Zuppa Toscana

Zuppa Toscana Soup is a copycat version of the Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana soup that is perfect for a chilly night. Made with sausage, bacon, potatoes, and kale…this Zuppa Toscana copycat is a hearty soup that is perfect for dinner.

ZUPPA TOSCANA SOUP

Apparently it’s really cold and snowy everywhere in the country while we are sweating our cakes off here in Florida. I can’t say that I miss the cold. I grew up in Arizona and never even owned a real coat until college.

In college, when it would snow I would try as hard as I could to not go anywhere. I managed to slide my car off the road a couple of times and was traumatized by it. I can’t even walk in the cold. I’m like Bambi on ice.

But there are a couple of things that I love about the cold. I love snowboarding and I love curling up with a warm hearty soup that takes the chill out of your bones.

Start off by browning the sausage with the crushed red pepper flakes until no longer pink.

Add some broth and your sliced potatoes.

Add your broth and boil the potatoes until soft. Add some heavy cream, kale, and simmer. 

If you’ve ever been to Olive Garden you’ll recognize this soup. It’s a Zuppa Toscana copycat. It’s spicy, filling, and full of flavor. Forget the restaurant soup, this is just as good if not better.

HOW TO MAKE ZUPPA TOSCANA

1. Cook the Italian sausage and red pepper flakes in a Dutch oven (or large pot with a lid) over medium-high heat until crumbly, browned, and no longer pink, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain, remove from pan, and set aside. The purpose of removing it from the pan is to not boil it in the broth.

2. Add the bacon and cook until browned. Remove from pan and set aside for later.

3. Add the onions and garlic the the same Dutch oven; cook until onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.

4. Pour the chicken broth into the Dutch oven with the onion mixture; bring to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes, and boil until fork tender, about 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the heavy cream and the cooked sausage; heat through. Mix the kale and bacon into the soup a couple of minutes before serving.

OTHER SOUP RECIPES:

• Panera’s Broccoli Cheese Soup
• Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
• Cauliflower Soup
• Creamy Potato Soup
• Easy Tomato Soup
• Chicken Tortilla Soup
• Slow Cooker Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup
• Chicken Taco Soup
• Egg Drop Soup

Print

4.67 from 9 votes

Yield: 8 -10 servings

Zuppa Toscana

Prep Time:

10 mins

Cook Time:

35 mins

Total Time:

45 mins

Zuppa Toscana Soup - a copycat version of the Olive Garden soup that is perfect for a chilly night. Made with sausage, bacon, potatoes, and kale...it's a hearty soup that is perfect for dinner.

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground Italian sausage
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (more to taste)
• 6 slices bacon, cooked and cut into pieces
• 1/2 large onion, diced
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 8 cups chicken broth (I like better than Bouillon chicken base)
• 3-4 medium potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced (see Note)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 5 cups kale, coarsley chopped (spinach can be substituted)

Instructions

1. Cook the Italian sausage and red pepper flakes in a Dutch oven (or large pot with a lid) over medium-high heat until crumbly, browned, and no longer pink, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain, remove from pan, and set aside. The purpose of removing it from the pan is to not boil it in the broth.

2. Add the bacon and cook until browned. Remove from pan and set aside for later.

3. Add the onions and garlic the the same Dutch oven; cook until onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.

4. Pour the chicken broth into the Dutch oven with the onion mixture; bring to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes, and boil until fork tender, about 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the heavy cream and the cooked sausage; heat through. Mix the kale and bacon into the soup a couple of minutes before serving.

Recipe Notes

You can control the thickness of the soup by the amount of potatoes you put in it. The original soup isn't extremely thick but is chunky.

Source: adapted from Allrecipes

Author: Christy Denney

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Olive Garden copycat soup, zuppa toscana, zuppa toscana recipe