Julie Clark
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Paleo Zuppa Toscana
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Paleo Zuppa Toscana is a rich soup filled with potatoes, kale, Italian sausage and bacon. It’s easy to make this creamy dairy free soup in the slow cooker.
This creamy potato sausage soup is our grain free, gluten free, sugar free and dairy free version of Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana soup. That creamy low carb soup is Matt’s favorite and it is so easy to make at home. It fits Keto, Whole30 and Paleo eating plans.
Zuppa Toscana literally means “soup in the style of Tuscany”. This creamy Whole30 zuppa toscana soup is full of potatoes, Italian sausage, kale, onions, and most importantly, bacon.
Bacon makes everything better.
Zuppa Toscana with Coconut Milk
This is a dairy free zuppa toscana soup that uses coconut cream to make it creamy.
The coconut cream should be added at the very end of cooking. Refrigerate the can of coconut cream and use only the solid white cream from the cans. Save the clear milky liquid for a smoothie or another recipe. Add the cream in, stir it into the soup a bit so it melts in and voila…you’ve got creamy soup!
Zuppa Toscana Ingredients
There are only 8 ingredients in this Paleo zuppa toscana:
- Bacon & Italian Sausage. These should both be cooked before they go in the slow cooker. I used our own Italian sausage blend with one pound of ground turkey.
- Onion & Garlic. To season the soup.
- Chicken Stock. Or chicken broth if you prefer.
- Potatoes. Russet potatoes or yukon gold potatoes.
- Kale. If you don’t like kale, try spinach.
- Coconut cream. This is my go to for making soups creamy. I use it in our chicken potato soup and creamy turmeric soup.
How to Make Paleo Zuppa Toscana in 4 Steps
- Place half of the cooked and crumbled bacon into the slow cooker. Reserve the other half as a topping for the soup.
- Add the Italian sausage, chicken stock, garlic, onion and potatoes to the slow cooker. Cover and simmer on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-6 hours until the potatoes are tender.
- With 30 minutes left, add the kale to the slow cooker. Cover and allow the kale to cook for 30 minutes.
- Five minutes before serving, open the can of refrigerated coconut cream and add just the solid white cream to the slow cooker. Reserve the clear coconut milk for another use. Let the cream heat through the soup for about 5 minutes.
Prep Ahead
Looking for easy morning prep? Brown the sausage and bacon in advance (or the night before) so it is all ready for the slow cooker.
I’ve also made this as a freezer meal, adding the bacon, sausage, chicken stock and onion to a bag. Then defrost and you’re half way to making this soup anytime you need it.
Recipe Variations
- Need a soup that is low carb? Switch out the potatoes for cauliflower florets.
- This is a spicy soup, but add more heat by adding red pepper flakes or black pepper.
- Have fresh herbs? Garnish the soup with thyme, basil or oregano.
- Switch out the coconut cream for cashew cream. Or if you’re not dairy free you can use heavy cream, half and half or whole milk.
- Add more veggies: carrots, zucchini or celery all add bulk to the soup without changing the flavor profile.
Storage Instructions
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. This soup is so good served the next day. The flavors are enhanced as the soup sits.
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Paleo Zuppa Toscana
Paleo Zuppa Toscana is a rich soup filled with potatoes, kale, Italian sausage and bacon. It's easy to make this creamy dairy free soup in the slow cooker.
Servings 8 servings
Prep Time 2 minutes
Cook Time 6 hours
Total Time 6 hours 2 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 lb bacon cooked and crumbled
- 1 lb Italian sausage browned and drained
- 4 cups chicken stock 32 ounces
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 3 large Russet potatoes peeled and cut into cubes
- 2 cups kale diced
- 1 can full fat unsweetened coconut cream refrigerated
Instructions
- Place half of the cooked and crumbled bacon into the slow cooker. Reserve the other half as a topping for the soup.
- Add the Italian sausage, chicken stock, garlic, onion and potatoes to the slow cooker. Cover and simmer on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-6 hours until the potatoes are tender.
- With 30 minutes left, add the kale to the slow cooker. Cover and allow the kale to cook for 30 minutes.
- Five minutes before serving, open the can of refrigerated coconut cream and add just the solid white cream to the slow cooker. Reserve the clear coconut milk for another use. Let the cream heat through the soup for about 5 minutes.
- Serve with crumbled bacon on top.
Video
Notes
- You can lower the calories in this recipe by using lean turkey sausage and not adding as much bacon.
- Make this soup on the stovetop in a large dutch oven. Simmer over medium heat.
Nutrition
Calories: 747kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 58g | Saturated Fat: 29g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 19g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 84mg | Sodium: 974mg | Potassium: 1151mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 551IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 57mg | Iron: 4mg
This recipe was so delish! Subsituted cauliflower for the potatoes and you couldnt tell the difference. Thanks for the great recipe
Re. Your Zuppz Toscano soup, I use sweet Italian turkey sausage and cauliflower stems or the core and it is delious
SOOO delicious. My hubby loves the Olive a Garden version but this one is just as good if not better! Incredible flavor. We doubled the recipe so we could eat all week : Already looking forward to lunch tomorrow!
Absolutely love this recipe, thank you so much for sharing! This has become a family favorite and a regular in my meal planning rotation. I like to buy the sausage and bacon in advance, brown the sausage while the bacon cooks in the oven then bag them both up & toss in the freezer. This way when I decide to make the soup, the meat-prep is already done. I like to make it in my Instant Pot pressure cooker on the “Soup” setting, let the pressure release a bit, then add the kale to simmer for 30 minutes, then the… Read more »
I made a double batch of this soup this morning and it is amazing! Tastes just like Olive Gardens version as Far as Ican remember. Had to cook it on the stove as it was too much for the slow cooker – took 40-50 min. I didnt peel the potatoes and it took 3 1/2 times the liquid to make a double recipe (I used 12 C chicken stock and 4 C water). I used ground pork and followed the linked Italian sausage recipe. i have made your sausage recipe 4 times and it is also awesome! I always put… Read more »
This looks so delicious! I absolutely love zuppa toscana soup! Since I have celiac disease, paleo recipes are perfect for me! Thank you.
Just made this soup for dinner and all I have to say is WOW! I also followed the sausage recipe using pork and loved it. I was worried that the coconut flavor would be overwhelming in the soup but I didnt even notice it. I will now always use this recipe instead of the “traditional” version that is loaded with dairy and store bought sausage with God knows what added ingredients!
Hello, want to make this for company. Just quick question… Do the potatoes get too soft from being in crockpot so long? Thank you so much!!
Potatoes are not paleo!
Daaaang! This looks perfect for rainy season. Can’t wait to try it when it cools down!
Making this as we speak! I have a can of trader joe’s coconut cream, not milk. I still refrigerated it, however. About how much cream should I use? (In cups)
I have been craving this soup from Olive Garden (despite the 90 degree weather we’ve been having) and came across this recipe. I made it today and I have to say it was probably better than the Olive Garden version! Thanks for this recipe, I look forward to trying more of the recipes on your site! (Especially if they satisfy my pregnancy cravings like this one did!)
I’m going to try this tonight just cooking it up in a bot, not doing the slow cooker. Can’t wait!
My daughter sent me this link and I made it last night. I didn’t have an kale, but I had baby spinach, and made the sausage with ground turkey. This dish is absolutely delicious! Thank you so much!!!!
We substitute parsnips for the potatoes. They honestly don’t change the flavor and my kids don’t know the difference between when I use potatoes and when I use parsnips. Just wanted to share if anyone is looking for alternatives to potatoes.