Zuppa Toscana

This is probably my favorite soup at Olive Garden. I was so excited when I found the recipe at tuscanrecipes.com. This is supposed to be the actual Olive Garden recipe, adapted to a manageable size.

I found this to be a little spicy, so I would recommend decreasing the amount of crushed red pepper. Other than that, the soup was wonderful and tasted as good as the restaurant version.



Ingredients
1 lb ground Italian sausage
1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1 large diced white onion
4 Tbsp bacon pieces
2 tsp garlic puree
10 cups water
5 cubes chicken bouillon
1 cup heavy cream
1 lb sliced Russet potatoes (3 large potatoes)
1/4 bunch kale

Procedure
1. Saute Italian sausage and crushed red pepper in pot. Drain excess fat, refrigerate while you prepare other ingredients.

2. In the same pan, saute bacon, onions and garlic for approximately 15 mins. or until the onions are soft.

3. Mix together the chicken bouillon and water, then add it to the onions, bacon and garlic. Cook until boiling.

4. Add potatoes and cook until soft, about half an hour.

5. Add heavy cream and cook until thoroughly heated.

6. Stir in the sausage.

7. Add kale just before serving.