Best Ever Zuppa Toscana is creamy, rich and packed full of Italian sausage, tender potatoes and plenty of garlic!  Make this easy soup on your stove, instant pot, or slow cooker!

zuppa toscana soup

Zuppa Toscana:

A restaurant favorite that we all know and love made easy at home!  Zuppa Toscana basically means Tuscan Soup in Italian, Zuppa means soup, and Toscana means Tuscan!  This is the most popular soup at Olive Garden, and so easy to make at home!  Nobody can resist that decadent creamy broth! A lot like our favorite Chicken Francese it’s an Italian-American comfort food dish!  We happen to love our version even better than the one made popular by Olive Garden because it is FULLY  LOADED!  If you’re looking for another amazing copycat soup, try our Pasta e Fagioli too!

This hearty soup is made from bacon, Italian Sausage, garlic, onion, broth, kale or spinach, and potatoes!  A super simple soup that you can adjust the seasonings in to your own taste.  This one packs a punch with really minimal ingredients used for a ton of flavor!  I’ve included directions  in the recipe card for you to make this one in your slow cooker, on the stove top, or in an Instant Pot.  That way everyone can use their preferred method and it turns out perfect no matter which way you go!

pot of zuppa toscana soup

Zuppa Toscana Recipe Notes:

  • For me, the bacon really makes this soup extra and I love it!  If you don’t like bacon, leave it out and just use some butter or olive oil instead when cooking up your sausage and veggies.
  • As far as Italian sausage you can use Sweet, Mild, or Hot depending on your taste buds!  If you like a nice spicy soup use the hot sausage along with extra red pepper flakes too.
  • Be careful adding salt to this soup at first because the bacon and sausage are already salty.  I add a pinch of salt and pepper, then add more to taste once the soup is done cooking.
  • You will want about 4 Cups of diced (1/2 inch) potatoes for this recipe.  I tend to just use Russet potatoes, but red or yellow potatoes work fine here too.  Use what you have on hand to keep it easy!
  • Traditionally this soup calls for Kale, but I use spinach most often!  You can use either one, do what you like best!  I usually buy a package of spinach and just give it a rough chop.  If you use Kale, make sure you remove all of the stems because they can be tough.
  • I personally don’t like to freeze this soup.  With the potatoes, cream and cream cheese, it just doesn’t hold up well to being heated after freezing.  However, this soup is fast to make any night and it stays good in the fridge up to 4 days.

zuppa toscana in a bowl

Enjoy!

~Nichole

5 from 15 votes

Best Ever Zuppa Toscana

Best Ever Zuppa Toscana is creamy, rich and packed full of Italian sausage, tender potatoes and plenty of garlic!  Make this easy soup on your stove, instant pot, or slow cooker!
 
Prep 15 minutes
Cook 30 minutes
Total 45 minutes
Servings 6

Ingredients 

  • 8 Slices Bacon Chopped
  • 1 Pound Ground Italian sausage
  • 1 Medium Yellow Onion Minced
  • 5 Cloves Garlic Minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon Dried Basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon Dried Oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
  • Pinch Salt and Pepper
  • 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
  • 5-6 cups of low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
  • 4 Medium Russet Potatoes peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
  • 1/2 Cup Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese plus more to taste
  • 4 ounces of cream cheese at room temperature
  • 3 Cups Spinach or Kale chopped with the leaves removed from the stems

Instructions 

STOVE TOP DIRECTIONS:

  • Cook the chopped bacon in a deep soup pot over medium heat until crispy. Remove the bacon from the pan using a slotted spoon but leave the grease in the pan.
  • Add the sausage, onion, garlic, and seasonings to the pan breaking up the sausage and cooking it until all of it turns a dark brown color.
  • Sprinkle the flour over the sausage and stir to combine.
  • Let it bubble and fry for a few minutes before gradually stirring in the chicken broth stirring the entire time.
  • Once fully incorporated, add the cubed potatoes and stir.
  • Bring it to a low boil, then cover and reduce the heat to low medium and let it simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft.
  • Stir in the heavy cream, parmesan cheese and cream cheese until fully melted.
  • Then stir in the spinach kale and cover with a lid.
  • Remove the pan from the heat and let it sit for 5-8 minutes, or until the spinach or kale has softened a bit.
  • Serve with cooked bacon bits and freshly grated parmesan.

INSTANT POT DIRECTIONS:

  • Set the instant pot to sauté mode and cook the bacon until crispy.
  • Then remove it with a slotted spoon and add the sausage, onion, garlic, and seasonings and stir and cook until the sausage is browned.
  • Turn the instant pot off and add the potatoes and chicken broth, making sure to fully submerge the potatoes in the broth.
  • Cover it with the lid, seal it and set it to manual for 4 minutes.
  • Quick release the pressure nozzle and let it release fully before removing the lid.
  • Stir the flour into the heavy cream and pour it into the soup along with the parmesan cheese and cream cheese.
  • Let it sit for a few minutes to allow the cream cheese to melt fully then gently stir until the cream cheese is fully incorporated.
  • Add the spinach or kale and stir to combine then close the lid back on the pot and let it sit for 5 minutes to let the kale soften a bit.
  • Serve with crispy cooked bacon and freshly grated parmesan.

SLOW COOKER DIRECTIONS:

  • Add the bacon to a large frying pan over medium heat and cook until crispy.
  • T hen remove it with a slotted spoon and add the sausage and cook until browned.
  • Add the sausage, onion, garlic, seasonings, cubed potatoes and chicken broth to the pot and cover with the lid.
  • Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or until the potatoes have become fork tender.
  • Stir the flour into the heavy cream and stir it into the soup along with the parmesan cheese and cream cheese.
  • Cover and cook for another 30 minutes on high.
  • Remove the lid, stir and add the kale and stir again to combine.
  • Place the lid back on the pot and let the kale soften a bit.
  • Serve with crispy bacon pieces and freshly grated parmesan.

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 1.5Cups, Calories: 642kcal, Carbohydrates: 29g, Protein: 22g, Fat: 49g, Saturated Fat: 21g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 19g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 135mg, Sodium: 826mg, Potassium: 894mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 753IU, Vitamin C: 10mg, Calcium: 154mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Main Course, Soup
Cuisine: American
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Hey! Nice to meet you! I'm Nichole!

Welcome to The Salty Marshmallow! I'm a mom, animal lover, photographer, & kitchen mess-maker. Here you will find the result of my decades-long passion for chasing the best flavors in the kitchen, all meant to be cooked by regular people with busy lives just like you and me.

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14 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I made this a couple of months ago. I followed the recipe exactly(I did add two pounds of sausage) and it was absolutely delicious! We are gonna make it again tonight.