Tasty Thursday: Chicken Gnocchi Soup

The weather has taken a bit of a strange turn here in Ohio.  There have been days when the weather has been in the high 60's.  That's freezing for August in Ohio!  Because of the weather change my body has been craving thick hearty soups.  So when I stumbled upon this Chicken Gnocchi soup via Pinterest, I was dying to try it out!

I did alter the original recipe a bit as I didn't have any thyme or nutmeg and I didn't want to add sugar, butter, or the half & half (I'm trying to keep it somewhat healthy).  So if you're looking for a really hearty super creamy soup use half & half instead of whole milk as my recipe shows below.

Ingredients

1 medium onion, chopped

2 large carrots, peeled and grated

4 stalks celery, chopped

6 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

2-3 T olive oil

1 Rotisserie Chicken + reserved broth from the bottom of the chicken container 

7 C water

8 chicken bullion cubes

1 (16 ounce) package Potato Gnocchi
4 C whole milk (for the hearty version use half & half)

1 1/2 C spinach, chopped

1/4 C cold water

5 T cornstarch

salt and pepper 

Prepare your onion, carrots, celery, and garlic as mentioned above and toss into a large pot over medium high heat with 2-3 tablespoons olive oil.  Reduce heat to medium to cook down the veggies about 8 minutes until your onions turn translucent.  While the veggies are cooking, remove your rotisserie chicken from the container and pour reserve broth into a cup for later.  Remove the skin from the chicken and begin removing meat from the bones.  Chop up chicken and set to the side.  By this time your veggies should be done cooking, add the reserve broth plus 7 cups water & 8 bullion cubes and stir well.  Add the chicken and bring the soup to a boil.  Once your soup is boiling, add your gnocchi and cook approximately 4 minutes.  The gnocchi will float to the top when they're cooked all the way.  While your gnocchi is cooking, chop 1 1/2 cups spinach then toss into the pot.  Pour in 4 cups whole milk (h&h for thicker, creamier consistency), stir well.  While the milk is heating up combine 1/4 cup cold water and 5 tablespoons of corn starch in a small bowl.  Mix well to remove clumps and pour into pot.  Again, stir well and bring your soup to a boil while continuously stirring.  Salt & pepper the soup to taste.

This makes about 12 servings so you could freeze half of the soup or invite a group of friends for a hearty soup night in.

-stephanie