Zuppa Toscana is Olive Garden’s most popular soup. This one-pot, homemade Zuppa Toscana recipe is hearty and loaded with Italian sausage, kale, bacon and potatoes.
Some of our most popular recipes are restaurant copycat recipes like Creamy Shrimp Pasta and of course Chicken Madeira! You can make it better at home for a fraction of the price!
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Zuppa Toscana Copycat Recipe:
We love re-creating restaurant quality soups at home like our popular Clam Chowder Recipe. My sister Tanya taught me how to make this Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana and it has been a family and reader favorite since we first published it in 2010. We have since made it heartier and more flavorful. The classic just got better!
What is Zuppa Toscana?
Zuppa means soup and Toscana means Tuscan. Tuscan Soup! It is classically made with kale, potatoes, onion, and garlic then served topped with cheese.
Is Zuppa Toscana Spicy?
We use “Hot” Italian sauce which does give this soup a spicy kick but you can substitute with medium or mild Italian sausage and make a less spicy version then season with salt and pepper to taste.
Do I really need 1 HEAD of Garlic?
YES! We used a full head of garlic (about 10 large cloves). Do not skip the fresh garlic. Garlic gives the broth incredible and authentic Italian flavor. Since the garlic is sautéed, then simmered with the broth, it doesn’t overwhelm the soup. Garlic is also very good for you (a super food)!
Is Zuppa Toscana Healthy?
This soup is naturally gluten free and grain free. To make a Keto-friendly Zuppa Toscana, you can substitute potatoes with cauliflower.
For Whole 30 (dairy free), substitute the heavy whipping cream for 1 can of full fat unsweetened coconut milk (using the solid white cream portion only and adding it at the very end just to heat through).
More Copycat Recipes from Restaurants:
These recipes are inspired by some of our favorite restaurant dishes. In every case, we loved the homemade version even better because of higher quality ingredients, healthier fats (olive oil), less salt and of course a lower bill!
- Beet Salad with Arugula – Cheesecake Factory inspired
- Stuffed Chicken Parmesan – ridiculously easy dinner idea
- Filet Mignon – read the reviews and plan a date night in
- Chicken Mango Avocado Salad – you’ll love the dressing here
- Chicken Stir Fry – so saucy and healthier than takeout
Watch How to Make Zuppa Toscana:
Now wasn’t that easy? Serve topped with crispy bacon, extra cheese and generous slices of crusty French Bread. I hope this Zuppa Toscana becomes a favorite in your home as well.
Zuppa Toscana - Olive Garden Copycat
Ingredients
- 6 oz bacon, chopped
- 1 lb Italian Sausage, The "Hot" variety
- 1 medium head garlic, 10 large cloves, peeled and minced or pressed
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 6 cups chicken broth/stock, (48 oz)
- 4 cups water, (32 oz)
- 5 medium russet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1/4" thick pieces
- 1 kale bundle, leaves stripped and chopped (6 cups)
- 1 cup whipping cream
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- Parmesan cheese to serve, optional
Instructions
- In a large pot or dutch oven (5.5 qt), over medium-high heat, add chopped bacon and sauté until browned (5-7 mins). Remove bacon to a paper-towel lined plate and spoon out excess oil, leaving about 1 Tbsp oil in the pot.
- Add Italian sausage, breaking it up with your spatula and sauté until cooked through (5 min). Remove to paper towel lined plate.
- Finely dice onion and add to the pot. Saute 5 min or until soft and golden then add minced garlic and saute 1 min.
- Add 6 cups broth and 4 cups water, and bring to boil. Add sliced potatoes and cook 13-14 min or until easily pierced with a fork.
- When potatoes nearly done, add chopped kale and cooked sausage and bring everything to a light boil.
- Stir in 1 cup cream and bring to boil. Season to taste with salt and black pepper then remove from heat. Garnish with bacon and grated parmesan.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Can you recommend an alternative to whipping cream?
Hi Gale, it’s not quite the same without the cream, and won’t be the traditional Zuppa Toscana. One of my readers recommended canned coconut milk (the cream part) to make it creamy and dairy-free. You can also use half and half to make it a little lighter.
Can I make this in my ninja 11 in 1 possible cooker?
I haven’t tested this in a pressure cooker, but I think it’s possible. I would do step 1,2,3 on the saute setting, then pressure cook for step 4, but wait to add the kale and heavy cream afterwards. You can put it back on the sauté setting add the cooked sausage, kale, and cream then simmer it for a few minutes until the kale softens. Let us know how it turns out.
This recipe is perfect. Thank you for the tip for reheating after freezing just in case there is any left this time.
Natasha, do you know how well it will freeze? I’m worried about the cream separating, but there’s only two of us at home and no way we can eat it all before it spoils! Btw, I was a CNA with you at Luke’s on tele! I remember you talking to me in the locker room about your cooking, recipes and aspirations! I was so happy to learn of your success! I’m a CCRN at Al’s now, and always look at your website first for inspiration and new recipes!!!
Hi Alicia, you can refrigerate this soup for a few days but you can freeze it for up to 3 months, note soups with cream tend to get grainy when reheated from frozen. When you reheat it, reheat it on low heat, it will take longer but you’ll get the best results that way. & thank you for your kind comment, wow, that seems like a lifetime ago! I’m so glad you’re following along with my recipes and blog. I hope things are going well at Al’s!
Question: for the nutrition information: how mud is in a serving? It says it serves 8 – there was definitely more than 8 cups. Is a serving 2 cups?
My whole family loved this! All 5 kids ate it! No changes except I used all chicken broth.
Hi Imelda! The nutrition facts are computer generated by putting the ingredients into the calculator. Unfortunately it’s not that specific, but I set the servings to 8.
You can weigh the recipe as a whole and divide it by 8 or measure out 8 even servings. Based on the amounts of the ingredients, it will be about 2-2.25cups per serving.
Delicious! My family loved it! I am adding this into my rotation of homemade soups.
One of my husbands favorite soups at Olive Garden so I tried your recipe with a few changes and he said I nailed it! I only used 5 gloves of garlic, cooked the bacon on my Traeger and added 6 slices directly to the soup and more for garnish. I also used a teaspoon of better than bouillon to the broth. Thank you for allowing your fans to make this amazing soup at home!
Hi Lauri! Thank you for sharing your experience. This is one of our favorite soups to make, we love it so much!
Outstanding recipe-it’s one of our favs! Good job walking us through on how you prepare this dish! We love it!