Zuppa Toscana is lightened- up using poultry sausage then filled with creamy russet potatoes and hearty kale. This Olive Garden copycat recipe is perfect for rainy fall day!
I know I have mention before that, along time ago in another life, I worked as a waitress at the Olive Garden. Those were fun times filled with lots of salad, bread sticks, and yummy Zuppa Toscana.
If you never tried Zuppa Toscana from the Olive Garden then you’re missing out! It is filled with Italian sausage, potatoes, kale, butter, cream, and I am sure other yummy ingredients. It is soooooo good and I used to love sopping it up with breadsticks. If you haven’t guessed already, I wasn’t exactly health conscious back then.
When I first started to prepare this recipe it was not my intention to make a Olive Garden copycat Zuppa Toscana. I originally planned on making a slow cooker sausage and kale soup I found in one of my cookbooks. But I didn’t have time for a slow cooker recipe so I decided to make it on the stove. I also wanted to change it up a bit and add potatoes for richness, some milk for creaminess, and I substituted poultry Italian sausage. And that, my friends, is how this delicious lightened-up Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana recipe was born.
Anyway, I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but I was blown away when I took a taste of this Zuppa Toscana. It’s delicious and tasted almost exactly like the Olive Garden’s.
Honestly, in all the soups I’ve made I can easily say this is one of my favorites. It’s really good. The flavors of the sausage, onion, garlic, and spices are great. I added a ½ teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes. This gives it a nice kick. If you’re using a hot sausage you might not need it. But if you like it spicy then throw it in. Instead of cream or half and half I decided to just use 1% milk – mostly because that is what I had on hand. It leant the perfect amount of creaminess to this soup.
You will get about 7 servings from this batch of Zuppa Toscana. We had 2 bowls then I put the rest in 16-ounce mason jar containers for lunches and/or dinners this week. You can freeze them but if you do leave about 1 inch of room to allow for expansion. Then let thaw in the refrigerator and warm up on stove or in microwave.
I hope you give this Zuppa Toscana recipe a taste because it is perfect especially for those of you who are living in a city – like Buffalo – where the winter just won’t quit.
Here are some of my other favorite soup recipes:
Healthy Stuffed Pepper Soup Recipe
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound of ground turkey (or poultry) Italian sausage (or 6 links casings removed)
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 6 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 4 medium russet potatoes, skinned, thickly sliced, and quartered
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups 1% milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3-4 cups chopped kale
- Heat olive oil in medium to large soup pot and cook italian sausage until no longer pink. Break apart and crumble as it cooks.
- Add to sausage the onion, garlic, basil, oregano, and thyme. Cook for 5 minutes or until the onion and garlic start to soften.
- Add in potatoes, chicken broth, and milk. Cook until potatoes are soft. About 25 to 30 minutes. Give it a taste then add in the salt.
- Stir in the kale and cook for another 15 minutes or until kale is tender. Serve hot.
This soup can be made ahead completely then frozen in individual containers. Thaw in refrigerator then warm up on stove or microwave.
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Sharyn says
March 3, 2014 at 4:36 pmAm I missing something on the nutritional info? It doesn’t have calories? I can’t wait to make it, though!
Tammy says
March 3, 2014 at 8:49 pmJust fixed it. Sorry.
Deborah says
January 13, 2015 at 5:20 pmdo you have the sodium count on this?
Lynn says
November 15, 2015 at 7:46 pmNutrition Information
Serving size: 1/7 of recipe Calories: 316 Fat: 11 Carbohydrates: 34 Fiber: 3 Protein: 20
William says
January 16, 2016 at 5:34 pmNutrition Information
Serving size: 1/7 of recipe Calories: 316 Fat: 11 Carbohydrates: 34 Fiber: 3 Protein: 20
Cecily Olson says
March 3, 2014 at 5:10 pmWill the potatoes freeze okay with this recipe? I have read that they typically don’t freeze well?
My husband is dying for me to try this!!
Tammy says
March 3, 2014 at 8:49 pmYes only raw potatoes have issues freezing. try this recipe. You will love it – and so will hubs 🙂
Cecily Olson says
March 3, 2014 at 9:35 pmYay!! So excited 🙂 thank you!
