This delicious soup, made popular by Olive Garden, features bacon, kale, beans, rustic potatoes, and flavorful sausage in a rich and lightly creamy chicken broth. This copycat soup recipe is easy. Everything is made in one pot!
½ tspteaspooncayenne peppermore or less to adjust spice level
1oniondiced
1tablespoonminced garlic
4russet potatoes
6 cupscupschicken broth
1-2tablespoonchicken bullionto tastes
1bunchkale,chopped w/ stems removed
14.5ozcan navy beans,drained and rinsed (optional)
½ cuphalf and halfmore or less to taste
Instructions
Rinse but don't peel potatoes. Poke with a fork several times each and place in the microwave. Cook for 9-12 minutes or until potatoes are softened on all sides. (I use a clean dish towel to lightly squeeze and check them since they are hot). Chop cooked potatoes into bite-sized pieces and set aside.
While potatoes are in the microwave, chop and cook bacon in a large dutch oven over high heat for 10 minutes or until edges are crispy. When done, scoop out cooked bacon pieces and set aside on a plate or in a bowl. Drain excess bacon fat and return unwashed pot to stove. Keep heat on high.
Add sausage to dutch oven along with cayenne pepper and diced onion. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring every minute or so. Add minced garlic then cook for an additional minute or until sausage is browned.
Add cooked bacon to pot along with potatoes, chicken broth, chicken bullion, kale and drained navy beans. Bring to a boil.
Once boiling, stir in half and half. Then remove from heat and serve.
Video
Notes
For the kale, just remove large portions of stem. The small pieces are fine to leave in tact with the leaves.Olive Garden's "Zuppa Toscana" does not have beans. However, I like adding them in. Up to you. You can leave them out if you want a version closer to Olive Garden's original recipe.