Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Copycat Recipe
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So easy to make and 10x better than the original! With Italian sausage, potatoes, spinach + bacon!
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why i love this recipe
A homemade replica version of the most favorited Olive Garden soup? Yes, please! Now this copycat recipe comes together in one single pot, which is always a win on those super busy weeknights (hello, easy clean up here), loaded with crumbled spicy Italian sausage, tender russet potatoes, sneaked in greens and all the crispy bacon bits on top.
WHAT IS ZUPPA TOSCANA?
Zuppa toscana is a soup from northern Italy in Tuscany. Translated word for word, zuppa toscana literally means Tuscan soup, also known as minestra di pane in Italy (bread soup).
tips and tricks for success
- Add in leafy greens. This is a great recipe to sneak in leafy greens for those picky eaters. Spinach, kale, collard greens, swiss chard, or arugula are all great options.
- Add the cream slowly. Always add the heavy cream at the very end, pouring very slowly to prevent curdling.
- Make it dairy-free. Need a dairy free option? Substitute coconut cream or skip the half and half.
- Add garnishes. Garnishes are always optional but a fresh sprinkle of grated Parmesan or some crispy bacon will certainly take your soup to the next level, adding more flavor, texture and contrast.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
WHAT TO SERVE WITH ZUPPA TOSCANA
Tools For This Recipe
Dutch oven
Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Copycat Recipe: Frequently Asked Questions
The spicy Italian sausage does pack a little bit of heat but you can substitute mild Italian sausage as needed.
Heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream) has one of the highest fat contents with about 36-40% fat. Half and half or whole milk are suitable substitutes, but will yield a lighter result.
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers without the heavy cream and bacon (cream soups tend to separate when frozen) in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop, adding heavy cream and bacon when serving.
Absolutely! We have a recipe for that here.
Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Copycat Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- 1 pound spicy Italian sausage, casing removed
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 3 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 3 cups baby spinach
- 1 cup heavy cream
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Heat a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium hight heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; drain excess fat, reserving 2 tablespoons in the stockpot, and set aside.
- Add Italian sausage and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the sausage as it cooks; drain excess fat, reserving 2 tablespoons in the stockpot.
- Add garlic and onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until onions have become translucent, about 2-3 minutes.
- Stir in chicken broth and potatoes. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in spinach until wilted, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in heavy cream until heated through, about 1 minute; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately, garnished with bacon.
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I’ve made this and it is absolutely delicious. My family loves it. Does anyone know if it freezes well?
Yes, you can absolutely freeze this but I would hold off on the spinach and heavy cream until right before serving. Hope that helps, Shirley!
I halved the sausage (because I only had 1/2 lb)next time I would use more bacon and spinach. Also added some seasonings oregano, thyme, basil may have been a few others i don’t remember now. Turned out amazing I’ll be making again soon!
I used Cajun Style kielbasa very good.
I used Italian sweet turkey sausage, Yukon gold potatoes, kale, and fat free half and half. It was absolutely delicious. And boy I ate too much.
Hi Chungah, made this soup for dinner tonight. It goes well with football! This is the best soup ever. Never go to OG—dont need to. Thanks for the great recipe. I will make it over and over again.
Excellent soup. My only addition is 1 can of drained and rinsed cannellini beans. I prefer the use of spinach instead of kale, as used in some recipes. I use an entire 6-ounce bag of spinach, removing the larger, thick stems. When I don’t have a bag of fresh spinach, a a 10-ounce thawed package of frozen, chopped spinach works very well. Canned, low-sodium chicken broth is a pantry staple in our house. No additional salt is necessary.
This is the BEST SOUP I have ever made. I have made it 5-6 times and we’re having it again tonight . Thanks for such a great recipe . EXATLY like Olive Garden . Everybody needs to stop other thinking kale vs spinach it doesn’t matter . It’s GOOOOD
I love this soup and if you don’t change a thing I think you will still love it.
Because I can’t ever leave well enough alone, here are some changes you can consider to have an alternate soup: to the chopped onion, add three stalks of chopped celery and three chopped carrots. Brown the sausage (I do two pounds but that is not necessary), Remove sausage, drain most of the grease off and add the veggies, saute a bit, put the sausage in the pot, add the chicken broth and then add the potatoes and chopped kale – six cups or more, it is strange but you cannot taste the kale so you have a bit healthier soup. Add the half and half or heavy cream. The broth will be thin. My husband likes thick soup so I add boxed mashed potatoes to thicken. Garnish with bacon and parmesan cheese!
