Holy. Moly. As soon as we finished eating a bowl of this soup, we knew we HAD to write a post about it. So today, we're sharing a copycat recipe for olive garden chicken gnocchi soup (aka the best soup ever)!
Do you have some leftover rotisserie chicken in the fridge? Consider this your sign. It's time to make a batch of Olive Garden chicken gnocchi soup.
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This soup is one of Jordan's personal faves. And when you take that first bite, we know you'll understand why. Learn how to whip up this easy dish in no time, and your whole family will be licking their bowls clean. Are you ready?
HOW TO MODIFY THIS SOUP RECIPE
If you've been here before, then you know the magic of shelf cooking. If you're new here, then this way of life is going to rock your world! Be sure to check out our top shelf cooking tips. Spoiler alert: shelf cooking is about reducing waste and using what you already have in your kitchen to save some serious time and money! Here's how to apply those principles to this recipe:
- Rotisserie Chicken Substitute – If you don't have any rotisserie chicken in stock, that's a-okay. Reach for some canned chicken or pull out a bag of shredded chicken from the freezer. You can also switch up the proteins! Try ham, sausage, or ground beef.
- Chicken Broth Substitute – No chicken broth in the pantry? You've got some options! Here's a post all about chicken broth substitutes.
- Garlic Cloves Substitute – If you don't have any fresh garlic, sub in 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder or one teaspoon of jarred, minced garlic.
- All-Purpose Flour Substitute – Need to make this recipe gluten-free? You can use almond flour or buckwheat flour instead of all-purpose.
- Gnocchi Substitute – Don't keep gnocchi around? Try using pasta in its place. We think bow-tie would be awesome.
Now you're ready to make this recipe no matter what you've got in your kitchen inventory. So, next up, let's talk about some add-ins you can try with this soup.
OLIVE GARDEN CHICKEN GNOCCHI SOUP ADD-INS
We love this recipe exactly as it's written, so don't feel any pressure to change it! But, if you're like us, and you love finding ways to use up other ingredients, then here are a few add-ins you can try with this soup:
- Broccoli
- Bacon Bits
- White Beans
- Fresh Basil
- Sour Cream (on top)
- Shredded Parmesan
- Diced Red Peppers
- Mushrooms
- Chopped Asparagus
Mix and match those veggies! If you dice them up small enough, your kids won't even notice. Shhh! We won't tell.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH OLIVE GARDEN CHICKEN GNOCCHI SOUP
As you can see, we opted for easy and served sliced bread with our soup. If you're looking for a few more options, try one of these:
- Garlic Cheese Bread – We have a killer recipe for easy cheesy garlic bread.
- Tossed Salad – Use up all that fresh produce before it goes bad, and make a batch of homemade vinaigrette to serve on top.
- Italian-Style Quesadillas – Slather a little tomato sauce on a tortilla and fill with a nice mix of veggies, herbs, and your favorite cheese.
- Stuffed Baked Potatoes – Garnishing your soup with bacon bits? Save some for a baked potato bar!
- Pesto Grilled Cheese – Grab some Swiss, Mozarella, or Havarti, slather on a little pesto, add some red peppers, and get to grilling!
Pro Tip: If pesto is your jam, we've got the post for you. Find out all the ways you can use leftover pesto.
HAVE LEFTOVERS? HERE'S WHAT TO DO
If you end up with leftover soup, freeze at your own risk. From our experience, cream-based soups tend to separate when frozen. That being said, these leftovers taste just as good on day two or three, so don't throw them away!
Store your soup in an airtight container for up to three days, then reheat on the stovetop or warm individual portions in the microwave. If you want to turn those leftovers into something totally new, try one of these ideas:
- Chicken and Gnocchi Casserole – Pour your leftovers into a casserole dish and add some shredded chicken if needed. Top with crushed crackers and butter pats, cover in foil, then bake at 350°F for around 25 minutes. Uncover and add shredded cheese to the top before baking for an extra 5 minutes.
- Make Quiche – Whisk eight eggs, combine with your soup, and pour into a pie crust—Bake for 30 minutes at 375°F.
- Serve with Bread Bowls – Pick up a few bread bowls (or make your own) and serve your leftover soup in them. It's way more fun that way, so no one will protest having leftovers!
Have we teased you enough? Now that we've covered all our bases let's get to the recipe!
LEARN HOW TO MAKE OLIVE GARDEN CHICKEN GNOCCHI SOUP
We love this recipe SO much! Honestly, what's not to love? It's quick, it's easy, it's cheap to make, and it's super filling. And have we mentioned how delicious it is? Without further ado, here's our favorite recipe for copycat Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup.
Easy Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup onion, diced
- ½ cup celery, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 14 oz chicken broth
- 1 cup shredded rotisserie chicken
- 1 cup carrots, peeled and diced
- 1 cup chopped spinach
- 2 lbs packaged potato gnocchi
- 1 tbsp dried thyme
- salt and pepper, to taste
- cayenne pepper, to taste (optional)
Instructions
- Add butter and olive oil to a large pot, then saute the onion and celery until tender, or about 3 minutes.
- Add the garlic to your pot and sautee for a minute, then add the flour. Make a roux and continue cooking for another minute.
- Slowly add in your heavy cream, milk, and chicken broth. Stir for 1-2 minutes, or until soup begins to thicken. Add the chicken, carrots, spinach, gnocchi, and thyme. Cook on low for around 5 minutes, then add salt and pepper, serve and enjoy!
- Optional: for extra heat, add some cayenne pepper before serving.
Notes
Our mouth is watering already! We can't wait for you to try this.
We predict this easy, creamy, hearty soup is about to be your family's new fave! Experiment with different veggies and proteins and see if you can find a new perfect version. This recipe is ideal for hiding veggies from picky eaters.
What's your family's favorite kind of soup? Spill all the deets and drop a comment below!
Looking for more soup recipes to try?
- This crockpot potato soup is another fave around here.
- Our recipe for broccoli cheddar soup is fail-proof!
- Learn how to make your own delicious cream of mushroom soup.
Have a soup-er day!
How much flour do you put in? It isn’t listed in the ingredients 🙂
Hi! 1/4 of a cup. It’s near the top of the ingredients list.
This was really good, although I’ll make a couple tweaks next time. It was a truly shelf-cooked meal! I didn’t have an onion, so I used a bag of frozen onions and bell peppers, used up some celery that was going bad, used up the rest of a bottle of cream, and for the chicken I used up some leftover Italian Cream Cheese Chicken
I had in the freezer. So yummy! I also had a box of gnocchi on hand that I used, but unfortunately it wasn’t good gnocchi. Next time I’ll just make dumplings instead, I think the gnocchi at Olive Garden actually tastes like dumplings anyway! Also I only used more like 1/4 tsp of thyme and to me (and my hubby) it still was a bit overwhelming. That stuff is just so strong! I think next time I’ll just leave it out. Will definitely be making this again, even the picky kids loved it! And I made the cheesy garlic bread to go with it and that was a big hit too!