Add the bacon to a 5-quart pot over medium-high heat. Cook until the bacon is crispy, about 3 minutes. Transfer ⅔ of the bacon to a bowl to sprinkle on top when serving.
To the same pot, add the sausage, using a wooden spoon to break up the meat. Cook until browned, about 3 minutes (it doesn’t have to be fully cooked at this point).
Turn the heat down to medium. Add the onion and garlic and cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the chicken stock, potato, salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. Bring up to a boil, and then cover the pot, turn the heat down so it doesn’t boil over, and cook until the potato is tender, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Stir in the kale and cook (uncovered) until it’s wilted, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the cream and remove from the heat.
Serve with the crispy bacon and freshly-grated parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.
Notes
Recipe Yield and Serving Size: This recipe makes about 4.5 quarts of soup, which is 8 servings. Each serving is a little over 2 cups.
Storage: Store Zuppa Toscana in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Reheating: To reheat, first thaw the soup if it had been frozen. To reheat on the stovetop, add the soup to a saucepan over medium-low. Continue heating until it reaches a simmer, but don’t let it boil. To reheat in the microwave, put the soup in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 45-second increments on high until warm, stirring in between each increment.
To Make This stretch. Add 1 can of rinsed, drained cannellini beans to this soup and you can easily get 10 servings out of it.