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Made with creamy white beans instead of chicken, and lots of fresh spinach, this gnocchi soup recipe is quickly becoming a favorite among my friends and family. This soup is ready in record time (15 minutes to be exact!), making it perfect for cozy weeknights. Readers have also had great luck with making this soup vegan and gluten-free, too!
save this recipe!Olive Garden was a beacon of our childhood family outings. The endless breadsticks, the family-style salads, the soups—I loved it. So, I thought I’d recreate one of my favorites from there.
That’s where this gnocchi soup comes in. I had developed a few creamy bean recipes like creamy chickpea soup and Marry Me chickpeas, and they were both hits. I knew adapting my bases to making gnocchi soup would be an easy transition, and that white beans were the perfect replacement for chicken, so I set out to make gnocchi soup just like Olive Garden’s, minus the chicken!
Why you’ll love it
- Make it fast thanks to white beans and gnocchi, both of which don’t have to cook very long and cook much faster than chicken!
- Simple ingredients like half-and-half, Italian seasoning, and spinach bring tons of flavor, and you probably already have the ingredients in your pantry or fridge!
- One pot is used to make this vegetarian gnocchi soup. This saves time and energy pulling out different dishes and cleaning multiple pots!
Reader rating
“Probably the best soup I’ve ever had. And it somehow tasted even better the next day! 12/10, will make again.” —Kayla
grab these ingredients
Gnocchi soup is so easy and delicious, thanks to a handful of pantry staple ingredients! Jump to the recipe card for the full quantities.
- Mirepoix: This traditional French dish combines onions, celery, and carrots. While the carrots add sweetness, we use yellow onions here for just a touch more.
- Butter: Any kind of butter will work, or you can use olive oil.
- Garlic: Mincing fresh garlic is the best way to get the most flavor per clove. If you do use pre-minced garlic, I typically add about 20% more garlic to compensate for the loss of flavor that is typical of pre-minced garlic stored in the fridge.
- Spices: To make this soup extra delicious, you will need Italian seasoning, salt, and red pepper flakes. I always like a little kick in my soups, so adding the red pepper flakes is one of the many reasons this soup is extra tasty!
- Flour: Gnocchi soup traditionally has a thicker broth. Corn starch, cheese, or flour can be used to thicken the broth. I use flour because it’s a staple in any household and doesn’t change the flavor profile.
- Vegetable broth: You can make your own vegetable broth or use store-bought. Really either is a fine option. And if you aren’t vegan or vegetarian, bone broth is a great option too.
- White beans: These are my go-to beans for soups, especially Italian-style soups. They are creamy and mild in flavor, yet hearty enough to take the place of chicken or other protein. There are many varieties of white beans including navy beans, cannellini beans, and “great northern” beans. Cannellini beans are preferred for this soup and they are usually found in a can next to any other beans or canned vegetables.
- Spinach: Roughly chop your spinach to make it bite size. If you use baby spinach, you can probably get away with not chopping it. Kale would also be good in this soup.
- Gnocchi: Shelf-stable potato gnocchi in either full size or mini can be used for this soup (cauliflower gnocchi would work well here too!).
- Half-and-half: Heavy cream will work here, too, and some readers have had success using vegan cream and coconut cream as well.
avoid curdling
I use half-and-half or heavy cream because the higher the fat content, the less likely the cream is to curdle. The other trick is to ensure your soup is not fully boiling when the cream is added. This is why it’s important to remove the soup from the heat and then slowly stir in the cream to fully incorporate it.
How to make Vegetarian Gnocchi Soup
Making this soup couldn’t be simpler! The key to success for any recipe is to make sure everything is diced and portioned out before you start the soup, and to give this brief overview of the recipe a read-through first. Jump to the recipe card for the full instructions.
- Make the flavor base by sautéing the vegetables and spices in a little butter.
- Turn it into soup by adding the broth, beans, gnocchi, and spinach.
- Make it creamy by removing it from the heat and stirring in the half and half. Serve with a side of cozy garlic bread and this quinoa kale salad!
