Rich and Creamy Zuppa Toscana

A beautifully Rich and Creamy Zuppa Toscana – packed with sausage and tender bites of potato.  Delicious!

Talk about a meal in a bowl.

This Rich and Creamy Zuppa Toscana has got pan-fried chunks of sausage, tender pieces of potato and juicy green kale, enrobed in a rich, creamy broth and topped with crisp, salty bacon bits.

There is nothing not to love about this soup!

I made this last week and have been thinking about it ever since.

Now I’m not going to say that this is an Olive Garden copycat Zuppa Toscana recipe.  I know that it’s an Olive Garden favourite, and this soup might taste like it – but to be fair, I’ve never visited Olive Garden before (they don’t have them in the UK), so I’ve no idea.

I don’t need to have visited though, to know that this soup is seriously slurpily scrumptious (sorry, couldn’t help myself).

I’ll get on with the recipe in a minute, but first I’ve got to tell you about Harry Potter Studios and Lego Land.

• Harry Potter Studios – AMAZING! We all loved it.  Gracey and I particularly, could be found either squealing, grinning from ear-to-ear or just plain dumbstruck.  We saw the fabulous sets, walked down Diagon alley, jumped on the train at platform 9 and 3/4, drank butterbeer, and walked around the huge Hogwarts model in wonder.  Loved it loved it loved it!
• Lego Land – Well, it rained, and I did have to build some Lego (something you might be aware that I’m not fond of) and the cost of the queue-jumping tickets was excruciating.  However, it was fun.  Lewis got to go on his first roller coaster! I figured he might need some encouragement (he’s only 5), but he rode that thing three times – with his arms in the air.  I think we’ve got a mini adrenaline junkie on our hands.
  So despite the rain, we put our ponchos on and just got stuck in with those water rides first.  Even with the ponchos, we were pretty cold and sodden, but the walk-in dryers were brilliant for warming us up again.
• There was also a third highlight for the kids.  The buffet breakfast at the hotel…
  Gracey and Lewis had eyes like saucers when they saw what was on offer.  Between the two of them, they managed to put away sausages, bacon, eggs, cereal, yogurt, pastries, pancakes, toast, muffins and a cheese sandwich.  It was like something from the hungry caterpillar.

I don’t know where they get their appetite from…..

Anyway, enough about out little trip.  On with the recipe!

Rich and Creamy Zuppa Toscana Recipe:

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5 from 2 votes

Rich and Creamy Zuppa Toscana

By Nicky Corbishley

This Zuppa Toscana is beautifully rich and creamy. Really simple to make too!

Prep Time: 5 minutes mins

Cook Time: 35 minutes mins

Total Time: 40 minutes mins

Servings: 4 -5 servings

Course: Dinner, Soup

Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients

• ▢ 230 g (1/2 lbs) Italian sausage – or your favourite sausage. Use gluten-free sausage if required - I used Morrison’s GF red pepper and red onion sausages
• ▢ 1 tsp vegetable oil
• ▢ 1 large onion peeled and chopped
• ▢ 3 garlic cloves peeled and minced
• ▢ 2 large red skinned potatoes chopped into chunks (skin left on)
• ▢ 1.5 litres (0.22 gallons) hot chicken or vegetable stock made from water + 3 stock cubes or 1.5 tbsp vegetable bouillon for gluten-free
• ▢ 6 rashers bacon
• ▢ 240 ml (1 cup) double/heavy cream
• ▢ 140 g (2 heaped cups) chopped kale
• ▢ pinch of black pepper
• ▢ pinch of paprika

Instructions 

• Cut the uncooked sausage into small pieces.
  230 g (1/2 lbs) Italian sausage – or your favourite sausage.
• Heat the oil in a large sauce pan, add the sausage and brown for 5-6 minutes.
  1 tsp vegetable oil
• Add in the onion and garlic and cook for a further 3 minutes.
  1 large onion, 3 garlic cloves
• Then add in the potatoes and stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender.
  2 large red skinned potatoes, 1.5 litres (0.22 gallons) hot chicken or vegetable stock
• Whilst the soup is cooking, fry or grill the bacon until crispy and then chop into small pieces. Put to one side.
  6 rashers bacon
• Once the potatoes are cooked, add in the cream, kale and black pepper. Give everything a stir. Taste the soup and add a little salt and pepper if needed.
  240 ml (1 cup) double/heavy cream, 140 g (2 heaped cups) chopped kale, pinch of black pepper
• Ladle into 4 or 5 bowls. Top with the crispy bacon and a sprinkle on a little paprika.
  pinch of paprika

Notes

Any leftover soup can be cooled, covered and stored in the fridge for a day or two. Reheat thoroughly before serving.

.

Nutritional Information is per serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 609kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 49g | Saturated Fat: 24g | Cholesterol: 124mg | Sodium: 1553mg | Potassium: 792mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 2125IU | Vitamin C: 28.4mg | Calcium: 94mg | Iron: 1.7mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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