Tria says
March 4, 2014 at 11:44 amSuper recipe Kale is the latest in thing.
rachael morcio says
March 4, 2014 at 11:58 amAbsolutely delicious!!! Thank you
Roberta Davis says
March 9, 2014 at 12:09 pmThe recipe reads 7 servings, but how much is a serving? Is it a cup, two cups? I want to use the nutrition information but need to know the portion size. Thanks for all you do! Can’t wait to try this.
Georgianne Watling says
September 20, 2015 at 10:09 amHi. I was looking for kale recipes and came upon your website.
Tried the kale soup last nite and it was delicious and easy to make. I will definitely be trying some more of your recipes!!
PS funny thing is I am from Buffalo!
Tammy Kresge says
September 21, 2015 at 11:30 amAwesome!! Love my fellow buffalonians!
Melissa says
March 20, 2014 at 11:45 amcan we substitute spinach?
Mary Beth says
April 7, 2016 at 12:47 pmHave done that with success, as my family does not care for kale.
Nancy says
April 14, 2014 at 5:03 pmSo delish. Thanks for sharing!
Julie says
April 16, 2014 at 5:24 pmI made this last night and my hubby and I both love it! There wasn’t any left to freeze. Next time I will double the recipe and have some to freeze. Thank you for the good healthy recipe!
Marissa says
April 23, 2014 at 9:12 pmReally great. My boyfriend wanted us to try to make his favorite Olive Garden soup, and I was hoping to find a recipe that used milk instead of cream. This recipe was perfect. We used lean pork sausage instead turkey. Great flavors, loved the texture of the broth.
Mary says
May 21, 2014 at 7:40 pmVery good. I would add note not to worry about exact amounts, etc. I added more broth and only one c 2% milk (all I had). Simmered only five min after kale added because I like it crunchy. Thank you for posting!
Lori says
June 5, 2014 at 9:31 pmYUM! It smells amazing simmering on my stove right now! I added extra red pepper flakes to make it spicy! I can’t wait to try it!
Laurie says
June 29, 2014 at 1:16 pmThis is the first time making this recipe, easy to follow instructions. I omitted the red pepper flakes and used Tuscan spice blend with sweet Italian sausage. Smells amazing.
rosie says
September 10, 2014 at 11:45 amThanks! I’ve still got kale in the raised bed, and a huge bag in the freezer. Everything on hand except the sausage. So, this goes to the top of my list once I finish freezing and canning from the garden. I’m really enjoying your blog!
Margaret Schenck says
October 25, 2014 at 4:11 amhi this recipe sounds delicious but I’m asking about the kale in your freezer. can kale be frozen fresh is there anything I need to do to it before freezing it I bought the only kale I could find and it was a super large bag and I would like to use only half of it so freezing would be ideal how do you freeze kale Thanks
Tammy Kresge says
October 25, 2014 at 7:59 amYes you can just throw kale into a freezer bag and freeze. I do it all the time and it works great.
Nicole says
September 17, 2014 at 8:37 pmI absolutely love this recipe! Have made it twice already! But how much is 1/7th of the recipe? A cup? A cup in a half?
Lisa E says
September 20, 2014 at 10:24 pmThis was so good, we spiced it up much more for our taste profile. Definitely a new recipe in our rotation!
suzanne says
September 24, 2014 at 11:10 amI make a very similar recipe only I slice up raw cauliflower, looks like little sliced potatos, and throw them in the pot the last 10 minutes. They keep a firmness and are still yummy the next day.
Much more than 10 minutes and they add a sweetness to the soup that I dont like.
Jyl says
September 25, 2014 at 1:16 pmI made this yesterday and it was delicious! The only thing I changed was the turkey sausage. My grocery store was out and I couldn’t bring myself to buy the regular sausage links (21g of fat per link! YIKES) so I just bought the ground turkey (98% fat free) and it was still good. Thank you sharing, I’ll definitely make it again!
darlene says
October 2, 2014 at 4:42 pmI made this yesterday for my brother who had pancreatic surgery a month ago I substituted omion powder for onions and garlic powder for the garlic and he loved it and wanted the rescipe . It was so good! Thank you for the lighter version of Zuppa Touscana.
