Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi Soup (Olive Garden Copycat) Recipe

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrot and celery and sauté 6 minutes, add garlic and saute for 1 to 2 minutes longer. 

Pour in broth, add rosemary, thyme, nutmeg and season with salt and pepper to taste. 

Add in chicken breasts (if using rotisserie chicken wait to add at the end) and bring soup to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover and allow to simmer for about 8 to 12 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

Meanwhile, while chicken is cooking, melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add flour, cook and stir constantly for 1 minute.

While whisking vigorously, pour in milk then continue to whisk vigorously to smooth any lumps. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

While whisking constantly, cook until mixture thickens and lightly boils. Stir in cream, remove from heat.

Once chicken in soup has cooked through remove chicken from soup and allow chicken to rest for 5 minutes then dice or shred into pieces. If veggies aren’t nearly soft, let that soup simmer a few minutes longer before adding gnocchi. 

Add gnocchi to broth mixture, cover and simmer for recommend time directed on package. Reduce to low heat. 

Stir milk mixture into broth mixture, then add in cooked chicken (shredded rotisserie or cooked chicken breasts) and spinach. Cook for about 1 minute until spinach wilts.

Serve warm with Romano cheese if desired.