Here is something I want to share… I’m not fond of chicken bouillon cubes and canned or boxed broth is way too expensive. I use chicken soup base which is way cheaper but tastes awesome. They make beef, ham and vegetable soup base too. It comes in a jar and is kind of a powder. Find it in the soup section.
I keep canned condensed milk in my pantry; could that be used in lieu of the cream?
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications. Sorry, Betty!
Betty, canned “condensed” milk has quite a bit of sugar added to it, which is why it’s used in desserts like lemon and lime pies and why some British folk add it to their tea instead of milk and sugar. It would spoil any soup you put it in. Canned “evaporated” milk is whole or skim milk from which part of the water has been removed, so it is simply a thicker form of milk and is often used as a rough-and-ready substitute for cream. Evaporated milk works well in most thick milky soups such as chowders, so it should be fine here.
Made this dozens of times..started it a few days ago, only to discover..NO POTATOES! I had sweet potatoes though…and OH MY GOODNESS..never making with white potatoes again!!!!
We use Italian ground sausage, with the sweet potatoes my husband wants to try a spicy sausage next time.
This soup looks and sounds amazing. Can hardly wait to make and eat it
This sounds so wonderful but I have a BIG problem in that I can’t eat either kale or spinach (on Coumadin). Would red chard work? Anything else you can suggest which isn’t high in vitamin K?
Love your recipes and the photos are beautiful!
Yes, red chard should work!
I just made this. I didn’t peel my potatoes and I am thinking about adding a little more chicken broth. Great recipe!
My family also uses kale instead of spinach. Kale stays a little on the crunchier side, which we prefer, but its great either way. I could eat this every day
My Niece and Nephew ate this last night when i gave this recipe to my cook and they have asked him to make it again for lunch and it is so damn tasty i cant say no, even if i dont feel like eating anything.
I made this tonight, and it was great! I used whole milk instead of cream because I’m trying to keep it light. I also left out the bacon, both because wanted to lighten it and because I didn’t want it to compete with the sausage flavor. I opted for the kale over the spinach because I feel that spinach gets a little slimey in soups and this is the only way I actually enjoy kale! THANKS SO MUCH!
Could this be made with chicken instead of sausage? I know it would no longer be the same as OG but I was wondering if it would work.
Thanks
Dan
Yes, absolutely.
If you use chicken I suggest you add thyme and sage to the soup.
The Olive Garden soup uses kale not spinach. I have used both and definitely like the kale better. The spinach tends to get slimy.
I have been making Tuscan Soup for years. I make a large pot because the family eats more than one bowl. I use a whole onion chopped, minced garlic, saute in olive oil in large pot. Then I pour in 3 to 4 large box containers of low sodium chicken broth and 2 cups of water (you can add more if you want, you can learn with each pot you make the way you like it best). Start cooking on medium heat. I add shredded carrots (some people prefer large cuts of carrots but I don’t). I also use small red potatoes and cut them in 3 to 4 pieces and cook them in a separate pot until slightly cooked because I don’t want all the extra starch. I then add the potatoes to the broth. I cook 8 pieces of bacon, crumble the bacon and add it to the broth. I also use two rolls of Hot Jimmy Dean Sausage and add to the broth. I then cook until carrots and potatoes are done. Then I add two bunches of chopped Kale, let it cook down and then add the heavy cream, stir and turn the heat off. My family likes it more chunky and full of goodness. Scrumptious!
I make this with kale and I have learned that even if you put six cups of kale or more, it does not overwhelm the soup. Yes, I like kale but really, if you are going for healthy, adding more of something that doesn’t negatively influence the taste is a winner. I actually cook it with the potatoes rather than leaving it to be crunchy in the soup. I always add chopped carrots and celery. I always use two pounds of sausage and a pound of bacon (half cooked in the soup, the rest sprinkled on when served. I like the soup thinner and my husband wants thicker so I have added instant potatoes to make it thicker. Of course, you could add more and just mash up some of the potatoes… Enjoy topped with grated Parmesan cheese too.
First off: I’ve never had the Olive Garden soup, so to be fair I didn’t know what to expect.
At first I was like.. hmm. What is this going to be?
But slowly when it came together it started smelling so good! Then I put the cream in and something fantastic happened.. it actually looked like the pictures! Fair to say that usually never happens..
I made as mealplanning for lunches (2x 2 lunches) and it’s the perfect description for comfort in a bowl. The creaminess, the salt of the bacon and the sausage.
This will be a perfect winter soup! (I’m in Australia now where it’s summer 😉 )
Thank you!
O. M.GGGGGG! This soup was incredible!!! SO so good. Even my insanely picky husband loved it. We omitted the spinach since said picky husband won’t eat it, but otherwise followed recipe as written. 5 star and going in to the regular dinner rotation!