Zuppa Toscana

Sorry it's been a while since I posted. Vacation time got in the way. We traveled to Bogota, Colombia. Here is a picture of me making arepas and our finished product!

Hopefully, there will be a post soon of me making these on my own here in my own kitchen. I have to find a cheese that is comparable to the one my father-in-law makes from the milk of his own cows. Once I have that, believe me, I will making some arepas of my own! :)

Now, on to the Zuppa Toscana. This is my husband's favorite soup from the Olive Garden. It does not matter if we go there for lunch, dinner, a big family gathering or a special date night, every time we go to OG, he orders soup and salad. And every time, it's the same soup: Zuppa Toscana. (I personally like the Chicken Gnocci, but that's another blog, too!)

So, I decided to try my hand at making this. There are plenty of recipes out there and you can make this in the crock pot or on the stove. I chose this recipe for its simplicity; I continue to make it b/c it tastes just like the original.

BTW, the third time I made this, I put in all chicken broth instead of chicken broth and water. It still tasted fine but it wasn't the carbon copy of the OG soup. 

Look at all the flavor in there! And, if you ask me, you have to use kale and not some other green. That curly, crunchy texture is a perfect counterpart to the creamy goodness of the rest of the soup.

Here's the recipe. Enjoy! - JC

ZUPPA TOSCANA (Just like Olive Garden)

Ingredients

◦                                  1 lb Italian sausage (I used spicy, chicken sausage)

◦                                  2 large russet baking potatoes, sliced in half, and then in 1/4 inch slices

◦                                  1 large onions, chopped

◦                                  1/4 cup bacon bits, optional (The original recipe says optional, but it is NOT)

◦                                  2 garlic cloves, minced

◦                                  2 cups kale or 2 cups swiss chard, chopped

◦                                  2 (8 ounce) cans chicken broth

◦                                  1 quart water

◦                                  1 cup heavy whipping cream (I used half and half)

Directions

1.            Chop or slice uncooked sausage into small pieces.

2.            Brown sausage in your soup pot. Remove sausage from pot.

3.            Add chicken broth and water to pot and stir.

4.            Place onions, potatoes, and garlic in pot.

5.            Cook on medium heat until potatoes are done.

6.            Add sausage and bacon.

7.            Salt and pepper to taste.

8.            Simmer for another 10 minutes.

9.            Turn to low heat.

10.        Add kale and cream. Heat through and serve.