Olive Garden Chicken and Gnocchi Soup

Ingredients
1 cup chicken breasts, cooked and diced (you can use a rotisserie chicken)
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
1 quart half and half (or milk)
1 14 ounce can chicken broth
1/2 cup celery, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup carrots, finely shredded
1 cup onion, finely diced
1 cup fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon extra virgin oil
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon parsley
Freshly grated parmesan cheese – optional
1 pound potato gnocchi
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Sauté the onion, celery, and garlic in the butter and olive oil, when the onion becomes translucent, add the flour, and make a roux, let the butter and flour mixture cook for about a minute before adding 1 quart of half and half. Cook gnocchi according to package directions. Into the roux add in the carrots and chicken. Once the mixture becomes thick add the chicken broth. Once the mixture thickens again, add the cooked gnocchi, spinach, and seasonings.

Notes: Delicious.  Brittany found this recipe on Copykat Recipes.  We found gnocchi in the pasta section in a vacuum-sealed package, but we've also seen it in the frozen section before and Copykat Recipes suggests looking in the gourmet section.