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Creamy Zuppa Toscana is a savory Italian soup that is made with potatoes, spicy sausage, bacon, and kale. It is thick, creamy, and delicious and is a must-make soup this fall!
This delicious and creamy Zuppa Toscana soup tastes just like it is from the Olive Garden! If you love copycat recipes from your favorite restaurants, try this Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup (Olive Garden Copycat), These Avocado Egg Rolls (Cheesecake Factory Copycat, or this classic Fuji Apple Chicken Salad (Panera Bread Copycat).
Creamy Zuppa Toscana Soup Recipe
Zuppa Toscana is a deliciously creamy soup that is hearty and filling! I first tried this soup at Olive Garden and you all know how much I love a good copycat recipe that I can make at home! This one is no exception.
In fact, not only can you make this soup at home but you can make it into an entire Olive Garden meal! I have recipes for Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks and also the classic Copycat Olive Garden Salad. So stay at home and save some money. Not only is this a simple recipe to make but I think it’s even better than the original!
Ingredients to Make Zuppa Toscana
This soup is simple to make and doesn’t use a ton of ingredients. Make it on the stove or in a slow cooker (instructions below) and you will be making this over and over this winter season!
- Chicken broth: This adds a lot of flavor to the base of the soup.
- Heavy Cream: Heavy cream is a must to make a heavy, thick base for the soup. It helps soak up the potatoes and adds bold flavoring.
- Italian Sausage: Depending on the sausage that you use, this can have a little bit of a kick. Keep that in mind and get mild Italian sausage if you aren’t crazy about heat.
- Bacon: When combined with the sausage, the bacon is so delicious!
- Russet Potatoes: When you are cutting these into cubes, try to keep them uniform in size. That way, they will cook evenly.
- Onion: The onion adds so much flavor. You can use a white or a yellow onion.
- Garlic Cloves: If you don’t have fresh garlic cloves, then you can use minced garlic. 1/2 teaspoon equals about 1 clove.
- Spinach or Kale: This adds color, texture, and a great flavoring to the Zuppa Toscana soup.
- Salt and Pepper: Just a dash for taste!
How to Make Zuppa Toscana
There are a few steps to take to prepare this Zuppa Tuscana soup but they are simple and let me tell you… this soup is worth every step!
- Cook your meats: Cook and crumble the bacon. Set aside on a plate lined with a paper towel. Cook the sausage and set aside.
- Prepare your potatoes: Skin each potato and slice in half and make about 1/4 inch slices. You can slice these into fourths making the potatoes more bite sized.
- Boil your potatoes: Bring a large pot with the chicken broth to a boil. Boil the potatoes for about 10 minutes or until tender.
- Sauté: While the potatoes are boiling, sauté the onion and garlic until tender and set aside.
- Combine ingredients together: Once potatoes are tender, add sausage, onion, garlic, and chopped spinach to the pot. Boil for a couple of minutes until the spinach starts to wilt. Reduce heat and add heavy cream.
- Cook: Finish by cooking until heated through and add salt and pepper to taste.
How to Make Zuppa Toscana in a Slow Cooker
This soup is so simple to make in a crockpot. It doesn’t take long to cook on the stove, but it is nice to have another option for busy days.
- Brown the Meat: Cook and crumble the bacon. Set aside on a plate lined with a paper towel. Cook the sausage and set aside.
- Prepare your Potatoes: Skin each potato, slice it in half, and make about 1/4 inch slices. You can slice these into fourths, making the potatoes more bite-sized.
- Boil your potatoes: Bring a large pot with the chicken broth to a boil. Boil the potatoes for about 10 minutes or until tender.
- Sauté: While the potatoes are boiling, sauté the onion and garlic until tender and set aside.
- Combine ingredients together: Once potatoes are tender, add sausage, onion, and garlic to the slow cooker.
- Cook: Cook on high for about 3 to 4 hours or low for about 5 to 6 hours.
- Last 30 Minutes: Add the kale or spinach to your slow cooker.
Tips for Making Homemade Soup
I love Zuppa Toscana just the way it is but here are a few changes that I use in a pinch:
- Substitute for Heavy Cream: The heavy cream gives this soup a lot of flavoring, but if you don’t have any on hand, you can try substitutes! Instead of using heavy cream, you can use half and half or 1 cup of milk with three tablespoons of cornstarch whisked in.
- Add More Veggies: If you like more vegetables, Try adding in some carrots or corn.
- Can I use Spinach Instead? Yes! You can use spinach or kale in this Zuppa Toscana Soup.
- Add Heat: If you add in a dash of red pepper flakes, the spiciness of this recipe will be taken up a notch!
