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This creamy 30-minute Copycat Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Soup recipe is hearty and flavorful with bacon, sausage, potatoes, and kale. It makes 8 servings and is budget-friendly, especially when compared with how much it would cost for this many people to eat out at Olive Garden!
For anyone who’s ever been to Olive Garden and had their soup, you already know.
I haven’t been there in years, but I still find myself thinking about a few things on their menu. This soup is one of them, and their salad is another! But that’s a different recipe for a different day. This soup though.
If you like rich, cream-based soups, then this one will be right up your alley!
We start off by crisping up some beef bacon to add the first layer of flavor. Then we brown Italian turkey sausage and aromatics like onion and garlic. Chicken stock adds depth, and we keep the seasonings pretty simple. Potato makes it hearty, and kale rounds it out to a full meal in one pot. A generous glug of cream adds a delicate hint of sweetness and makes it a lovely silky soup.
Serve it with freshly-grated parmesan and crispy bacon on top for a soup that’s sure to be a hit with the whole family!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Budget friendly. Making a huge pot of soup instead of going out to dinner is a great way to save a ton of money! And bonus, you’ll probably have leftovers.
- Weeknight friendly. It whips up in just 30 minutes, making it a good choice for busy nights when you don’t have a ton of time to cook.
- Full meal in one pot. This soup covers all the bases with protein, leafy greens, and starchy vegetables all in one dish. Serve it with some crusty bread if you want, but it really doesn’t need anything else.
- Freezer friendly. This soup freezes well and is great for meal prep!
The Best Easy Copycat Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Recipe
Ingredients
- Bacon
- Sausage
- Onion
- Garlic
- Chicken stock
- Yellow potatoes
- Salt and black pepper
- Crushed red pepper flakes
- Kale
- Heavy whipping cream
- Freshly-grated parmesan cheese
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Add the bacon to a 5-quart pot over medium-high heat. Cook until the bacon is crispy, about 3 minutes. Transfer 2/3 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.
Storage and Reheating
Store Zuppa Toscana in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
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.
Cooks Tips
- Make it stretch. Add 1 can of rinsed, drained cannellini beans to this soup and you can easily get 10 servings out of it.
- Pork products. I don’t eat pork, so I used beef bacon and turkey sausage. However, feel free to use pork bacon and sausage if that’s your preference.
- Type of potatoes. I like to use yellow potatoes here because they hold up well and don’t fall apart easily. However, you can use starchy potatoes instead (such as Russet) if you prefer or if that’s what you have on hand. Peeling the potatoes is your call as well! (I like to scrub the potatoes, but leave the peel on because it’s full of nutrients.)
- If kale isn’t your thing. You can use baby spinach leaves instead. They will wilt faster than kale; it should take about 1 minute.
Zuppa Toscana FAQs
What Does Zuppa Toscana Mean in English?
From Italian, zuppa means “soup” and Toscana translates as “Tuscan”, referring to the Tuscany region of northern Italy.
Can You Freeze Zuppa Toscana?
Yes! This soup freezes well for up to 6 months. I like to freeze it in individual-sized glass containers for portion control. This lets me grab out as many servings as I need, whether it’s lunch for just me or dinner for me and the family. This soup reheats well on the stovetop or in the microwave.
What to Serve with Zuppa Toscana
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Easy 30-Minute Copycat Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Soup Recipe
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Ingredients
- 5 slices beef bacon chopped
- 1 pound bulk Italian turkey sausage
- 1 large onion diced
- 7 large cloves garlic crushed
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1 pound yellow potatoes cubed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes more or less to taste
- 5 cups chopped kale
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- Freshly-grated parmesan cheese for garnish
Instructions
- Add the bacon to a 5-quart pot over medium-high heat. Cook until the bacon is crispy, about 3 minutes. Transfer 2/3 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.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximate.
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I’m the writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food stylist behind this blog. I love finding the human connection through something we all do every day: eat! Food is a common ground that we can all relate to, and our tables tell a story. It’s my goal to inspire you to get in the kitchen, try something new, and find a favorite you didn’t know you had.
Free Bonus
made this tonight – skipped the bacon and added a little more broth – really tasty!
I made this soup last night for the first time and I loved it!! It was so good, I’m glad I don’t have to share it with anyone! I made a couple of small changes which were: I used spinach rather than kale; added a carrot; added 1T of Italian seasoning and I used 1/2 & 1/2 instead of heavy cream. Not too drastic of changes I don’t think. Good stuff!
I love soup!!
Fall equals soup, and this one tasted exquisite!