This Isn’t Just a Copycat Recipe, It’s Better Than The Original!
Soup has got to be one of my all-time favorite comfort foods. In fact, I don’t think I have ever met a soup that I didn’t like. So when I saw Amanda’s copycat recipe for the Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana, I knew I was in for a treat.
The fact that she made it in a slow cooker gave this recipe bonus points in my book, because even though I still like a hot soup in the middle of summer’s heat, I definitely don’t want to be standing over my hot stove making it! This is a delicious creamy soup, although I wouldn’t consider it cream-based, as it is clearly made with stock. But finishing it with cream gives it a nice mouthfeel and visual appeal.
This version is also chockfull of ingredients, whereas its namesake is often sparsely populated with potatoes, spicy Italian sausage and kale. I have been known to send it back to the kitchen in this popular Italian restaurant. Yes, I am aware that I am a fussy foodie!
If you think that the hot Italian sausage is going to be too much heat for your taste buds and stomach to handle, go ahead and use mild Italian sausage, or even regular ground pork sausage. You can also adjust the amount of crushed red pepper flakes that you add, as a little of those go a long way.
USE THE RED NEXT PAGE LINK BELOW FOR THE RECIPE AND INSTRUCTIONS.
Quick Tip: If you don’t want to use heavy cream, you can substitute whole milk, half-and-half or evaporated milk to achieve the desired creaminess in this soup. But the amount of cream is really minor, compared to the total volume of the soup. If you are lactose intolerant, and avoiding cream for that reason, you could use soy or almond milk.
Recipe and image courtesy of Amanda at The Chunky Chef
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