Zuppa Toscana

This is my favorite soup at Olive Garden.  It's seriously delicious!  One thing I found in making it, if you like really spicy soup, use the hot Italian sausage.  I was a little too much for me right now.  My kids really enjoyed the flavor but not the spice. They even ate the kale! Next time I think I will make it with the mild stuff. Just a heads up for ya. 

Also, I didn't have cream or chicken broth on hand.  I made the broth out of chicken bullion and substituted cream for 1/2 and 1/2. I also added a little extra half and half to make up for the lack of heavy cream. 

I read the instructions wrong and just left the meat in the pot from the beginning.  It broke the meat down into very small pieces but I don't mind that.  It actually married the flavors really well by doing that. You can also just add it back at the end if you like.

Zuppa Toscana



Yields 8-10 servings

1 lb ground Italian sausage
1 large white onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, pureed
10 cups chicken broth
1 pound (about 3 large) Russet potatoes, sliced into disks
1 cup heavy cream (I used 1 1/2 cups of 1/2 and 1/2)
1/4 of a bunch (about 3-4 cups) kale, torn into bite sized pieces
Salt and pepper, to taste

In a large soup pot, sauté together the ground sausage until the meat is browned. (drain fat if desired. I sauteed the onions and garlic with it. )When meat is almost cooked through, sauté the onions and garlic until softened, about 10 to 15 minutes. Add the chicken broth and heat until boiling. Add the sliced potatoes, cover, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the cream and kale and cook until heated thoroughly.

recipe adapted from The Pastry Affair