Name: Zuppa Toscana
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 1 lb. Italian Sausage ((I prefer Turkey Italian Sausage)); 1 onion, diced; 2 garlic cloves, minced; 2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth or stock; 2 cups water; 1 cup heavy cream or half-n-half ((heavy cream gives the richest flavor)); 3 russet potatoes, scrubbed and 2” diced; 2 cups kale, rough chopped

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This soup was a welcome discovery at Olive Garden many years ago. In fact, Zuppa Toscana is the only soup that I get there. It’s perfection with a little creamy, a little spicy, and even a little healthy with the addition of kale.

Best of all, though, this is a really easy soup to make. You can have it on the table in less than 45 minutes.

If you’re truly pressed for time, use frozen chopped onions, prepared minced garlic, and frozen kale instead of fresh. Preheat your broth and water in the microwave. Between that and eliminating the potatoes, you can turn Zuppa Toscana into a 10 minute soup.

Since fresh kale isn’t a vegetable that I ordinarily keep on hand, I keep frozen kale in the freezer. It an easy way to sneak extra nutrition into soups. If you don’t like the taste of kale, try frozen spinach instead.

For the creamiest Zuppa Toscana, use heavy cream. Although half and half works here, it won’t be quite as rich.

In case you didn’t know, half and half is a mixture of milk and cream. So, it has about 30% less calories than heavy cream.

In this recipe, I usually use Turkey Italian Sausage. That way I feel less guilty about using heavy cream. Any type of sausage works. Just make sure you drain off the fat once the sausage is browned.

Are you ready for some soup?

How to Make Zuppa Toscana

Using a sturdy soup pot or Dutch oven cook the sausage on medium heat.

Break down the sausage into crumbles, uniform in size.

Preparing the soup in a cast iron dutch oven

When the sausage is still pink, but beginning to brown, add the onions and garlic.

Stir, until the vegetables and sausage are mixed together.

Cook for 3-4 minutes, until the onions are translucent.

To speed things along, use this time to heat the broth and water in the microwave.

Add broth and water to the mixture, then add potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Add the lid to your soup pot and simmer for 15 minutes. The potatoes should be fork tender.

Stir in the half and half or cream. Be sure to keep the burner on your lowest setting after adding the cream to prevent it from curdling.

Add the kale 5 minutes before serving Zuppa Toscana.

Here’s The Recipe

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5 from 1 vote

Zuppa Toscana

This my copycat version of Olive Garden's soup. It's full of flavor with potatoes and sausage, yet has kale to balance the richness. To make it lower in fat, use turkey sausage.

Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course, Soup

Cuisine Italian

Keyword 30 minute meals, Dinner, Easy Dinner, gluten-free, Lunch, Main Course, One Pot Meal, Soup

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings servings

Calories 316kcal

Equipment

Soup pot

Ingredients

1 lb. Italian Sausage (I prefer Turkey Italian Sausage)
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth or stock
2 cups water
1 cup heavy cream or half-n-half (heavy cream gives the richest flavor)
3 russet potatoes, scrubbed and 2” diced
2 cups kale, rough chopped

Instructions

Using a heavy stockpot or Dutch oven, brown the Italian sausage, breaking in into smaller pieces. Drain any visible fat.
Add onions and sauté until translucent, 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, 1 minute.
Mix in broth, water, and potatoes. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes, and potatoes are softened.
Stir in cream, keeping your burner on its lowest setting to prevent burning. Add kale and serve.