Zuppa Toscana Soup Recipe
Enjoy our copycat recipe of Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana, prepared either in the Instant Pot or on the stovetop for a delicious, creamy soup.
Serving6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 pound Italian sausage, casings removed
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, add more for additional heat
- 6 cups chicken broth, divided
- 3 large Russet potatoes, halved and cut into 1/4" slices
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 cups kale, stems removed and roughly chopped
- 6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
Equipment
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions
- Press the SAUTE button. Add the oil to the inner cooking pot. When the pot is hot, add the onion and sausage and sauté for 5 minutes, breaking up the sausage. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and mix.
- Add in 2 cups of chicken broth and stir to release any onion pieces that may have stuck to the bottom. Stir in the potatoes. Add in remaining chicken broth. Season with salt and pepper.
- Place the lid on top and lock into place. Turn the valve to SEALING. Select MANUAL (or Pressure Cook). Set the time for 15 minutes.
- When cooking ends, carefully turn the valve to VENTING for a quick release of the pressure.
- Unlock and remove the lid, then stir in the cream. Heat through, then stir in the kale and the bacon.
Stovetop Instructions
- Heat saucepan over medium-high heat. Crumble sausage into 1-inch pieces and add to saucepan.
- Cook sausage, stirring occasionally until cooked through.
- Drain sausage onto a plate or baking dish lined with paper towels, set sausage aside.
- Add diced bacon and chopped onion to saucepan and saute mixture until bacon is cooked through and onions are translucent, about 3 – 5 minutes longer.
- Add chicken broth, water, sliced potatoes, garlic, and salt and pepper.
- Bring soup just to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low and stir in cooked sausage.
- Cover saucepan and simmer, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are nearly tender, about 10 – 15 minutes.
- Add in kale then simmer until potatoes are soft and kale is tender, about 5 – 10 minutes longer.
- Stir in heavy cream and warm through.
- Add in kale then simmer until potatoes are soft and kale is tender, about 5 – 10 minutes longer.
- Serve warm topped with Parmesan cheese.
Notes
- To customize this recipe, you can use your favorite type of sausage, such as turkey sausage, spicy sausage, hot Italian sausage, mild Italian sausage, pork sausage, or spicy Italian sausage.
- We highly recommend cooking your meat separately to keep out the extra grease. This step allows you to remove the excess oil.
- For a short cut, you can use bacon bits.
- If you want to change up the seasoning we suggest adding Italian seasoning to this recipe.
- The heavy cream will give you a creamy broth, but you can switch that out for coconut cream. Don't forget to top your tuscan soup with parmesan cheese!
- If you are looking for a few healthier alternatives, I recommend adding turkey sausage instead of Italian beef or pork sausage. You can also substitute the bacon with turkey bacon. It does cook a little differently so read the instructions on how to prepare it.
- You could also add your favorite vegetables, not on the ingredients list, in the recipe. I love adding carrots and zucchini to mine.
Nutrition
Calories: 606 kcal · Carbohydrates: 40 g · Protein: 18 g · Fat: 43 g · Saturated Fat: 19 g · Cholesterol: 113 mg · Sodium: 1449 mg · Potassium: 1315 mg · Fiber: 3 g · Sugar: 2 g · Vitamin A: 2839 IU · Vitamin C: 57 mg · Calcium: 117 mg · Iron: 3 mg