If you’ve ever been to the Olive Garden restaurants and enjoyed a bowl of their Toscana soup, with its tasty creamy combination of sausage, potatoes, and kale, you are sure to love this.
This rendition was inspired (and approved) by Elana, an exceptional kitchen assistant who served (and slurped) countless bowls of the beloved soup at the Olive Garden while working there. She was thrilled to say when were finished it tastes the same – especially as calories, fat, and sodium were trimmed. To reduce the fat we trialed both rich-tasting nonfat half-and-half and evaporated milk. Both produced a soup similar to the that at the restaurant. Half-and-half has a slight edge when it comes to the original color; evaporated milk in taste.
Tip: Be careful to not over simmer the soup as the potato slices break down easily. Once your ingredients are assembled, this “zuppa” is ready to eat in just 20 minutes!!
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
8 ounces reduced-fat Italian sausage (homemade recipe can be found on page 242 of EWYL Restaurant Favorites)
scant 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 cups (or 2 14-ounce cans) reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 large russet potato (about 1/2 pound)
1/8 teaspoon liquid smoke
2 cups kale leaves, stems removed
2/3 cup nonfat half-and-half or low-fat evaporated milk
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1. Spray a medium soup pot with cooking spray and place over medium heat. Add the sausage and red pepper flakes, stir to break up the meat into large crumbles, and cook just until browned. Remove and set aside.
2. Add the oil and onion to the pot. Cook the onion for 5 minutes, or until translucent (add a little broth as needed to prevent the onion from burning). While onion cooks, cut potato in half lengthwise, lay flat, and then cut into 1/4-inch slices. When the onion is translucent, stir in liquid smoke.
3. Add the broth and potato slices and cook for 4 minutes. Uncover, add kale, and simmer on low for 5 minutes, or until kale is just tender. Combine the half-and-half with the cornstarch and add to the pot along with the browned sausage. Simmer for 1 additional minute and serve.
DARE TO COMPARE: A simple switch from cream to evaporated milk and regular Italian sausage to lean turkey sausage reduces the fat (including the saturated fat) by almost 75 percent. It also cut 100 unhealthy calories per serving.
Nutrition Information Per Serving (1 1/2 cups) Calories 190 | Carbohydrates 17g (Sugars 5g) | Total Fat 5g (Sat Fat 1.5g) Protein 18g | Fiber 3g | Cholesterol 25mg | Sodium 610 | Food Exchanges = 2 Lean Meat, 1 Vegetable, 1 Starch | Carbohydrate choices: 1 | Weight Watcher Smart Point Comparison: Green 4, Blue 4, Purple, 3
