My hubby LOVES the Chicken and Gnocchi soup from Olive Garden .He tells me that he had never had gnocchi until he met me- oh, the food horizons I have opened him up to! :-) Because of my daughter's allergies to eggs, nuts and soy and because of my personal allergies to BOP and other things, I felt it was worth exploring trying a copy-cat recipe to recreate the creamy, steamy goodness at home.
SOO..... here goes...!
Adapted from:
http://www.food.com/recipe/olive-garden-style-chicken-and-gnocchi-soup-348802
Ingredients:
3 -4 chicken breasts , cooked and diced
4 cups chicken stock (I used water)
2 cups half-and-half (I used fat free half and half)
1 stalk celery , diced (I used 2 stalks)
1 garlic clove , chopped
½ carrot , shredded (I used a whole carrot and cut into matchsticks)
½ onion , diced (I used a whole)
1 cup fresh spinach , chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon thyme
salt and pepper
16 ounces potato gnocchi (pre-made)
1 tablespoon cornstarch (optional) (I only had flour on hand so I used 2 Tblsp.flour)
Directions:
-Saute the onion, celery, garlic, carrot in oil over medium heat until onion is translucent.
-Add chicken, chicken stock, half and half, salt and pepper, thyme. Heat to boiling, then add gnocchi. Gently boil for 4 minutes, then turn down to a simmer for 10 minutes. (
Heat to boiling and add cornstarch dissolved in 1-2 Tbsp water at this point if you want a thicker soup)
-Add spinach and cook for another 1-2 minutes until spinach is wilted.
-Ladle into bowls and serve!
Verdict:
Hubby gives the soup two slurpy spoons up! He says that the Olive Garden one is a bit saltier and a tad bit thicker in consistency. So, next time, add more salt and/or use homemade chicken stock (that I know is soy-free). Also, double the roux to add thickness. Personally, I liked the fact that I could add *some* nutritional boost to this usually-diet-disaster by bumping up the veggies. Lil' Miss ate a whole bowl by herself so I'd say that it was win-win all around! Yummy!