Molly Pinon says
October 15, 2014 at 9:03 amI made this one for my husband and it was an absolute hit. The recipe was easy to follow and turned out IMO better than Zappa Toscana from Olive Garden – Thank you for posting this one. I will definitely be making this one again.
Kathy says
October 15, 2014 at 2:07 pmAbsolutely delicious! M new favorite for me. I used hot Italian pork sausage and omitted the red flakes. Magnificent!!!
Kristen says
October 19, 2014 at 3:31 pmCould this be made in the crock pot?
Renee says
December 28, 2014 at 9:24 pmI made this tonight for my family and it was a hit. The taste is so close. Thanks for the awesome recipe.
mike says
January 2, 2015 at 10:08 pmMade it tonight, couled not be more pleased! This was delicious, thanks for sharing.
Fernanda says
February 1, 2015 at 6:08 pmMe and my boyfriend used to both work as servers at the OG and toscana was our absolute favorite!! I never imagined i could make it from home so easily! It was delicious thank you so much for sharing! Best recipe I’ve found online yet!!!
lindabjo says
September 23, 2015 at 7:57 pmTurned out amazing. Very savory, and you don’t even miss the heavy cream.
Mara says
October 7, 2015 at 4:31 pmThank you for sharing your story and for all the guidance and recipes that you offer.
I would like to make a suggestion for recipes, especially soup. I would love to see serving sizes listed in cups (when possible) instead of 7 servings or the like. I find I avoid some recipes when the serving size isn’t a “no brain-er”.
kathleen gosselin says
October 25, 2015 at 2:29 pmMy daughter loves this soup. She keeps going into the kitchen to smell it while it is cooking.
Hazel says
October 26, 2015 at 1:36 pmIs the serving size of 1/7 equivalent to 1 cup or?????
Thank you
Lynn says
November 15, 2015 at 7:45 pmFamily member made this, and it was Awesome!!!!👍👍👍
Tammy Kresge says
November 16, 2015 at 10:18 amAwesome! So glad everyone liked it!
Jill says
December 12, 2015 at 1:24 pmWhat’s the sodium for a serving of this?
Valerie do says
January 5, 2016 at 1:56 pmSo good!!! A go to time and time again.
Amanda C. says
January 5, 2016 at 7:33 pmOoh, most excellent! We’ll definitely be having this dish again! Used fat free half and half instead of milk since that’s what I happened to have in the fridge and it turned out great!!
Brooke says
February 14, 2016 at 12:31 pmCould spinach be substituted for the kale?
Tammy Kresge says
February 15, 2016 at 6:23 amYes that would work.
alicia says
March 4, 2016 at 1:27 pmThank you for the recipe. I chose to sub carrots for potatoes and almond milk for 1% milk to meet my personal nutrition goals. It tasted great! Thanks again!
LB says
March 10, 2016 at 3:35 pmI made this for my BFF…she’s dieting and I’m serving as coach. 🙂 I used spicy Italian sausage and omitted the red pepper flakes, and used 3 teaspoons of Italian seasoning instead of dried thyme, oregano and basil. She loved it and said it tasted better than Olive Garden! Ask anyone who knows me well…I don’t like any type of soup for some reason. Strange…I know LOL (I always order salad at Olive Garden). I, of course, tasted the soup before giving it to my friend and it was so delicious. You broke my “don’t like soup curse”…I plan to make this again for myself next time. Thanks for a great recipe! God bless 🙂
Karen says
November 17, 2016 at 7:40 pmRead so many remarks on this soup can’t wait to try it.
Allan Wirkala says
August 30, 2017 at 6:34 pmI made this as per your recipe with a few changes. I doubled the amount of kale, halved the spices, and added red pepper flakes. Didn’t use milk as I had some heavy cream and half & half and used them. It was excellent. Will definitely save this recipe and make it a lot in the future.
Stacey says
October 7, 2017 at 12:17 pmHas anyone used almond milk?