I like the Olive Garden Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi soup and Italian salad and hot breadsticks lunch special a lot because it is fresh, delicious and inexpensive, also unlimited. As of this recipe writing it costs $9.95 (year 2025) per serving and is served from 11:30 A.M. to 2:30 P.M.
I decided to look for a copycat recipe for their creamy chicken and gnocchi soup as that one should definitely be in Food Nirvana.
I wound up getting the recipes for the soup, the salad and the dressing, and also the breadsticks. I decided to keep them together as a group to make it easy for the home chef to plan, get ingredients and make the whole meal.
Though it is fairly obvious, the right order of preparation for this meal is to make the soup first, then the salad and salad dressing, then the breadsticks. Keep the salad refrigerated while making the breadsticks. Keep the soup warm on very low heat, covered. At serving time you mix the dressing with the salad and top it with freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Similarly, guests may (will) want some of the Parmesan cheese to be grated over their bowl of soup, which will usually be served after the salad has been eaten. The salad and breadsticks are usually served about ten minutes before serving the hot soup.
I will test these recipes and make any needed changes, and report my results.
I hope you decide to make this meal or any part or parts of it. You will be pleased.
Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi Soup
Ingredients: (makes two quarts of soup)
3 to 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts - cooked and diced
1 stalk of celery - chopped
½ of a medium size sweet onion - diced
2 teaspoons of minced garlic
½ cup of shredded carrots
1 tablespoon of olive oil
4 cups of chicken broth
salt and pepper - to taste (typically use one teaspoon of salt and one half teaspoon of ground black pepper for two quarts of soup)
1 teaspoon of dried thyme
16 ounces of uncooked potato gnocchi
2 cups of half and half - (or make it richer by using heavy cream for one of the cups of half and half)
1 cup of fresh spinach - roughly chopped
Parmesan cheese for grating over the soup
Directions:
Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the celery, onions, garlic, and carrots and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes until the onions are translucent.
Add the diced chicken, chicken broth, salt, pepper, and thyme, and bring that mixture to a boil, then gently stir in the gnocchi. Boil for 3 to 4 minutes longer before reducing heat to a simmer. Cook for an addition 10 minutes at a simmer.
Stir in the half and half (or mixture of half and half and heavy cream) and the spinach and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes until the spinach is tender.
Taste the soup and add more salt and pepper if needed, then serve the soup hot (or if making other parts of the meal too, then keep the soup covered and warm on very low heat).
At serving time use freshly grated Parmesan cheese on top of each serving of soup.
Breadsticks
Ingredients: (makes 16 breadsticks)
1 ½ cups of warm (100 degrees F) water
1 packet of instant yeast
2 tablespoons of honey
3 to 4 cups of flour - plus more if you knead the dough manually
2 tablespoons of olive oil
3 teaspoons of salt
6 tablespoons of salted butter - melted
2 teaspoons of garlic powder
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Use a stand mixer on low speed to combine/stir together the water, yeast, and honey. Let the mixture rest for 10 minutes to let the yeast activate. It should rise and foam.
Add 2 cups of flour, the olive oil, and the salt and continue mixing on low to medium speed.
Gradually mix in more flour (1 1/2 to 2 cups) and mix at medium speed until you have a soft, shaggy dough.
Use the kneading attachment with the stand mixer and knead the dough on medium speed for 4 minutes.
Place the dough in a greased 3 quart bowl, cover it with a towel, and allow it to rise for 10 minutes.
Divide the dough into two equal parts. Divide each half into two equal parts again. Continue to do this until you have 16 equal-sized pieces of dough.
Roll each into a log about 10 inches long and place the logs 2 inches apart on a greased baking sheet.
Bake for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together the melted butter and garlic powder.
After 5 minutes of baking, brush the tops of the breadsticks with half of the garlic butter and return them to oven for an additional 6 to 8 minutes of baking until the tops are golden in color. (The breadsticks will continue to brown more after you pull them out of the oven so don't over-bake them).
Brush the breadsticks with the remaining garlic butter and serve them hot wrapped in a cloth napkin, along with the salad if you made that, or with the soup if you didn't make the salad.
Italian Salad and Dressing
Salad Ingredients: (makes 4 servings)
6 cups of chopped lettuce
2 roma tomatoes - sliced
½ of a purple salad onion - thinly sliced
¼ cup of shredded carrots
½ cup of whole black olives
⅓ cup of shaved or freshly grated Parmesan cheese - add more to taste
1 cup of garlic croutons
6 pepperoncini
Dressing Ingredients: (This looks like enough dressing for two batches of Italian salad)
1.7 ounce Zesty Italian Dressing Mix (or you can make the Zesty dressing mix from scratch [see below]*)
¾ cup of extra virgin olive oil
⅓ cup of white distilled (5%) vinegar
¼ cup of water
1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon of mayonnaise
½ teaspoon of granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
½ teaspoon of salt - or to taste
cracked black pepper - to taste
Directions:
Toss together lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, onions and olives in a large salad serving bowl.
Combine all of the dressing ingredients in a one pint jar, then shake it vigorously.
If you are making the breadsticks then refrigerate the salad, covered, along with the dressing, until you are ready to serve the meal.
Toss the salad vegetables (except the pepperoncini) with the (shaken) dressing just before serving.
Top the salad with freshly grated Parmesan cheese, croutons, and pepperoncini.
Serve the salad.
Enjoy!
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*Zesty Italian Dressing Mix
Ingredients: (makes enough mix for six Olive Garden® tossed salad recipes as shown above)
2 tablespoons of dried oregano
2 tablespoons of dried parsley
2 tablespoons of onion powder
2 tablespoons of garlic powder
2 tablespoons of salt
1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar
2 teaspoons of dried basil
2 teaspoons of ground black pepper
2 teaspoons of paprika
1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon of celery seed
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk them until they are well combined.
Store the mixture in an eight ounce mason jar. Make the lid tight for storage.
Use 2 tablespoons of the mixture in place of 1 package of dry Zesty Italian Seasoning.