This easy Whole30 Zuppa Toscana is a simple, hearty Italian soup recipe the whole family will love!
Inspired by the popular Olive Garden dish, it has sausage, kale, bacon and potatoes simmered in a thick, creamy broth. And it’s all made in one pot!
Plus it’s Paleo, dairy-free and gluten-free.
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What is Zuppa Toscana?
Zuppa Toscana (pronounced “ZOO-pah toe-SCAH-nah”) is Italian for “Tuscan soup,” but this recipe isn’t actually from Italy.
To be clear, there obviously are a lot of soups in Tuscany, some of which are similar to this one.
But this exact recipe was popularized in North American by the Italian food chain The Olive Garden.
And since then, copycat Zuppa Toscana recipes have been popping up all over the internet.
Which makes sense: it’s easy to make and is tasty comfort food without being too heavy or rich. Plus it has everything for a meal in one pot: protein, starchy vegetables, leafy vegetables and lots of flavor.
It mostly consists of Italian sausage, bacon, kale, potatoes, onions, garlic and red pepper flakes cooked in broth thickened with heavy cream.
So for those of us following a Paleo diet or on a Whole30, the only real change is swapping out the heavy cream to make it dairy-free.
A lot of Paleo/Whole30 versions use full-fat unsweetened coconut cream, which has a similar richness to cream.
But that also means there can be a subtle coconut flavor, which doesn’t really make sense in a soup like this.
So I have a trick: using half coconut milk and half almond milk. You get all the creaminess without it tasting like coconut or almonds. By using half of each, neither flavor comes through.
Other than that, you just have to make sure the sausage and bacon are Paleo/Whole30 friendly.
And with that, let’s get cooking!
What you need for Whole30 Zuppa Toscana
Ingredients:
- 5 slices Whole30 compatible bacon
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 2 large garlic cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (this will give it a bit of kick without being too spicy; use more or less depending on your preference)
- 1 pound bulk Italian sausage (if you can only get the kind sold as links, remove from the casings; check ingredients if necessary for Paleo/Whole30)
- 1 pound yellow potatoes, such as Russet
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup water
- 1 bunch kale (either the curly or lacinato/dino variety)
- 1/2 cup full-fat unsweetened coconut milk (the water and cream from a can blended well)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened plain almond milk
- fine sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Equipment:
- a cutting board
- a paper towel-lined plate
- a chef’s knife
- a vegetable peeler
- measuring spoons (<– these are my favorite because they fit into spice jars)
- a measuring glass
- a large (6 quart) soup pot/Dutch oven or stockpot
- a wooden spoon or spatula
- a colander or large mixing bowl, for cleaning the kale (see instructions below)
- a towel, for drying the kale
- a ladle for serving
How to make Whole30 Zuppa Toscana (with step-by-step photos)
Add the bacon to a cold, dry soup pot or stockpot and place over medium heat. Cook until dark brown on both sides, then remove to a paper-towel lined plate. The bacon will crisp up as it cools.
You can either leave all the bacon fat in the pan or drain it out, leaving 2 tablespoons in the pot.
While the bacon is cooking, peel and dice the onion and peel and mince the garlic.
Add the onion and garlic to the bacon fat and sauté until the onion is soft and translucent, about 5-8 minutes.
Use a wooden spoon or spatula to push the onion and garlic to the edge of the pot. Add the Italian sausage in the middle. Break it up into smaller and smaller pieces as it cooks until fully browned, about 8-10 minutes.
While the sausage is cooking, peel the potatoes and chop into roughly 1/2″ cubes.
When the sausage is browned, add the cubed potatoes, chicken broth and water to the pot.
Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to bring the soup down to a simmer and let cook for 10 minutes.
While the soup is simmering, remove the kale leaves from their stems, discard the stems and roughly chop the leaves.
To clean the kale, one way is to rinse the leaves in a colander. They can stay in the colander until ready to use (no need to dry the leaves).
Or you can fill a large bowl with water and submerge the leaves in the water. Swish and toss the leaves around in the water to remove any grit.
