Chicken and Gnocchi Soup Made with Homemade Gnocchi

It's a rare occasion that I get to enjoy a lunch with my sister. One afternoon we were out shopping and decided to stop at Olive Garden to have their unlimited soup, salad and bread sticks special.

I love Olive Garden's salad and was looking forward to trying their soup. I had tried their Zuppa Toscana soup before and loved it but this time I decided to try their Chicken & Gnocchi soup. This was new to me and I didn't know what to expect. But from the moment it touched my lips I was in heaven. It was love at first bite! I thought I only wanted one bowl of soup. My stomach said I only wanted one bowl of soup but you know how that goes when you really really enjoy something? You tend to overeat! And that I did. Ugh! Can someone call the ambulance? I must try to make this at home. Or should I? It could be dangerous.

Now that cooler weather is settling in I'm trying to find a few tasty comforting soups that I can enjoy for lunch. So I went on a mission to find a recipe for Chicken & Gnocchi soup. But anyone who knows me wouldn't be surprised to hear that I wanted to make my own homemade gnocchi also. Store bought just won't do for this gal. 

I found both recipes I wanted to try on Allrecipes.com. I started with the Gnocchi I - aka a roman numeral 1 and not an I just so you know :) . I made the gnocchi on a Sunday evening in the middle of a storm, a very windy storm. Needless to say, the storm knocked out our power while I was in the middle of the recipe. So my husband gathered many candles and a propane lantern so I could finish my chore by candlelight. I felt like Ma Ingalls from Little House On The Prairie.

I finished the recipe and tossed them into the freezer hoping that they would be ok until the power came back on. They survived the storm and froze beautifully. Before cooking I removed them from the freezer and allowed them to thaw. Here's my finished and cooked gnocchi. I was very excited with the results for my first attempt.

Gnocchi I

Now off to try the Chicken and Gnocchi soup recipe. As I mentioned, I found the recipe on Allrecipes.com and I didn't change a thing. I had some chicken stock in the freezer that I had made from the bones of another roasted chicken so I used that. But I did cheat and use the meat from a store bought rotisserie chicken. It worked out great.

Here's my finished product.

Chicken and Gnocchi Soup

This soup is delicious!! If you love Olive Garden's Chicken & Gnocchi soup and you love to cook you will not be disappointed in this recipe. It's yummy goodness! 

Chicken and Gnocchi Soup

I hope you decide to give this soup a try. While you're at it won't you try the homemade gnocchi also? You won't regret it. I promise. Just have a napkin ready to wipe the drool.

Now on to the recipes:

Chicken & Gnocchi Soup 
Makes 6 servings
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, shredded
3 – 4 cups cooked chicken (I used rotisserie)
4 cups chicken broth
1 (16 oz.) package mini potato gnocchi (or use recipe below)
1 (6 ounce) bag baby spinach leaves
1 tablespoon cornstarch (optional)
2 tablespoons cold water (optional)
2 cups half-and-half cream
salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook onion, celery, garlic, and carrots in the hot oil until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in cubed chicken and chicken broth; bring to a simmer.

Stir gnocchi into the simmering soup and cook until they begin to float, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in spinach; cook until wilted, about 3 additional minutes.

Whisk cornstarch into cold water until smooth. Stir cornstarch mixture and half-and-half into simmering soup. Cook until soup thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

******************
Gnocchi
Makes 4 servings
2 potatoes
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 egg

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Peel potatoes and add to pot. Cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain, cool and mash with a fork or potato masher.

Combine 1 cup mashed potato, flour and egg in a large bowl. Knead until dough forms a ball. Shape small portions of the dough into long "snakes". On a floured surface, cut snakes into half-inch pieces.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Drop in gnocchi and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until gnocchi have risen to the top; drain and serve.

Pumpkin Pie and Homemade Rolls - Now That's What I Call Thanksgiving Dinner

The men in my life are hunters and this time of year I become like many other women, a deer widow. Unfortunately those four-legged creatures have beckoned my husband to the woods on Thanksgiving long before we were married. I'm used to it. I'm ok with it. We compromised a few years back. As long as we share Christmas together I'm ok without my husband by my side on Thanksgiving. It doesn't mean I like it but I accept it. And my son has followed in his footsteps. So my daughter-in-law, my grandson and myself pack ourselves up and trot on over to my sister's house to share Thanksgiving with my family. Where we pig out until we feel like we could roll ourselves out the door, or until someone calls an ambulance, whichever comes first.

When my son was young and still lived at home I would make Thanksgiving dinner a week or so before the big day. I didn't do it because I loved turkey - my favorites are all the sides and dessert. Heck, I don't even need the turkey. I did it because I wanted Thanksgiving at home - with the men I loved. Since my son is now grown and gone, that tradition has gone by the wayside and it saddens me. I'm not quite sure why we stopped but it happened. 

Yearning for more family traditions of our own coupled with the desire to relight what was important to me, at the last minute I threw the idea out to my son to have our turkey dinner this past weekend. But poor communication on my part, combined with busy lives, and last minute Lucy (me!) it didn't happen as planned. 

The turkey was bought and thawed so I trudged forward. I planned on a few traditional things you see at a Thanksgiving dinner only on a smaller scale. Green beans, which we had grown and canned earlier this year, mashed potatoes and gravy, homemade rolls and pumpkin pie.

I've made homemade rolls before but yeast and I are not the best of friends. However, Rhodes Rolls and I get along just fine. But I was determined to give it another try.  I found a highly rated recipe on Allrecipes.com and went for it.  They were soft, tender, delicious. They were heavenly. I think they should be renamed "Heavenly Dinner Rolls". Here are my results:

Click here for the recipe --- Sweet Dinner Rolls

Now the name implies sweet but trust me - they're perfect and have only a hint of sweetness. Pure deliciousness and easy to make. What could get better than that? 

Pumpkin pie is my Thanksgiving dessert of choice. I love it. I found a new recipe for pumpkin pie on Allrecipes.com that I thought I would try.  When I make pie I always make my own crust but not without struggling. I remembered watching the new Food Network show Heartland Table and watching Amy Thielen make her Butter Crust and she made it look so easy. I was especially intrigued because I had always used shortening and no longer use it. So I searched for her recipe and gave it a try. Bingo! Another keeper!! This bakes up so tender and flaky. Just melt in your mouth goodness! This will be my go-to pie crust recipe from now on. The crust recipe is in with her Blueberry Pie recipe but here it is - Butter Crust. 

Here is how my Pumpkin Pie turned out:

Click here for the recipe --- Pumpkin Pie II

I didn't have evaporated milk on hand so I just put all the milk into a pan and simmered down until I had what the recipe called for. Worked great. And this was delicious served with sweetened fresh whipped cream.

So next year I will plan better and we will have our tradition back. And by then, we can share with the new grand baby who will be coming soon.

So live a little. Who needs turkey when you have delicious sides and desserts? My favorite. Especially the rolls and pie!