Zuppa Toscana (Copycat Olive Garden Recipe)
This Zuppa Toscana copycat recipe is actually better than the original! It has a creamy both base and is loaded with sausage and potatoes.
Servings: 8
Calories: 463kcal
Equipment
- Crock Pot (Slow Cooker)
Ingredients
- 1 pound Johnsonville mild Italian ground sausage
- 5 ¼ cups (42 ounces) chicken broth
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- red pepper flakes, to taste
- salt and pepper, to taste
- ½ pound bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 4 cups kale, chopped
- 3 medium potatoes, scrubbed, halved, and thinly sliced
Instructions
- Heat a frying pan over medium-high heat. Form the sausage into little balls. Brown the sausage in the frying pan, stirring frequently. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels to drain off some of the grease.
- Put everything except for the potatoes together in a large slow cooker. Cook on high for 3-4 hours. If you prefer your kale more crisp-tender, wait to add the kale with the potatoes.
- Add potatoes during the last 40-60 minutes of cooking.
- Stir well and serve with breadsticks and salad.
Video
Notes
- Instead of breaking off small pieces of sausage and rolling them in your hands, simply cut the sausage using a knife in a crisscross pattern. The sausage will roll up into balls as you cook and stir it in the skillet. Break it up into more bite-size pieces with your spatula or spoon if needed.
- You can really use any kind of potato you want in this recipe. Russet potatoes work great, but you can also use a waxy potato like Yukon gold or red potato. You can leave the skins on, or you can peel them. Totally up to you.
- Prepackaged, pre-rinsed kale will make your life easier. You can also get kale from the produce department. Just make sure you rinse it really well.
Nutrition
Calories: 463kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 84mg | Sodium: 1192mg | Potassium: 892mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 3571IU | Vitamin C: 61mg | Calcium: 158mg | Iron: 4mg