinner with this comforting and flavorful chicken gnocchi soup, similar to the one served at the Olive Garden restaurant!
Ingredients
Method
- Heat the butter and oil in a large soup pot and add the diced chicken. Cook until the chicken is no longer pink and cooked through. Remove it from the pan, then add the onions, celery, and garlic. Sauté until tender. (If the pan starts to get dry before the veggies are sautéed, add a little more butter.)
- Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
- Whisk in the half and half and keep whisking until the mixture thickens.
- Whisk in the chicken broth and stir until the mixture thickens again.
- Add the spices, carrots, spinach leaves, gnocchi, and chicken to the broth. Simmer until heated through, about 20 minutes.
Notes
If you don’t have half and half on hand, mix 1/3 cup melted butter with milk to equal 4 cups.
If you don’t have half and half on hand, mix 1/3 cup melted butter with milk to equal 4 cups.
