Description
This Slow Cooker Chicken Gnocchi Soup is a creamy, comforting dish featuring tender chicken, pillowy potato gnocchi, and fresh baby spinach simmered to perfection with aromatic herbs and a rich broth. Perfect for cozy meals, it combines ease and flavor for a delicious slow cooker experience.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1-1.5 lb.)
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 celery stalk, diced
- 1/2 cup carrots, shredded
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 bay leaf
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 (16 oz.) package potato gnocchi
- 3 oz. fresh baby spinach, tightly packed (about 3 cups)
Instructions
- Prepare Ingredients: Place chicken breasts in a 6-quart slow cooker. Add diced onion, minced garlic, diced celery, and shredded carrots on top.
- Season Soup Base: Sprinkle dried basil, Italian seasoning, ground nutmeg, bay leaf, salt, and pepper over the ingredients in the slow cooker.
- Add Broth: Pour 5 cups of chicken broth over the chicken and vegetables to cover them.
- Slow Cook Chicken: Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours until chicken is cooked through and tender.
- Shred Chicken: Remove chicken from slow cooker and place onto a cutting board. Discard the bay leaf. Chop or shred chicken into bite-sized pieces, then add back into the slow cooker.
- Add Cream and Gnocchi: Stir in heavy cream and add the potato gnocchi. Cook on high for 45 minutes or until gnocchi is tender and soup has thickened.
- Wilt Spinach: Add fresh baby spinach to the soup, cover, and allow residual heat to wilt the spinach completely.
- Final Seasoning and Serve: Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Dish the soup into bowls and serve hot.
Notes
- This recipe is a copycat of Olive Garden’s creamy chicken gnocchi soup, offering a comforting and flavorful experience.
- For a thicker soup, allow it to cook longer after adding gnocchi.
- Substitute heavy cream with half-and-half for a lighter version.
- Use fresh gnocchi for best texture; store-bought frozen variants also work well.
- Spinach can be replaced with kale or Swiss chard according to preference.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 274 kcal
- Sugar: 2.1 g
- Sodium: 1134 mg
- Fat: 8.1 g
- Saturated Fat: 4 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3.9 g
- Trans Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 26 g
- Fiber: 0.9 g
- Protein: 23.6 g
- Cholesterol: 82 mg
