zuppa toscana;

Cold weather is soup weather. And zuppa toscana is a delicious broth, chock full of hearty flavors. Loaded up with chunks of crumbled sausage, potato rounds, and leafy greens, this soup is a hearty well-rounded meal. Garnish with a sprinkle of crumbled bacon, some Parmesan, and some zest red pepper for heat. Let this Zuppa toscana warm you up from the inside out!

I first had zuppa toscana at Olive Garden, and it’s so good, especially when their endless breadsticks are dipped in the broth. Yum. I ended up making my pao de queijo Brazilian cheese bread and the chewiness of the bread paired really well with the soup flavors. It helps they’re made out of parmesan cheese, so the flavors meld seamlessly with the zuppa toscana soup.

For the sausage in my zuppa toscana, I usually go for Italian sausage. Depending on your comfort level with spice, you can opt for hot sausage or a sweet Italian sausage. If I use hot sausage, I usually go a little lighter on that red pepper flake garnish to keep from overwhelming my senses. But really any fresh sausage you can take out of the casing will do. This time around we even used straight up beer brats and it was plenty delicious.

The key to the sausage is searing it to get a good color. That means turning your pan up to high heat and waiting for it to get hot. I will use my hands to squeeze the sausage from the casing and flatten it to little patties in whatever lumps it comes out as. I find the easiest way is to smoosh out the meat and then use a wooden spoon or spatula to squash it against the hot pan. Let it cook and take on color and then flip it. It makes it easier to brown both sides. Then when it’s close to finished I’ll use the wooden spoon to break it apart into good, but-sized chunks.

When it comes to potatoes, I like to go for Yukon gold. They’re smooth and cook quickly and have a bit more flavor than russet potatoes. But use whatever potatoes you have on hand. As long as you slice them thin, and cook them through, they’ll do. I even wonder how sweet potatoes might fare, but I’ve yet to try.

The key, as I mentioned, is to slice them thin—and evenly. You want all potatoes to take the same amount of time to cook. I will slice rounds off about two potatoes, then cut the bigger slices in half to make half moons. There’s no bearing on the flavor when it comes to size and shape, but I like a little heartier bite with bigger potatoes.

Cut your potatoes thin, and evenly. Nothing’s worse than biting into a potato only to realize it’s half-cooked and crunchy.

secret to success

Then, the greens. The original uses kale, which stands up well and remains bright in this stew. I’ll happily eat kale if it happens to be around, but I’d be happier to eat spinach. So I took some fresh baby spinach greens and added them to the recipe. But I find baby spinach more versatile for other recipes, sandwiches, and general eating for me personally. So it’s a good choice. Spinach hardly needs more than a few stirs to wilt down and incorporate into the soup. Kale might need a minute or two simmer since it tends to be stiffer.

And lastly—don’t forget the bacon! The bacon adds a saltiness to the dish, helping bring out the flavors. And let’s be real—who doesn’t love bacon?! I like to cook my bacon first. Lay the strips on a paper towel-lined plate and drain the fat from the pan. I toss off the excess fat but I don’t wipe down the pan, then add the sausage.

I use the same pan to crisp the bacon and brown the sausage for the soup.

secret to success

I use the same pan to crisp the bacon and brown the sausage for the soup. Drain the excess fat but the oils and bits left in the pan pan just add to the depth of flavor in the broth. This way, both the sausage and the bacon flavors become a part of your soup stock. Plus, added bonus, one less pan to wash!

You need to serve zuppa toscana with some sort of dipping bread. Try pao de queijo or sour cream and chive biscuits.

secret to success

Of course, you need some sort of warm and toasty bread to serve with your zuppa toscana. Here, I served mine with pao de queijo Brazilian cheese bread, but I’ve also made my sour cream and chive biscuits, which are flaky, crusty, and salty and absorb so much of that tasty, wonderful broth.

secrets to success;

Want all the best tips and tricks to make this recipe a success? Check out the blog post above to find out more!

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more recipes;

Looking for other warm winter recipes? Check out these great options:

• Winter blizzard cookies are always fun for a snowy day, or just to get into the winter season!
• For another soup, try this broccoli cheddar soup, another homemade classic.
• Biscuits pair perfectly with soup. Try these sour cream and chive biscuits for the perfect accoutrement to zuppa toscana.