Remove the leaves to a dry towel (no need to dry them thoroughly). Remove the leaves before dumping out the water – you don’t want to pour the grit back over the leaves!
Once the soup has simmered for 10 minutes, stir in the coconut milk, almond milk and kale.
Turn the heat to high again to bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to let it simmer for 5 minutes. The potatoes should be fork-tender.
Remove from the heat. Crumble or chop the bacon and stir most of it in.
Taste the soup and add salt if necessary. Stir in freshly ground pepper, ladle into bowls and sprinkle with the rest of the bacon.
FAQ’s and substitutions
Can I substitute…?
You can use chicken or turkey Italian sausage instead of pork.
No fresh garlic? Stir in 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder when sautéing the onions.
You can use homemade bone broth but note that it might have more salt than the low-sodium store-bought kind.
You can change the amount of red pepper flakes you use, or leave them out entirely.
If you want a low-carb version, substitute cauliflower florets for the potatoes. Simmer them for about 5 minutes before adding the kale.
You can use other sturdy leafy greens instead of kale, like spinach, Swiss chard or collard greens.
Can I make this ahead of time?
Yep! You can store it in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat over medium heat.
Can I freeze this?
Yep! Store in an airtight container/baggie and freeze for up to 3 months.
Thaw overnight in the fridge. Reheat over medium heat.
Note: If you know you’re going to freeze the soup, I’d recommend cutting the potato-simmering time down to 7-8 minutes before adding the kale. Otherwise they might get too mushy. They’ll finish cooking once you reheat the soup after it thaws.
Other recipes you might like:
- Italian Wedding Soup (Whole30, Paleo)
- Instant Pot Bone Broth (Whole30, Paleo)
- Spiced Coconut Milk Chicken (Whole30, Paleo)
- Leftover Chicken Soup with Vegetables (Whole30, Paleo)
Whole30 Zuppa Toscana (Paleo, Dairy-Free, Healthy)
Ingredients
- 5 slices bacon
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 2 large garlic cloves
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (use more or less depending your preference)
- 1 pound bulk Italian sausage (if only sold in links, remove from casings)
- 1 pound yellow potatoes, such as Russet
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup water
- 1 bunch kale (either the curly or lacinato/dino variety)
- ½ cup full-fat unsweetened coconut milk
- ½ cup unsweetened plain almond milk
- fine sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Add the bacon to a cold, dry soup pot or stockpot and place over medium heat. Cook until dark brown on both sides, then remove to a paper-towel lined plate. The bacon will crisp up as it cools. You can either leave all the bacon fat in the pan or drain it out, leaving 2 tablespoons in the pot.
- While the bacon is cooking, peel and dice the onion and peel and mince the garlic. Add the onion and garlic to the bacon fat and sauté until the onion is soft and translucent, about 5-8 minutes.
- Use a wooden spoon or spatula to push the onion and garlic to the edge of the pot. Add the Italian sausage in the middle. Break it up into smaller and smaller pieces as it cooks until fully browned, about 8-10 minutes.
- While the sausage is cooking, peel the potatoes and chop into roughly 1/2" cubes.
- When the sausage is browned, add the cubed potatoes, chicken broth and water to the pot. Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to bring the soup down to a simmer and let cook for 10 minutes.
- While the soup is simmering, remove the kale leaves from their stems, discard the stems and roughly chop the leaves. To clean the kale, one way is to rinse the leaves in a colander and then leave in the colander until ready to use (no need to dry the leaves).Or you can fill a large bowl with water and submerge the leaves in the water. Swish and toss the leaves around in the water to remove any grit. Remove the leaves to a dry towel (no need to dry them thoroughly). Remove the leaves before dumping out the water - you don't want to pour the grit back over the leaves!
- Once the soup has simmered for 10 minutes, stir in the kale, coconut milk and almond milk. Turn the heat to high again to bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to let it simmer for 5 minutes. The potatoes should be fork-tender.
- Remove from the heat. Crumble or chop the bacon and stir most of it in. Taste the soup and add salt if necessary. Stir in freshly ground pepper, ladle into bowls and sprinkle with the rest of the bacon.
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