When I was in college, I worked as a server at The Olive Garden. One of the staples of my diet while I was there was soup (the other was breadsticks!). One of the problems with working in a restaurant like that is you learn to like all sorts of dishes, but when you visit the restaurant as a “civillian,” you have to choose just one thing.

Luckily, now that I can make Zuppa Toscana and Pasta e Fagioli at home, I can at least remove the soup or salad choice from that dilemma!

I may have stolen that picture from the Olive Garden website, but I promise–mine was just like the real thing!

Olive Garden Copycat Zuppa Toscana
Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 1 lb sweet bulk Italian sausage (or links, with the casings removed)
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2/3 cup cream
• 4 quarts chicken stock (homemade or from a box; don’t substitute broth)
• 3 slices bacon
• 6 c water
• 1/4 tsp ground aniseed
• 1 bunch kale, cut into bite size pieces
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 3-4 large russet potatoes, sliced
• 1 large onion white, finely chopped

Directions

1. Bring chicken stock & water to a light boil & add potatoes.

2. In a large skillet cook bacon until somewhat done & remove from the pan. Crumble the bacon and reserve for later.

3. Sauté the onion in the bacon fat until the onions are a golden brown color. Add to boiling stock & potatoes.

4. In the same skillet add olive oil, garlic and crumbled Italian sausage. Cook over medium high heat until the sausage is cooked through, about 7-8 minutes. When sausage is cooked, add the contents of the skillet to the boiling stock & potatoes.

5. Continue to cook at a light boil until the potatoes are fork tender. When they are done reduce heat and add cream, crumbled bacon, kale, salt, anise, red pepper, black pepper. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes, to allow the flavors to come together. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese and garlic bread.

Note: I made this as listed the first time I tried it, and it was good, but I found that we all picked around the kale, so I left that out the second time. That’s another reason to recreate restaurant favorites at home–I only have to add the parts I like!

Here’s another of our favorite risotto recipes. This is the one David always makes when he takes over the dinner preparations. It starts as a basic risotto milanese, with arborio rice, chicken stock, garlic, white wine, and parmesan cheese. We add to this classic flavor combination with Italian sausage and sun-dried tomatoes, which play nicely against the creamy texture of the risotto and the tang of Parmesan cheese.

Sun-Dried Tomato and Sausage Risotto

• 3.5 cups Chicken Stock or Chicken Broth (stock is better)
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/2 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 3/4 pound bulk Italian sausage (or about three links, casings removed)
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil/from a jar, diced
• 2 teaspoons sun-dried tomato oil, from the jar