Creamy Vegan Gnocchi Soup
Creamy gnocchi soup with vegan sausage and kale. This simple and healthy vegan gnocchi soup is delicious and perfect for chilly evenings.
There are currently a few inches of snow on the ground outside my office window as I type this, which can only mean one thing– soup season is in full swing! I’m fairly certain we at soup at least 2-3x a week during months like this. Who wants a big salad when temperatures are in the teens!? No thanks, give me a big bowl of this vegan gnocchi soup instead.
This recipe is inspired by zuppa toscana, which has also inspired my sausage, spinach and potato soup. You all love that potato soup recipe, so I decided to make a different version with coconut milk and pillowy gnocchi in place of the hearty potatoes. I’ve clearly got a thing for spicy vegan sausage, creamy broth, and hearty greens, like kale.
Unlike some soup recipes, this one is weeknight-friendly. You only need a handful of ingredients and because the gnocchi takes only minutes to cook through, it is ready in 40 minutes.
Everything You Need to Make This:
Key Ingredients
- Vegan sausage
- Onion
- Celery
- Dried spices, like oregano, basil and crushed red pepper
- Dried gnocchi
- Vegetable broth
- Kale
- Coconut milk
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
You can use any vegan sausage that you like. I typically use field roast or Beyond in other recipes, (like my vegan rigatoni pasta or my sheet pan skillet dinner) but any will work. If you prefer to not use a vegan sausage, then I’d recommend my tempeh sausage crumbles or my tempeh bacon. You want something meaty for this recipe, so I don’t recommend removing it.
Coconut milk is key for the creaminess of this soup. I prefer full-fat canned coconut milk, but light coconut milk will also work. I don’t recommend using a coconut milk beverage, like that found in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. You can also use a vegan creamer, but I recommend a smaller amount to taste, about 3-4 tablespoons depending on the heft of the creamer.
I prefer Tuscan-style kale for this recipe (and most of my kale soup recipes) but you can use curly kale instead. The key is to finely chop the kale before adding it to the soup; this reduces the bitterness of the kale and also makes for a more pleasant bite.
How to Make this Creamy Gnocchi Soup
Cook the sausage
As vegan sausage can get too soft if cooked for too long, I recommend browning it first in the soup pot and then removing it to add in at the end.
Sauté the aromatics
I kept this gnocchi soup recipe fairly simple. All you need is onion, garlic, and celery. Cook until softened.
Add in the rest of the ingredients
Stir in the broth, gnocchi, and kale, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the gnocchi is cooked through.
Finish and enjoy!
Add in the cooked sausage, then remove from heat and add in the coconut milk. I also like to add in some vegan parmesan cheese, either my homemade recipe or store-bought.
Tips for Success
As the sausage is such a big part of this recipe, make sure that you are choosing a brand that you love the taste of. You’ll want to brown this first, then remove before cooking the rest of the ingredients.
Packaged, vacuum-sealed gnocchi is best for this recipe. I don’t recommend frozen gnocchi for this soup as it can be too gummy. However, you can use mini gnocchi if you find it, or even gluten-free gnocchi if you need this recipe to be gluten-free.
Frequently Asked Questions
I’m partial to field roast or Beyond sausage, but I’ve made this with Impossible sausage. You need to choose whatever sausage you like the taste of for this soup recipe. The only downside with meat alternatives is that they tend to be higher in sodium, but as a dietitian, I don’t have any issues including them in my overall nutritious diet a few times a week.
As I often get questions related to the health benefits of fake-meat, I highly recommend reading this SWAP-MEAT trial from Stanford researchers which demonstrated that compared to organic, grass-fed meat, the plant meats improved several cardiovascular disease risk factors.
As with other noodle soup recipes, the gnocchi can get soft the longer this soup sits. I recommend enjoying it right away, or you can freeze the leftovers.
We usually serve this one with my Instant-Pot bread (the perfect shortcut for homemade crusty bread) or a simple side salad, like my house salad.
More Vegan Soup Recipes:
- Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
- Slow Cooker Taco Soup
- Vegan Salsa Verde Soup
- Red Lentil Soup
- Vegan Black Bean Soup
More Gnocchi Recipes:
- Spring Vegetable Gnocchi
- Homemade Gnocchi with Wild Mushroom Ragu
- Balsamic Mushroom Gnocchi
- Gnocchi with Roasted Cauliflower and Lemon
- Green Pesto Gnocchi Soup
If you make this creamy gnocchi soup, make sure to come back to leave a rating and a comment. Your feedback helps other readers and seeing you make my recipes makes my day.
Creamy Vegan Gnocchi Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2-3 spicy vegan Italian sausages, diced (like Beyond, Field Roast or Impossible)
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, grated
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 24 ounce package gnocchi
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 4 cups finely chopped Tuscan kale
- 2/3 cup full-fat coconut milk
- ¼ cup vegan parm cheese, if desired
- Splash lemon juice, optional
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the sausages and saute until browned, about 10 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Add in the onion, celery, and a pinch of salt and cook until vegetables are softened about 8-10 minutes. If vegetables are sticking, add a little more olive oil.Â
- Add the garlic cloves, seasonings, red pepper flakes and cook another minute until just fragrant. Add the gnocchi, kale, and vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until gnocchi is softened, about 5-10 minutes. Stir in the cooked sausage.Â
- Remove from heat and stir in the coconut milk and parmesan cheese.
- Season to taste, adding more salt/fresh pepper as desired. Add in the splash of lemon juice (optional– but I think it brightens the soup!)