Storing Leftovers
This delicious Zuppa Toscana soup makes the perfect leftovers!
- In the Refrigerator: prepare and make this soup as instructed. Once it has cooled, place it in an airtight container or ziplock bag. It will last in your fridge for 2 to 3 days.
- Freezer: If you plan on freezing this soup, I recommend leaving out the potatoes and kale and adding that in just before serving. Cook the soup (without the potatoes and kale) and store the soup in a ziplock bag (don’t forget to label it with the date!) for about one month.
- To Reheat: If you are reheating from frozen, thaw the soup overnight in the freezer. Just before serving, add in cooked potatoes and kale and cook on the stove over medium-low heat. Once the kale starts to wilt, it’s ready to serve.
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Creamy Zuppa Toscana Soup
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound bacon
- 3 cans (14 ounces) Chicken broth
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 lb Italian Sausage
- 4 russet potatoes
- 1 medium onion diced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 2 1/2 cups kale or chopped spinach
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the bacon for 5 minutes and crumble it. Set aside on a plate lined with a paper towel. Cook the sausage and set aside.
- Skin each potato, and slice it in half, and make about ¼ in slices. (You can slice these into fourths making the potatoes more bite-sized.)
- Bring a large pot with the chicken broth to a boil. Boil the potatoes for about 10 minutes or until tender.
- While the potatoes boil, saute the onion and garlic for about 5-7 minutes or until tender and set aside.
- Once potatoes are tender, add sausage, onion, garlic, bacon, and chopped spinach to the pot. Boil for 2-3 minutes until the spinach starts to wilt. Reduce heat and add heavy cream.
- Cook for 10 minutes or until heated through, and add salt and pepper to taste.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
For slow cooker version it does not say when to add the heavy cream?
AAdd that in with all of the ingredients. The only thing you leave out until the end is the kale.
Loved this soup . I tried making this tonight as I wanted to expand my repertoire of soups and I certainly wasn’t disappointed . My husband is extremely reserved re new recipes but even he enjoyed it !!
Such a great core recipe. It is close to one I have used for years. I always add red pepper flakes. You can put lots of different veggies in. We love mushrooms and sometimes substitute cauliflower for potatoes.
Love the soup. I’ve made it often. But how in the world do you figure 20 minutes prep time?
Most of the prep times on recipes are wayyyy miscalculated.
I agree! The prep time says 20 minutes but just peeling, chopping and boiling the potatoes will take longer than that.
I made this. Added the carrots and corn and I also added a block of cream cheese!!! It was so good. Thanks for the recipe.karen
I made this for the family every one really liked it. I added mushrooms
I made this for a church ladies lunch today. It was delicious. Everyone enjoyed it! I used 2 packs frozen spinach and added more chicken broth, along with some Greek seasoning and red pepper flakes. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
I have a question. The soup is really delicious, but I noticed the liquid was very “liquidey”. I followed the recipe exactly. Would it make a difference if I mixed in a little flour with a small amout of the heavy cream and added it to the main soup to make it a little thicker? Would appreciate an answer. Thanks.
That is a great idea! Hope that helps!
maybe make a little roux with the bacon grease ?
I MAKE THIS SAME RECIPE BUT I ADD WHITE KIDNEY BEANS TO MINE AND I DOUBLE THE MEAT AND KALE MAKE THIS SOUP OFTEN THE WHOLE FAMILY LOVES ITS
I make Zuppa at home as well! Its pretty much the same but I leave the skins on my potatoes and slice them super thin and cook them in the broth with the onions and garlic. Then I add everything else once the potatoes are cooked. SO YUMMY I could literally eat the whole pot. My favorite fall/winter soup.
Would love to make this recipe but am allergic to tomatoes and need a substitute.
Do you have a recommendation on what I can use instead of tomato paste.
Thank you,
No tomato in THIS recipe…
Super bomb!!!! The flavor is so delicious!!!
I made this last night and it is super delicious! We almost couldn’t stop eating it! Made it just as the recipe indicates, didn’t change a thing and would make it the same way again. Yum!!!
Just a few tweaks. I put cutup cooked bacon, I don’t like it too crunchy. I had Italian sausage links that I uncased and broke up into meatball size instead of ground. Added a half spoon of old bay with the salt and pepper. The soup was so delish. Will definitely make again!
I added 3 large sliced carrots with the potatoes. Otherwise followed the recipe exactly. It was really good, better than I’ve ever had in a restaurant. Thank you!
regarding freezing this soup. You could take out the amount you want to freeze before adding the heavy cream 🙂 this soup is fantastic! I will sometimes use spicy Italian sausage or add a little Aleppo pepper flakes for a nice heat