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 tender potatoes. It’s on my family’s regular menu rotation!
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Helpful Reader Review
“Soup was delicious! Best copycat Olive Garden recipe ever! Taste so authentic; I thought I was eating at Olive Garden!” – Marianne ★★★★★
Zuppa Toscana Video
Now wasn’t that easy? Serve topped with crispy bacon, extra cheese and generous slices of Sourdough Bread, or crusty French Bread. I hope this Zuppa Toscana becomes a favorite in your home as well.
Zuppa Toscana Copycat Recipe
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!
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 from scratch 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! This American adaptation is classically made with kale, potatoes, onion, and garlic, then served topped with Parmesan cheese or Parmigiano Reggiano.
Is Zuppa Toscana Spicy?
I 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 that’s more kid-friendly, then season with salt and pepper to taste. You can spice up individual bowls later with red pepper flakes if you prefer.
Zuppa Toscana Ingredients
- Bacon – the bacon adds an extra layer of flavor to the soup and a crunchy salty bite when sprinkled as garnish. Parmesan is also a nice touch to serve the soup.
- Italian Sausage – I prefer using ‘hot’ Italian sausage, but you can use mild if you prefer less spice. Remove casings if present.
- Aromatics – I use a whole head of garlic (more on that below) and a diced onion.
- Chicken stock – you can use chicken broth or stock here, or even substitute with turkey stock. Homemade always tastes best, especially bone broth! For richer flavor, you can replace the water in the recipe with more stock.
- Potatoes – you can peel or leave the skins on for a more rustic soup. Russet, or yello wpotatoes work great.
- Kale – strip the leaves from one kale bundle then finely chop. It will seem like alot of kale, but it softens and shrinks down in the soup.
- Whipping cream – heavy cream creates a rich broth. You can use a light cream if desired.
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 an incredible and authentic Italian flavor. Since the garlic is sautéed and 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).
Everyone in my family makes this Zuppa Toscana regularly. I love it when my Mom has a pot simmering on the stove when all of my sisters’ families come over for Sunday lunch. It’s the first thing I reach for, even with plenty of other options on the table (Mom always makes a feast on Sundays!). I hope this Zuppa soup 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 head of garlic, about 10 large cloves, peeled and minced or pressed
- 1 onion, medium, finely diced
- 6 cups chicken broth, or chicken stock
- 4 cups water
- 5 russet potatoes, medium, peeled and chopped into 1/4" thick pieces*
- 1 kale bundle, leaves stripped and chopped (6 cups)
- 1 cup whipping cream, or 1 can full fat unsweetened coconut milk
- salt and black pepper to taste
- Parmesan cheese, optional, to serve
Instructions
- Brown Bacon – 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.
- Brown Italian sausage, breaking it up with your spatula, and sauté until cooked through and browned (5 min). Remove to a paper-towel-lined plate.
- Add onion to the pot and saute 5 min, stirring occasionally, or until soft and golden, then add minced garlic and saute 1 min.
- Add broth and water, and bring to a boil. Add sliced potatoes and cook 13-14 min or until easily pierced with a fork.
- Add chopped kale and cooked sausage, and bring everything to a light boil.
- Stir in cream and bring to a boil. Season to taste with salt and black pepper, then remove from heat. Ladle into bowls and serve garnished with bacon and grated parmesan.
Notes
- Fridge: once completely cool, cover and refrigerate leftovers for 3-4 days.
- Freezer: Soups with cream and potatoes do not freeze well, so I don’t recommend freezing this soup.
- Reheat: Warm on the stove over medium-low heat or in the microwave until steaming hot. Avoid boiling.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
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
- Stuffed Chicken Parmesan
- Filet Mignon
- Chicken Mango Avocado Salad
- Chicken Stir Fry
- Shrimp Scampi
- Monterey Chicken
- Homemade Salsa
- Chicken Piccata
I love this recipe! My partner is vegetarian so I made this vegetarian for him and it was STILL delicious. So rest assured the veggies in your life can still enjoy this soup! I just left out the bacon, subbed veg broth for chicken, and used Beyond Hot Italian sausages – so good. Thanks!!
Sounds great, Jen! Thank you for sharing your experiment with the recipe.
Good Food equals Good Mood. Ohh! This is one dish I can have every day/Happiness on a Plate!
What a delicious and easy hearty soup to pull together! I, too, used less liquid than the recipe called for and used 7 cups of chicken bone broth and a can of full fat coconut milk. I used a potato masher on the cooked potatoes to break them down a bit more. I also used mild sausage as that’s my preference and the flavor is delicious. I imagine the leftovers tomorrow will be fabulous!
Hi Patty! Thank you for sharing that with us. I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe.
