Olive Garden's Chicken and Gnocchi Soup

By Joan_Z

Use 2 cans of Chicken broth - do not add extra flour even tho at first the soup may seem too thin. It will thicken up by the time it is ready to be served.

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Oil
• 4 Tbsp. butter
• 4 Tbsp. Flour
• 1 Qt. Half & Half
• 1/2 cup Celery - finely diced
• 1 cup Onion - finely diced
• 2 Minced Garlic Cloves
• 2 14 oz cans Chicken broth
• 1 cup carrots - finely shredded
• 1 cup Chicken breasts - cooked & Diced (you can use a rotisserie chicken)
• 1 pkg. Gnocchi - cooked (mini size)
• 1 cup Fresh Spinach coarsely chopped
• 1/2 tsp. Salt
• 1/2 tsp. Thyme
• 1/2 tsp. Parsley
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg (optional)

Preparation

Step 1

Saute onion, celery & garlic in butter & olive oil over medium heat until onion becomes translucent. Add flour & make a roux. Let the butter & flour mixture cook for about a minute before adding 1 quart of Half & Half.

Cook Gnocchi according to package directions (if it is large size, cut in half to about the size of a quarter or slightly smaller).

Into the roux, add the carrots and chicken. Once the mixture becomes thick, add the chicken broth. Once the mixture thickens again, add the cooked gnocchi, spinach, and seasoning. Simmer until the soup is heated through. Before serving, season to taste by adding additional salt.

You can add extra chicken if you like. You can use milk instead of Half & Half for lower calories but with Half & Half the soup does taste better.