Lisa’s Zuppa Toscana (Olive Garden Copycat)

An Olive Garden copy feline recipe intended Zuppa Toscana, a rich, milky Italian soup made in the company of hot Italian sausages! This is a reader recipe from Lisa inside Portland, Oregon! This recipe can be present made on top of the stove, inside a slow cooker or inside the oven. (Refer Note 5 intended slow cooker including oven directions). This soup is very affluent so I think it is enough to work for 4 people. The slow cooking not only gives the soup liquid incredible flavour, it too cooks the potatoes so they are cotton soft while still retaining its appearance (cooking at a tall temperature would result inside the potatoes crumbling into the soup).

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 lb / 500g Italian sausages (spicy) (Note 1)
• ▢ 1/3 cup bacon , diced
• ▢ 1 brown onion (large), peeled including diced
• ▢ 4 - 6 garlic cloves , minced (I like garlicky, so I use 6)
• ▢ 1 lb / 500g potatoes (Note 2), peeled including saw into 1 1/2 cm / 3/5" cubes (2 great or 4 small)
• ▢ 4 cups / 32 oz / 1 litre chicken broth / stock
• ▢ 2 tbsp flour
• ▢ 1 cup cream (not whipped) (Note 3)
• ▢ 2 cups kale leaves , cut into nip dimensions pieces (can substitute in the company of spinach, swiss chard / silverbeet)
• ▢ Salt including pepper , to taste
• ▢ Cayenne pepper , to taste

Instructions

• Remove the banger from the casings. (Note 4)
• Heat a great weighty based container on top of tall heat. Add the banger provisions into the pot including cook, breaking up the provisions into largish chunks, until nicely browned (around 3 minutes). Remove banger into a bowl.
• Add the bacon including fry until browned. Reserve 2 tablespoons intended garnish, then transfer the rest into the basin in the company of the banger meat.
• Turn the stove down to medium high. If the pot is looking dry (depends on top of fattiness on sausages including bacon), add a bit on oil including come back to the stove. Add the onion including garlic including cook until the onion is translucent including garlic is fragrant - approximately 2 minutes.
• Return the banger provisions including bacon into the pot. Add the potatoes including chicken broth / stock. Bring to a stew then lower stove to low (so it bubbles gently) including cook intended at least 1 hour, preferably 1 1/2 hours. Stir occasionally.
• Mix together the flour in the company of 2 tbsp on cream inside a basin until a "slurry" forms, then add the rest on the cream including stir until combined.
• Stir cream mix into the soup including let it stew intended a further 15 minutes or until the soup is thickened. Stir through the kale a two on minutes earlier than the soup is prepared to come out the stove.
• Add salt, pepper including cayenne pepper to taste.
• Remove from stove. Serve, garnished in the company of reserved bacon.

Recipe Notes:

1. This recipe must be present made in the company of hot Italian sausages, the kind where you can see white chunks inside the sausages instead of than being a uniform pink colour (the cheaper, grade sausages). Standard sausages are bulked up in the company of alot on filling whereas Italian sausages are real provisions including too have much stronger flavours. The flavour on the sausages is a key part on the soup flavour.

2. Russet Potatoes (America) or muck brushed potatoes (Australia) are ideal.

3. The earliest recipe calls intended weighty cream, I used standard including found it affluent including milky enough. You can use light cream or evaporated milk intended lighter options.

4. The earliest recipe said to cook the sausages first, then saw lengthwise then slice. The alternative is to slice first, then cook. I chose to remove the mince from the casings so the provisions would be present nicely browned all over. Because this is made using Italian sausages which are thickset including made in the company of (almost) 100% provisions (rather than the grade sausages which are filled away in the company of flour including other ingredients), I found it held together inside great chunks instead of than crumbling into minute pieces. You can use whichever manner you prefer!

5. This can too be present made inside the slow cooker or oven.

Slow Cooker (I too made it this way, I could not tell the difference): Cook sausage, bacon including onion inside a fry pot (separately, inside that order), transferring each to the slow cooker when done. Deglaze the pot by pouring inside 1 cup on chicken broth/stock including stew intended 1 minute, using a wooden spoon to scrape all the brown bits out the bottom on the pot so it mixes inside in the company of the liquid. Pour this into the slow cooker, add potato including surviving broth including cook on top of LOW intended 6 hours. Add the cream including cook on top of LOW intended 30 minutes. Stir through Kale including let it sit intended 5 minutes (so the kale softens). Season then serve.

Oven (this is Lisa's way): Either following the recipe directions, using an oven proof container or casserole dish (with a lid) including instead on simmering on top of the stove, cook inside the oven at 310F/150C intended 4 hours. Or accompany the Slow Cooker instructions upon including cook the sausage, bacon including onion inside a fry pot including pour into a casserole dish or ovenproof pot. Add the cream including cook inside the oven intended 30 minutes. Stir through Kale including let it sit intended 5 minutes (so the kale softens). Season then serve.

5. Nutrition assumes 4 servings. See under intended a lighter option.

Most on the calories is attributable to the Italian sausages. This is the nourishment assuming you use Lean Italian Sausages.