My husband loves this soup at Olive Garden, so I wanted to make it for him. I did not have Italian sausage or kale on hand, but being a respectable Southern girl, I did have andouille sausage and collard greens, so that’s what I used. I did not expect this to be so delicious! The only other change I made was to use all chicken broth instead of chicken broth and water. This is definitely one of the best things I’ve ever made! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Pat! That’s amazing. I’m so glad it was a hit. Thanks for the feedback.
Perfect as is. Followed recipe precisely and it is so awesome. Wouldn’t change a thing! This is my favorite soup now.
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Stan!
Best thing about receipes is adjusting to your own taste, but the base is there to give you a start. Keto users can use cauliflower, broccoli, spinach instead of potatoes. You can omit the water and just use chicken broth. Variations change. I added cream cheese to mine like I do with most of my soups to make them creamy. But thats what I like. Thanks for sharing the receipe.
You’re very welcome! Thank you for the great tips!
I love this recipe! I used leeks, omitted the water and added 1/2 c of white wine…yummy!
Thank you Natasha for your great recipes😁
That sounds amazing! Thank you for sharing, Susan!
This is our family’s all time favorite soup. I’ve had this bookmarked for SO long! I use this recipe at least once or twice a month. Thank you! It’s fantastic!!
Love it! It’s a great idea to bookmark this recipe, glad that that this is one of your favorites!
Made this last night & it turned out wonderfully! I did omit the water, & used spinach & half & half rather than kale & whipping cream since that’s what I had on hand. Oldest son said it’s his new favorite soup, better than the restaurant version. I’ve made several of your recipes & they never disappoint. Thanks so much for sharing 🙂
Hi Trish, great to hear that it worked well! Thanks a lot for sharing your experience trying out our recipe.
Hi Natasha. Your video and ingredients list show to CHOP the potatoes. Your written directions (Step#4)say to add the SLICED potatoes. Would it matter either way, as far as cooking times or texture?
Hi Robert, chopped/sliced – they are often used interchangeably – as long as you get them to 1/4″ thick pieces, it will cook evenly.
I made the cilantro lime chicken marinade yesterday for the 4th of July. It was so good! Even my son liked it, and he doesn’t like cilantro. This is definitely a recipe I’ll use again.
That’s wonderful, Claire!
Amazing soup Natasha!
Have you had experience freezing it? If not, how long would you keep it in the fridge?
Thank you!
Hi Carol, I’m glad you loved the soup. I haven’t tried freezing this myself but one of our readers wrote: “I freeze this soup all the time! I usually make a triple recipe so I can freeze some for later… It’s as good, or better!” I hope this helps. This soup will be okay in the fridge for a couple days though!
Thank you for responding Natasha .. I have made several of your recipes and have never been disappointed. Thank you!
You’re very welcome, Carol!
I’ve made this soup numerours times since coming across this recipe. I’ve even made it keto friendly by using cauliflower! It is soo good either way
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Tonya!
I’ve made this soup 5 times. So easy and delicious. I have two teenagers in the house and they love it be it. It’s also good the next day, flavors have had a chance to blend more.
Hi Mona! That’s great to hear. So glad it was enjoyed.
So delicious, made exactly like the recipe shows. I wouldn’t change a thing!
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Carol!
To those who say this is not creamy enough, have you even tried the Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana? It is NOT a cream soup, know this going in and adjust to your own taste, which is the nice thing about cooking for yourself. Having read many of the comments, my questions about changes I might want to make were all answered. Yeah spinach, potatoe flakes, and medium sausage. Because I do want a thicker base I will also add more potatoes, and let them break down longer. This is my husband’s favorite Olive Garden soup, but he wishes it was creamier, like the Chicken Gnocchi. So again, this is why we cook for ourselves, to our own tastes.
Love that you provide these great recipes, and comments for us.
Thank you so much, Nita! So glad you love this recipe (and others).
I have a question on the correct measurements on the water and chicken stock in your Video you said 4 cups chicken stock and 6 cups of water but in the written recipe part you have 4 cups of water and 6 cups chicken stock which is the correct amounts Thank You
Hi Tammy! You can follow the written recipe above. We updated the recipe after the video went live and since there is no way to update the video, that is why there’s a difference.
We love this recipe and make it often but have never needed to add the 4C of water that’s called for in the recipe. I don’t even know why it’s listed nor why anyone would want to water down this soup so much. 6C of chicken stock/broth is more than sufficient.
Also, sometimes we don’t have the hot Italian sausage – or guests who don’t like that level of heat – and we have made it with mild and sweet Italian sausage and either add red pepper flake ourselves or let guests add it to their bowls and control the level of heat as they desire.
Otherwise, this is a solid and amazing recipe that always wows.
Thanks for sharing, VS.
I don’t like kale… can I use spinach or green cabbage instead?
Hi Marlene, we prefer it to kale, but this recipe works will with spinach also. I hope you love it!
It freezes beautifully and we love the soup just as written. It is one of our favorites and I make it often.
I’m so glad to hear that, Jeri! Thank you for sharing.