Thank you so much.

Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana
12 small spicy sausage links
2 medium potatoes, cut in half lengthwise, and then cut into 1/4" slices
3/4 cup onions, diced
6 slices bacon
1 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups kale leaves, cut in half, then sliced
2 tablespoons chicken base
1 qt. water
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
1. Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place sausage links onto a sheet pan and bake for 25 minutes, or until done; cut in half length-wise, then cut at an angle into 1/2 inch slices.

Place onions and bacon in a large saucepan and cook over medium heat until onions are almost clear. Remove bacon and crumble. Add garlic to the onions and cook an additional 1-minute. Add chicken base, water, and potatoes, simmer 15 minutes. Add crumbled bacon, sausage, kale and cream. Simmer 4 minutes and serve.

Becky
Lompoc, CA

* Exported from MasterCook *

Sausage & Potato Soup

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 8 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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4 large baking potatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds) -- peeled and cubed
1 1/2 pounds kielbasa -- sliced
2 stalks celery -- sliced
2 medium carrots -- sliced
1 medium onion -- chopped
1/2 small head cabbage -- thinly sliced
2 chicken bouillon cube (or sub 2 cups broth
for 2 cups water)
2 teaspoons dried marjoram
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1 cup half and half
1 cup light sour cream
6 1/2 cups water -- divided

1. In 4-quart saucepan over high heat, heat potatoes and 3 cups water to boiling. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 15 minutes or until tender. Do not drain - using hand mixer, puree potatoes and water.

2. In 8-quart Dutch oven or saucepot over medium-high heat, cook kielbasa, stirring frequently, until browned. Add celery, carrots, onion and cabbage and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender. Stir in pureed potatoes, bouillon, marjoram, salt, pepper and another 3 1/2 cups water; heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 15 minutes.

3. Stir in half-and-half and sour cream; heat through. (Do not boil, or mixture may curdle.)

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Enjoy!

Truthfully I like this version much better than when I've had it at the Olive Garden. The only changes I made are to omit the Kale and crumble the sausage to cook it and fry two slices of bacon and cook the sausage in the rendered bacon drippings. This leaves you with a substantial amount of fond to flavor the soup.

Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana

½ lb. Hot Italian lean turkey sausage (2 lg links)
3 cups fat-free chicken broth
3 cups fat-free chicken broth
3 cups fat-free milk
2 Tbsp minced onion
1 Tbsp Hormel Real Bacon Pieces
¼ tsp. Salt
dash of crushed red pepper flakes
1 medium russet potato
2 cups chopped kale
Parmesan Cheese, shredded

Saute the sausage until cooked. Combine the chicken broth, milk, onion, bacon pieces, salt, and pepper flakes and pour over the cooked sausage, over medium high heat. Quarter the potato lengthwise, then cut into ¼ inch slices. Add to the saucepan. When mixture begins to boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
Add Kale to the soup and simmer for an additional 10-15 minutes. Add parmesan cheese to soup when serving.

Serves 3

Beverly