Recipe Testing Notes
Through testing, I’ve learned some things about this soup—what works and what doesn’t. So here’s why this recipe will work perfectly for you!
- Remove the soup from the heat before adding the cream. This ensures the cream won’t curdle in the super-hot liquid.
- Shelf-stable gnocchi keep the soup from becoming mushy: frozen gnocchi can release too much liquid.
- Cooking the gnocchi in the broth adds more flavor than cooking the gnocchi separately in water and saves on cleaning. Just one pot!
P.S. Love creamy gnocchi dishes? Try this Marry Me gnocchi next! It has a proposal-worthy creamy Tuscan sauce and is ready in under 30 minutes. Or try making your own sweet potato gnocchi!
15-Minute Creamy Gnocchi Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp butter or oil, 28 g
- 1 cup diced onion, white or yellow, about 1 medium onion
- ½ cup diced carrots, about 2 carrots
- ½ cup diced celery, about 2 ribs celery
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup flour, 25 g
- 4 cups vegetable broth, 1 L
- 1 15-oz can white beans, drained
- 4 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
- 16 oz gnocchi, 453 g
- 2 cups half-and-half, 473 mL
Instructions
- Flavor Base: Heat 2 Tbsp butter or oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add 1 cup diced onion, ½ cup diced carrots, and ½ cup diced celery, cooking until onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in 3 cloves garlic, 2 tsp Italian seasoning, 1 tsp salt, and ¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes, continuing to cook for a minute. Stir in ¼ cup flour.
- Make It Soup: While stirring, add 4 cups vegetable broth and bring to a gentle simmer for 5 minutes to thicken the soup. Stir in 1 15-oz can white beans, 4 cups fresh spinach, and 16 oz gnocchi, cooking just until gnocchi is tender, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Serve: Remove from heat and stir in 2 cups half-and-half. Serve warm!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information calculated by Sarah Bond, degreed nutritionist.
did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!
This soup is so delicious! I can’t get over how easy it was to make. It’ll definitely be joining my regular soup rotation!
YAY! So happy you love it, Jenny! 😀
It took about 30 mins and needed a little more flour than stated but turned out great!
We are dairy free so I made it without the cream. I intended to add cashew cream at the end but forgot it and it was equally tasty. I would put a little less salt in it if I intend to keep the cream out, because it was a little salty to my taste. I think this was because I used boxed veggie broth, though.
Creamy and flavorful! Super quick to make and the recipe is full of many ingredients that are typically on hand in my fridge and cupboard – so that made it even faster. My husband loved it, too! This soup will become a regular in our home.
Soup IS my Fav food! Never met a soup I didn’t like and this one with spinach and gnocchi and sauteed onions and garlic- oh boy oh boy am I so ready for dinner! Great tasty recipe Sarah and staff – thank you.
Honestly, the Gnocchi Soup was one of my favourite recipes of the Challenge! It was definitely comfort food and great to bring as lunch. It’s a recipe I’m gonna be re-making for sure.
Yay!! Thanks so much for dropping in to let us know how it went 😀
Bought GF gnocchi for this and the whole family loved it. So delicious and wonderful for a chilly winter evening. Will definitely make again!
So happy to hear it, Kris! Enjoy! 😀
Delicious! I used only 1 cup of half & half as it seemed so rich already.
Thanks for a great recipe and the helpful tips!
Great recipe! Loved the flavor. I eat a lot of vegetarian meals and often pass on the olive garden soup because of the chicken. Now I don’t have to. I will put this in my rotation. It was great with Miltons sea salt crackers made with rice flour.
I used half can light coconut milk light and a little oat milk instead of the half and half or heavy cream suggested. It was not creamy enough so I will try some other options next time.
I had to add more salt than suggested in this recipe. It needed it. Best to add it at the end after cooking per bowl so people can decide how much salt.
I’m so happy you loved it! Thanks for dropping back in to let us know how it went 🙂 Happy eating!
Another 5 star recipe! Even my non-soup loving daughter asked for the recipe!!!
This was part of our Christmas dinner, and I’m so glad I doubled the recipe for leftovers.
This makes me so so glad to hear, Meegan!! Happy eating! 😀