Meatless Monday- Comforting Basil Gnocci Soup Recipe - Kat Balog (2024)

I’ve been on a real soup tear recently- I’ve had the worst case of walking pneumonia that knocked me out for three solid weeks. So soup has been on my mind much more than usual. A comforting vegetarian chicken-style soup seemed like the best possible idea once I recovered enough to cook a little. I craved basil pretty heavily too, since I’m missing summer time and my favorite summer herb. I put together this simple soup that’s easy to cook and amazingly delicious after just a short 30 minute simmer. The No-Chicken Bullion does a lot of the ‘heavy lifting’ when it comes to the flavor here, but the addition of the garlic, onion and basil really take it up a notch.

It’s a really simple soup- easy to assemble, quick to cook, and oh so flavorful.

Ingredients:

8-10 cups water and Better than Bullion No-Chicken Base; or same amount of vegetable broth
1/2 a large white or yellow onion, finely chopped (I used my food processor)
4-5 ribs of celery, trimmed and chopped
3 large carrots or a handful of baby carrots, chopped small
Greens from 4 ribs of celery, very finely chopped
4-5 cloves garlic, finely minced
Gnocci, white or whole wheat, 12 ounces pre-prepared (I used Aldi’s, they’re delicious)
1-2 packages vegan ‘chicken’ (I used Gardein), chopped small
1/2 can of full fat Coconut Milk
Salt, Pepper, and Dried Basil to taste
2T Corn Starch

Add first six ingredients to a large stockpot and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, add the gnocci, vegan ‘chicken’, coconut milk, and remaining seasonings. Bring back to a gentle simmer. Take approx. 1/2 a cup of the broth from the stockpot and whisk in the 2T corn starch until fully incorporated. Add this mixture back to the stockpot to thicken the broth. Continue to simmer the soup for around a half an hour- this will allow the gnocci to plump up and the flavors to blend well.

Garnish with extra basil if desired and serve!