'Quick n Yummy' Cream of Chicken & Gnocchi Soup
Disclaimer: this is the 'McSoup' version.. It's pretty much just a Turbo Upgrade to a Campbells Cream of Chicken-base, but.. Man, is it Yummy! and Simple.
Backstory: So, whilst traveling clear across the US / back this past May (driving, of course..) Took my Daughter with me (cuz All Teens Love a solid '
Road Triiiiiip!!!'
which was some Wonderful 'Quality Time'..) Anyhoo, one Eve we stopped and ate at Olive Garden somewhere in East Whoknowswhere, and she Fell in Love with
Their 'Chicken & Gnocchi' soup..
..So, when we got home, I took to 'Reverse Guessgineering'
from the memory of it, and came up with the following:
- 2x 12.6 oz Cans of Campbells (or, other..) 'Condensed' Cream of Chicken Soup (ya'll 'Purists', simply forget I said that, and Start with equivalent amount of Your Fav DIY Cream of Chicken Soup Base..
- 3-4 med-size (~3/4-1" thick x 5-6" long x 3" wide) Chicken Breasts
- 1x 17.5 oz Package of yer Fav-Brand Gnocchi (we used 'Di Cecco')
- Chicken Bouillon
- Coarse Ground Black Pepper
- Green Onions, Fresh
- 1x Med-size Carrot, Grated into 'slivers'
- 3x small/med size stalks Celery (nice n tender ones..), Sliced thinly
- Cilantro, Fresh (or 'flakes', if no-have..)
- 1 Large Clove Garlic
- Two Large (1x 6 qt; 1x 10.5 qt, I guess?) Stock Pots..
- Options: Fresh or Canned Corn Kernels and/or Spinach
In 6 qt pot, thaw Chicken Breasts in hot water, add 1 tsp Cilantro (or flakes) crushed Garlic clove; Bring to a boil over Med-high heat, but Just before boiling, add ~1 Tbsp of Chicken Bouillon (or 'equivalent' in cubes..) Enough to 'season' the water / Chicken.. Par-boil until just Barely 'done' (Safely past pink, but Don't turn into sneaker sole!
~8-10 mins, usually.. Remove pot from heat, and let Chicken / broth cool a bit..
In the 10 qt, add Cream of Chicken Soup 'concentrate', and 2x cans of the
Broth (
Not just 'plain water') from the breasts-boil.. Stir, etc and add generous amounts of Black Pepper (to-taste..) and diced Green Onion. Remove and quickly 'cube' the Chicken Breasts from 'broth' pot, and add to this Soon-to-be-Soup pot. Stir, etc (no heat, yet..) (key is to Not let the Chicken get 'dried out'..)
Back to the 'Broth pot', put back on Heat, and bring to a Boil again.. Once boiling, add Gnocchi - following directions Carefully (as
Soon as they 'float', get 'em
Outta there / Add into the 'Soup pot', since they will cook a bit more, there..) Add Carrot-slivers and diced Celery to Broth, and boil a bit longer (until they are softened) and using small strainer, add All of both to Soup pot.
Now you can start the 'final Soup' up on Low-Med heat, and add 1-2 cans (~10-20 more Oz.) of 'Broth-water'. Cover (best to use a 'vented' cover, to prevent boil-overs) let simmer for 5-8 mins,
Tops. If desired, add a few chopped Spinach-leaves, to-taste, and/or Corn. Or, just a bit more Green Onion (our personal-Pref..)
To make a bit more 'chowdery', go back to yer 'Broth pot' and add appropriate amount of Cornstarch / thickening Flour, and make yer 'thickener goo' / Add to Soup, simmer on low a bit more, then let Sit. (If using the 'Campbells as Base' (vs DIY) just letting it Sit will also accomplish this fairly-well and is less work..)
Serve with a few Grinds of Black Pepper on top, and Cornbread. (oops, forgot to tell ya to start that an hour ago..
jk.. Sourdough-boule shards also complement well. Enjoy with Ginger Ale or a nice White Wine (ie: Fetzers' Gewurztraminer.
Sounds like a lot of 'extra work' with the '2 Pots' and all, but.. Thinking it thru in doing it 'all in One' - a) par-boiling the Chicken In the soup-base would not be the best way to do that, b) it would be difficult to get the Veggies to 'soften', well, and c) Gnocchi to cook properly / 'float' with all the other stuff in there, so.. Doing it 'all in One', that way Could just end up yielding a large pot of 'Dog Barf'..
And ain't No One gonna Love you fo' Dat!
Fwiw..
jd
