This vegan gnocchi soup is a total copycat of Olive Garden's famous soup! Without the meat or the dairy, this soup is just as hearty, delicious, and not to mention easy!
I was a picky eater growing up, which means that I obviously loved Olive Garden. Though my taste buds have since grown and matured past that, I still think their chicken and gnocchi soup is by far the best thing on the menu. It was so good that it got this picky eater to eat vegetables and some weird thing called gnocchi!
Since this soup is so good, I had to make a healthier vegan version at home! This vegan gnocchi soup is creamy and delicious, packed with sneaky vegetables, and it can be done stovetop or in the Instant Pot!
Why you'll love this recipe
- Quick Weeknight Dinner - Make this ahead of time and simply warm it up for a quick and easy dinner or lunch!
- Simple Ingredients - You can simplify this recipe even more by using store bought gnocchi instead of homemade gnocchi!
- Full of Flavor - Letting this soup simmer or cook under pressure develops the flavors so well.
What you need for this recipe
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Gnocchi - Use storebought or Homemade Vegan Gnocchi. For gluten-free use a GF gnocchi alternative!
- White Onion - Sweet onion, yellow onion, or even a shallot can be used in place of white onion.
- Kale - The Olive Garden recipe uses spinach, but I prefer kale in my soups. If you want to use spinach, only add it ad the end of the cooking process, at the same time as the gnocchi.
- Thyme - I used dried French thyme, but I think that fresh thyme would work as well.
- Coconut Milk - Canned, unsweetened coconut cream replaces heavy cream in this recipe in order to make it thick and creamy. I don't recommend substituting this.
Equipment
- Dutch Oven or Pressure Cooker - A dutch oven (or other large, heavy-bottomed pot) is necessary for simmering. An Instant Pot or pressure cooker works in this recipe as well.
How to make this recipe
Step 1: Prepare ingredients
If you are making your own vegan gnocchi, start by making those.
Next, peel and cut the carrot into coins, slice the celery into small pieces, dice the onion, and roughly chop the kale and remove the stem.
Mince or slice garlic cloves.
Step 2: Cook the Soup
In the Instant Pot or regular pot, heat up olive oil.
Add diced white onion, celery, and carrot and sauté until onion is slightly translucent.
Toss in the minced garlic and sauté, but make sure it doesn't burn.
Add the thyme and mix.
Pour in the vegetable broth and the chopped kale, gently stir.
Place the lid on the Instant Pot in the locked position and set the valve to sealing.
Pressure cook on high pressure for 2 minutes, then perform a natural pressure release for 5 minutes (set a timer).
Once the 5 minutes are up, switch the valve to venting and release remaining pressure.
If using the stovetop method, bring to a low simmer for about 30 minutes, until the vegetables are soft and cooked through.
Step 3: Finishing Touches
Stir the cooked soup, then add 1 can of unsweetened coconut milk and stir.
Turn the Instant Pot to 'sauté' and bring to a low simmer.
Add in the gnocchi and gently stir.
Once the gnocchi begin to float in the soup, they are done. Be sure not to over cook the gnocchi.
If you chose to use spinach instead of kale, add that spinach now and stir until wilted.
Season with salt to taste.
Serve vegan gnocchi soup hot, garnish with fresh parsley or chives, and enjoy!
Expert Tips and Tricks
- If you aren't a fan of gnocchi, this soup would be just as delicious with regular pasta or just by itself!
- You can use spinach instead of kale (as they do at Olive Garden). If you do this, don't add the spinach before cooking the soup. Add it after adding the gnocchi at the very end.
- Feel free to use any sort of gnocchi. Homemade, store-bought, gluten-free, cauliflower, or even sweet potato gnocchi would all work here!
Recipe FAQs
If made properly, the gnocchi should not fall apart when cooking. It is very important to NOT add the gnocchi before pressure cooking, or else it will become mushy.
If stored properly, this soup should last 3-5 days in the refrigerator. However, the gnocchi may become softer over time.
Instead of using vegan gnocchi, you can use any type of pasta you like, or regular dumplings for a chicken and dumplings style soup! You could also throw in chopped potatoes.
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Vegan Gnocchi Soup
Equipment
- Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker or Pot
- Wooden Spoon
Ingredients
- 1 cup White onion diced
- 4 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 cup Kale chopped, or spinach
- ½ cup Carrots sliced
- 1 stalk Celery diced
- 1 teaspoon Dried thyme
- 4 cups Vegetable broth
- 1 can Coconut Milk
- 2 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 16 ounces Vegan gnocchi
Instructions
- If you are making your own vegan gnocchi, start by making those.
- Next, peel and cut the carrot into coins, slice the celery into small pieces, dice the onion, and roughly chop the kale and remove the stem.
- Mince or slice garlic cloves.
- In the Instant Pot or regular pot, heat up olive oil.
- Add diced white onion, celery, and carrot and sauté until onion is slightly translucent.
- Toss in the minced garlic and sauté, but make sure it doesn't burn.
- Add the thyme and mix.
- Pour in the vegetable broth and the chopped kale, gently stir.
- Place the lid on the Instant Pot in the locked position and set the valve to sealing.
- Pressure cook on high pressure for 2 minutes, then perform a natural pressure release for 5 minutes (set a timer).
- Once the 5 minutes are up, switch the valve to venting and release remaining pressure.
- If using the stovetop method, bring to a low simmer for about 30 minutes, until the vegetables are soft and cooked through.
- Stir the cooked soup, then add 1 can of unsweetened coconut milk and stir.
- Turn the Instant Pot to 'sauté' and bring to a low simmer.
- Add in the gnocchi and gently stir.
- Once the gnocchi begin to float in the soup, they are done. Be sure not to over cook the gnocchi.
- If you chose to use spinach instead of kale, add that spinach now and stir until wilted.
- Season with salt to taste.
- Serve hot, garnish with fresh parsley or chives, and enjoy!
Notes
- If you aren't a fan of gnocchi, this soup would be just as delicious with regular pasta or just by itself!
- You can use spinach instead of kale (as they do at Olive Garden). If you do this, don't add the spinach before cooking the soup. Add it after adding the gnocchi at the very end.
- Feel free to use any sort of gnocchi. Homemade, store-bought, gluten-free, cauliflower, or even sweet potato gnocchi would all work here!
Alejandro Dalmau
Awesome recipe! Extremely tasty. This is a keeper.