A delicious, warm and comforting Italian Meatball & Gnocchi Soup recipe. A super easy family meal made in the slow cooker. Minimum effort, maximum taste!
Autumn has most definitely kicked in here in the UK and although I am a little sad to see the back of warm sunny days, I have to admit I’m quite excited about getting back into the swing of making warm comforting family meals!
Today’s recipe for this Slow Cooker Meatball & Gnocchi Soup certainly ticks the warm and comforting box!
A delicious combination of meatballs and gnocchi in the classic flavours of an Italian soup all cooked together in the slow cooker.
A lot of my favourite comfort food recipes come from the slow cooker (or crock pot) and this is definitely one of them.
Why is this Italian Meatball Soup Recipe so good?
Simple Ingredients & Minimal Preparation
This hearty soup requires hard any prep work and uses only simple ingredients that you’ll be able to pick up easily from your local supermarket or grocery store.
Perfect For Busy Families
For busy families this recipe is ideal. Simply throw all the ingredients into the slow cooker (no frying needed), leave to cook for several hours and then add the gnocchi towards the end. It couldn’t be any easier!
A Complete Meal
Because this soup contains meatballs, veggies and gnocchi it’s a really hearty meal perfect for filling up small and large tummy’s on a cold day!
What are the best meatballs to use for this slow cooker soup?
Because I wanted to keep this recipe super easy and quick to prep, I haven’t used homemade meatballs. But that’s not to say that you can’t! Feel free to use homemade if you like to make your own!
But for busy nights, any shop bought uncooked meatballs will work just as well! Frozen meatballs are also very tasty although you may have to adjust the cooking time slightly.
If you wanted to make this recipe a little bit healthier then you could also try using turkey meatballs which now seem to be available in most large supermarkets.
Or you could even try a plant based meatball for a vegetarian take on my recipe.
What should I serve with this slow cooker meatball soup?
The great thing about this recipe is that it is really filling so it doesn’t really need anything extra other than the parmesan cheese and basil garnish.
BUT you can’t beat dinner rolls alongside a big bowl of soup or even a nice big chunk of crusty bread!
How do I store any leftovers?
In the event that you do have any leftovers from this delicious lunch or dinner, the soup will keep in a airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat until fully warmed through in either the microwave or on the hob.
Other Family Recipes you might like
We’ve loads of other great recipes that you might enjoy like this Slow Cooker Spaghetti Meatballs with Hidden Veg Sauce
Or this Slow Cooker Sun Dried Tomato Chicken & Pasta
My whole family all loved this recipe and I can see it being a permanent fixture on our meal planning this winter! If you try this recipe please do let me know what you think.
Or tag me in a picture on Instagram. I’d love to see your pictures!
ORDER my new book THE FUSS-FREE FAMILY COOKBOOK out now. 100 healthy easy and quick recipes that the whole family will enjoy!
Slow Cooker Italian Meatball & Gnocchi Soup
Prep Time: 5 mins- Cook Time: 5 hours
- Total Time: 5 hours 5 minutes
Yield: 4 1x
Category: Main Meal
Method: Slow Cooker
Cuisine: Italian
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Pin RecipeDescription
A delicious, warm and comforting Italian Meatball & Gnocchi Soup recipe. A super easy family meal made in the slow cooker. Minimum effort, maximum taste!
Ingredients
- 12 uncooked beef meatballs
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 3 carrots, finely chopped
- 2 celery stalks, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 cans of chopped tomatoes
- 600ml / 2.5 cups vegetable or chicken stock
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 1 tsp dried Italian herbs or oregano
- 500g / 1 lb gnocchi
- To garnish: grated parmesan and fresh basil
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients except the gnocchi, parmesan and basil in a slow cooker and cook on high for 3.5 hours or low for 5 hours.
- Add the gnocchi and cook on low for another 1 hour or on high for 30 minutes. If the soup appears too thick then add a little extra stock or water.
- Serve immediately garnished with grated parmesan and fresh basil leaves.
Slow Cooker Mac & Cheese
Isi says
Hello!
I tried this recipe tonight and absolutely loved it! Quick and easy and really delicious!
I had some things in my cupboard that I wanted to get rid of so I modified your recipe as follows:
Used only 1 can of tomatoes, but used tomatoes al arrabiata, which gave it some extra spice.
To make up for the missing can of tomatoes, I also used one jar Dolmino’s bolognese sauce and then left out the tomato puree.
I also happened to have gnocchi with green pesto filling that added an extra bit of flavour to it. I’ll try it with “normal” gnocchi next time to see how that works but just wanted to share these slight modifications in case anyone would like to try that. I just happened to have the tomatoes and sauce on hand and wanted to use them up.
Thank you for this fantastic recipe, I’ll definitely be making it again!
★★★★★
Kristi says
What size of tomato cans?
Ciara Attwell says
400g
Emma says
This looks delicious. Do you think it would work with low sodium stock without losing too much flavour?
Ciara Attwell says
You can definitely use low sodium stock. I use them all the time!
Georgia says
Another fab slow cooker recipe Ciara. This is filling and comforting too.
★★★★★
Rachael says
This looks so good!!! Can this be cooked on the stove instead of in the crockpot? Or could I cook it in the crockpot the night before then reheat to eat?
Ciara Attwell says
Hi Rachael, either is fine. You can cook it on the stove on a very low heat. Or in the crockpot the night before and reheated is good too!
Gargi says
Is there a way I can make it vegetarian?
Ciara Attwell says
Yeah sure, just use veggie meatballs or you could leave them out altogether!
Kawn says
Oh we love Gnocchi, I have to try this recipe. love your images they look so cozy and comforting i feel i just want to put in a big oversized warm sweater and sit and eat this.
★★★★★
Ciara Attwell says
Thanks Kawn, if you try it let me know what you think!