Zuppa Toscana Recipe (Healthy Olive Garden Copycat)

Zuppa Toscana Recipe (Healthy Olive Garden Copycat)

If you love Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana but want a healthier version you can make at home, this recipe is exactly what you’re looking for.

This Zuppa Toscana recipe has all the rich, creamy flavor of the restaurant favorite, but it’s made a little lighter with lean Italian turkey sausage, tender potatoes, plenty of kale, and a creamy broth that doesn’t rely on heavy cream. It’s hearty, slightly spicy, and honestly every bit as delicious as the original.

5 from 29 votes

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Course: dinner recipe, Soup

Cuisine: American, Italian

Keyword: copycat olive garden zuppa toscana, healthy zuppa toscana, olive garden zuppa toscana, zuppa toscana, zuppa toscana olive garden copycat

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 45

Total Time: 55

Servings: people

Calories: 386kcal

Author: Tammy Overhoff

Video

Equipment

5 1/2 quart dutch oven or soup pot

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound ground Italian turkey or poultry sausage or 6 links with casings removed
1 mediium white onion chopped
6 cloves garlic finely minced. You'll get about 2-3 teaspoons of minced garlic.
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 lbs yellow or russet potatoes skins removed and cut into bite-sized pieces.
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups half and half you can substitute 2% milk or for dairy-free use coconut milk (in the carton)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3-4 cups chopped kale
salt and black ground pepper

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot and cook the italian sausage until no longer pink. As it's cooking use a spoon or spatula to break into small pieces.
Stir in the onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the onion starts to soften.
Stir in the potatoes, chicken broth, and bring to a boil and then simmer until potatoes are soft - this takes about 15-20 minutes.
Stir in the half-and-half, then add the chopped kale. Continue cooking for about 15 minutes, or until the kale is tender and the soup is creamy and heated through.
Taste the soup and season with salt and black pepper as needed. Serve hot with grated parmesan cheese.

Notes

** serving size is about 1 1/2 cups.

Storage Tips

For the week. After the soup cools, place it into an airtight container and refrigerator for up to 4 days. I like to use individual containers to keep portions under control and also so I can quickly heat and eat.

For the freezer: I've frozen this Zuppa Toscana recipe numerous times. I've never had a problem with dairy separating or curdling, and I think this is because it includes more broth than dairy.

After the soup cools, place it into containers leaving an inch from the top for expansion. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. I also love to use Souper Cubes 1-cup portion silicone trays to freeze this and other soup recipes. You can get more tips in my how-to-freeze soup tutorial.

Nutrition