Creamy vegan gnocchi soup with sausage & kale

Name: Creamy vegan gnocchi soup with sausage and kale
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 1 cup gnocchi (from shelf stable package); 1 1/2 teaspoons avocado oil (divided, or your preferred oil); 2 1/2 cups water (divided (plus extra for boiling gnocchi)); 1/4 cup raw cashews; 1 veggie sausage (sliced. I use a Beyond Meat hot Italian sausage link (roughly 3 ounces of sausage)); 3/4 cup chopped yellow onion; 3 cloves garlic (minced); 1/2 teaspoon dried basil; 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano; 1/2 teaspoon granulated onion; 1 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon, no chicken base (or vegetable bouillon cube); 3 packed cups chopped curly kale (About 3-4 large leaves, with ribs removed); Pinch of salt (or to taste); Pinch of pepper (or to taste)

Published: Jan 26, 2020 · Modified: Mar 9, 2023 by Cadry Nelson
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Creamy vegan gnocchi soup is hearty, warming, and cozy.

It’s loaded with pillowy potato dumplings, savory vegan sausage, softened kale, and a luxurious cashew broth.

Hands holding bowl of roasted gnocchi soup.

Creamy vegan gnocchi soup is maximum coziness.

With a velvety cashew cream base, softened curly kale, savory sausage, and pillowy gnocchi, it’s hearty & comforting all at once.

It’s the kind of food that makes you want to curl up inside of a bowl on a chilly day.

Roasted gnocchi adds texture and satisfying carbs
Veggie sausage is toothsome and savory
Creamy cashew broth adds luxurious body
Kale adds bite & a hit of good-for-you nutrients

In this post:

Jump to:

What is gnocchi?
Is gnocchi vegan?
The magic of roasted gnocchi
What kind of sausage should I use?
Step by step instructions
Make it your own
Storage instructions
📖 Recipe

What is gnocchi?

It is an Italian potato dumpling that’s typically used like pasta.

Is gnocchi vegan?

No and yes.

Homemade gnocchi is usually not vegan. It’s typically made with potato, flour, and egg.

However, it’s easy to find packaged vegan gnocchi in stores.

Plus, you get the bonus of not having to make it from scratch!

Look for packaged gnocchi in the center aisles of the grocery store by other types of pasta.

Sometimes you’ll also find it in the frozen section.

Just read the ingredients, of course.

The magic of roasted gnocchi

Bowl of vegan soup with gnocchi, sausage and kale by floral napkin.

To cook gnocchi, it only has to be boiled. (And it’s much quicker cooking than most types of pasta!)

But for added texture, I love roasting it afterwards. It becomes a little crusty around the edges and has added bite.

Roasted gnocchi is also really nice in this soup, because it gives added oomph.

It almost acts as a soft crouton.

What kind of sausage should I use?

There are loads of plant-based sausages on the market that would be terrific in this soup.

I used Beyond Meat hot Italian.

You can find it with other vegan meats in the refrigerated section at natural grocery stores. Or sometimes it’s kept in the frozen section.

I like to keep Beyond Meat sausages in the freezer, right in their package, with a freezer bag around it.

Then whenever I want one for pasta, soup, air fryer stuffed peppers, or pizza, I remove one sausage.

I quickly bring it to temperature using the thaw function on the microwave.

It’s so handy. And it makes the sausages really last.

For this recipe, one sausage link, like you’d put in a hot dog bun, serves two people as a meal.

(I give other vegan sausage options below in the “make it your own” section.)

Step by step instructions

Here’s how to make this recipe at a glance. For complete ingredient amounts & instructions, keep scrolling to the recipe card below.

Boil gnocchi in water until it floats to the top.

Collage with gnocchi drying on towel and gnocchi on a parchment paper covered baking sheet.

Drain & dry gnocchi on a clean kitchen towel. (It doesn’t roast as nicely if it’s wet.)

Put gnocchi on a parchment paper covered baking sheet, drizzle with oil, and roast for 10 minutes in the oven, stopping once to flip.

While the gnocchi roasts, make cashew cream.

Cashew cream in Vitamix blender pitcher.

In a high-speed blender, combine water with raw cashews until smooth. Then set aside.

(If you don’t have a high-speed blender, check out alternative directions in the notes section of the recipe box!)

Collage with browned Beyond sausage and onions.

Brown slices of vegan sausage in a pot with oil.

Once browned, add onions & garlic to the pot.

Sauté for a few minutes until the onions are translucent and fragrant.

Add seasonings:

Dried basil
Dried oregano
Granulated onion

Sauté for a minute more.

Add water & bouillon. Then bring to a simmer.

Collage with kale in soup + added cashew cream.

Add curly kale to the pot.

It will look like a lot of kale at first. But it will quickly wilt as it comes into contact with the warm broth.

Add reserved cashew cream. Then let all of the flavors intertwine.

Just before serving, add roasted gnocchi, salt, and pepper to the soup.

Make it your own

You can make this soup your own by varying the cooking methods and/or ingredients.

Cook gnocchi in the soup

If you’re short on time, roasting the gnocchi isn’t essential.

You can just drop the shelf-stable potato dumplings into the soup pot during the last five minutes of cooking to heat them.

They will obviously be a lot softer, but the flavors are still exceptional.

Vary the sausage

There are loads of vegan sausages on the market. I used Beyond hot Italian sausage.

However, you could go with any veggie sausage you like.

Impossible sausage or Field Roast apple sage sausage would both be good here.

Prefer a whole foods option? Use Great Northern beans or cannellini beans instead. Sauté the onions & garlic on their own. Then add the beans with the kale.

Replace the kale

If you don’t like kale, replace it with any dark leafy green you like or other sturdy vegetable.

Collard greens or broccoli would work well here.

If you opt for spinach, I recommend adding it at the same time as the roasted gnocchi. Spinach wilts in seconds in hot liquid.

Storage instructions

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep for 3 or 4 days.

The cashew cream may separate a little in the refrigerator. Just give it a stir while reheating.

Reheat the soup in a pot on the stove, or in the microwave.

If the soup has thickened a lot, add another splash of water to bring it to your preferred viscosity.

Be aware that the roasted gnocchi will continue to soak up & soften in the liquid over time. So they will be less toothsome after some time in the fridge.

Hands holding bowl of vegan gnocchi soup.

📖 Recipe

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