Zuppa Toscana Soup

Yes. I'm crazy and made soup in the summer. I was really craving Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana soup but didn't want to go out for dinner to get it. So I made it at home!

It's a great soup--my favorite part is the kale. Just make sure you read the directions carefully. I serve it with a wheat Kaiser roll which makes for a nice little meal. It freezes well and reheats nicely. Make sure you've got a "gi-normious" pot to put it in!

**DO NOT mistake "tsp" for "tbsp" with the red crushed pepper! OUCH!**

For you Weight Watchers folks. This made 15 (1-1.5 cup) servings for me. So, when I put it into the recipe builder it came out to 6 points. My suggestion: see how many servings it makes for you and use the recipe builder.

Olive Garden® Zuppa Toscana

Makes: 6-8 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb ground Italian sausage
• 1½ tsp crushed red peppers
• 1 large diced white onion
• 4 Tbsp bacon pieces
• 2 tsp garlic puree
• 10 cups water
• 5 cubes of chicken bouillon
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 lb sliced Russet potatoes, or about 3 large potatoes
• ¼ of a bunch of kale

1. Sauté Italian sausage and crushed red pepper in a large pot. Drain excess fat, refrigerate while you prepare other ingredients.
2. In the same pan, sauté bacon, onions and garlic over low-medium heat for approximately 15 mins. or until the onions are soft.
3. Add chicken bouillon and water to the pot and heat until it starts to boil.
4. Add the sliced potatoes and cook until soft, about half an hour.
5. Add the heavy cream and just cook until thoroughly heated.
6. Stir in the sausage and the kale, let all heat through and serve. Delicious!

Buon appetito!

Anybody want some super crushed red pepper infused soup?