Comfort From Olive Garden - Chicken Gnocchi Soup & Crusty Bread

The flu has a way of shrinking the world. My calendar clears itself, my to-do list loses its authority, and my body asks for only a few simple things: warmth, quiet, and something gentle enough to eat without thinking about it too much.

A few days ago, before I started feeling poorly, I had lunch with a friend at Olive Garden. My lunch was forgettable, but a bowl of chicken and gnocchi soup arrived for my friend, steaming and creamy, smelling wonderful and making me absolutely jealous.

When you’re sick, memory becomes its own ingredient. The smell of that soup stayed with me not because it was extraordinary - I hadn’t even tasted it -  but because I imagined how good it could be. Soft pillows of gnocchi, tender chicken, herbs folded in gently.

At home now, box of tissues nearby and the kettle working overtime, that lunch came back to me. So I made my own version. Not a copy meant to compete, but something that came together in minutes and gave me the comfort I was looking for so I could return to my bed and the five blankets piled on top of me.

And because soup like that asks for bread, I made the easiest kind. The kind that requires no kneading, no muscle, no persuasion. Just time, heat, and trust. The reward is a crackling crust and a soft interior, perfect for tearing, dipping, and lingering.

INGREDIENTS

3 to 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and diced

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 white onion, diced

2 teaspoons minced garlic

½ cup shredded carrots

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon thyme

16 ounces potato gnocchi

2 cups half-and-half

1 handful fresh basil, roughly chopped

Parmesan cheese, optional

METHOD

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add celery, onion, garlic, and carrots and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, until onions are translucent.

Add chicken, chicken broth, salt, pepper, and thyme. Bring to a boil, then gently stir in gnocchi. Boil for 3 to 4 minutes before reducing heat to a simmer and cooking for an additional 10 minutes. Cooking the pasta this way infuses flavor into the gnocchi, and the starch released into the broth eliminates the need for any thickeners.

Stir in half-and-half and basil and cook another 1 to 2 minutes, until basil is tender. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve with Parmesan, if desired.

And to finish off the comfort, make this really easy, crusty bread.

INGREDIENTS

Please measure the flour in grams.

3 cups (450 g) all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1½ cups (375 ml) very warm tap water, about 125 to 130 degrees

1½ tablespoons flour for dusting

METHOD

Mix flour, yeast, and salt in a large bowl. Add water and use the handle of a wooden spoon to stir until all the flour is incorporated. The dough will be wet and sloppy, not kneadable, but not runny like cake batter.

Cover with plastic wrap or a plate and leave on the counter for 2 to 3 hours, until doubled in volume. If after one hour it does not seem to be rising, move it somewhere warmer.

Place a Dutch oven with its lid into a 450-degree oven at least 30 minutes before baking.

Lay a piece of parchment paper on the counter and sprinkle with ½ tablespoon flour. Dump the dough onto the paper and fold it into itself five or six times to form a rough round. Do not be meticulous.

Carefully remove the piping-hot Dutch oven from the oven. Using the parchment, lower the dough into the pot and cover with the lid.

Bake for 30 minutes covered, then 12 minutes uncovered, until deeply golden and crisp. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes before slicing.

Cooking while sick is different. It’s less about nourishment in the nutritional sense and more about reassurance. The act itself becomes restorative. Steam fogs the windows. The house smells like something is being looked after. May you enjoy the comfort, but without the flu this season.