Olive Garden Inspired Vegan Copy Zuppa Toscana Soup

 Winter is approaching, and what's better than a nice warm soup when it's chilly outside? Now granted, I live in Florida where "winter" sometimes means 70 degrees, but nevertheless this soup is still a hit in my family! Being Vegan sometimes requires creativity, but luckily there's a ton more options now more than ever when recreating a classic dish. 

Here is a "copy cat" recipe that is inspired by Olive Garden's classic Zuppa Toscana soup. This sub out recipe is super delicious, healthy, easy to make, and picky eater approved! My recipe is not only a plant based take from a classic restaurant menu item, it was also inspired by The Yummy Mummy Kitchen. Her recipe is also vegan but I made a few ingredient changes in my recipe including using white sweet potatoes rather than regular white potatoes. I also like to top my soup with Violife vegan parmesan.

I also really want to recommend Beyond Meat Beyond Sausage. Vegan meat alternatives can be hit or miss, but my family really loves this sausage!

Here is the recipe! Vegan and non-Vegans alike can enjoy this! And of course you are always able to sub traditional sausage if you choose to. You may be surprised, however, if you give my recipe a try!

VEGAN ZUPPA TOSCANA SOUP

PREP TIME: 1 HOUR 20 MIN   COOK TIME: 30 MIN

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided

1 yellow onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning blend

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

3 white sweet potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces

32 oz vegetable stock

1 bunch kale, de-stemmed and torn into pieces

1 can coconut milk

1 tablespoon flour

2 Vegan Italian sausage

Violife Vegan parmesan

INSTRUCTIONS    

1. Add olive oil to a large pot over medium heat. Saute until softened. Add garlic, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes and saute another minute, taking care not to burn the garlic. Add the potatoes and vegetable stock. Bring to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.

2. While the potatoes cook, brown the sausages. Cut the sausages into bite sized pieces and saute in the remaining tablespoon of oil in a frying pan until browned, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

3. Once the potatoes are tender, add the kale to the pot and stir in until wilted. It will look like a lot of kale at first but really cooks down. Stir in the coconut milk and whisk in the flour until there are no clumps. Add the sausages to the soup. Simmer all the ingredients together just until they are all warmed through. Taste and adjust seasonings if desired. Serve right away and sprinkle with parmesan. 

I hope you try this recipe and it becomes a go to for those winter night dinners that will fill you up and keep you warm.

Happy cooking!

- Sheree