Skip to main content

Tuscan Soup

Welcome back! 
Today, we have a delicious soup originating from Tuscany, Italy (this is the region where Florence is in). Traditionally, this dish is a combination of various vegetables with some Italian bacon and Tuscan bread. The one we made is more Americanized, featuring Italian sausage, and it's a little heartier. However, they are still pretty similar in the vegetables used: kale, potatoes, carrots, etc. 

Tuscan Soup


Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 8 to 10 ounces Italian sausage
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 3 cups chicken broth
  • 1 to 2 cups half & half
  • 1 large potato, diced
  • 1 medium carrot, diced
  • 1/2 bunch kale, chopped
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Steam the potato and carrot and save it for later.
  2. With the olive oil in a pot, cook the Italian sausage until browned. 
  3. Remove the sausage from the pot. Saute the onion and garlic in the pot.
  4. Add the flour into the pot and mix.
  5. Add in the chicken broth and put in the sausage again.
  6. Add in the steamed potatoes and carrots.
  7. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes.
  8. Add in the kale and cook until cooked to your desired consistency.
  9. Add the half & half. You can use milk to make it lighter or heavy cream to make it richer.
  10. Add in the salt and pepper to taste.
Honestly, there's a lot in this soup, so much to the point where it's almost a stew: it's got meat, starch, and vegetables all in one. Plus, it's hot and easy to eat, so it makes for a good, comforting dish, especially when it's cold outside. 
Goes great with breadsticks!
Just to clarify, there are actually many different kinds of Tuscan soups: if you look on the Internet, you'll notice that there are many different colors, ranging from whiter to redder. That all varies on the type of soup base, like if you add tomato paste (which is often done), it will be redder, obviously.

-Chefpo
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Brownie Cheesecake

Welcome back to Chez Chefpo!  Today, we have a delicious treat that combines two wonderful desserts into one! If you like brownies and cheesecake, you're going to like this too, as the two flavors really balance and complement each other. It also goes well with some fresh fruit and is a good final course of a meal. (In fact, you got a sneak peek at it in our Pasta Salad recipe!) Brownie Cheesecake Makes a 9" round pan Ingredients: Brownie: 6 ounces dark chocolate 4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter 2 tablespoons brown sugar 6 tablespoons sugar 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 75 grams cake flour 1 tablespoon cocoa powder 1 teaspoon espresso powder 1/2 teaspoon salt Chocolate chips (optional) Cheesecake: 8 ounces ricotta cheese 8 ounces cream cheese 4 ounces plain greek yogurt 2 eggs 50 grams sugar 1/4 cups dried fruit (cranberries, raisins, blueberries) soaked in rum/brandy/Grand Marnier Lemon zest (optional) In place of the ricotta cheese, you could use another 8 ounces of c...
Post a Comment
Read more

Nduja Pasta

Welcome back!  Today, we have another regional pasta recipe: Nduja Pasta! This dish comes from Calabria in Southern Italy, which is known for their chili peppers and their unique Italian dialect. Nduja is an interesting product that comes from Calabria - it is a sausage spread that is made of a mixture of pork and Calabrian chilis, giving it its distinctive red hue and spicy flavor. You can serve it in a variety of ways, from a simple spread on some bread, or in a pasta sauce as in this recipe. It really spices things up! Nduja Pasta Makes 4-5 servings Ingredients: 16 ounces pasta 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1 medium onion, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 4-6 ounces nduja, depending on how spicy you prefer your pasta 26 ounces tomato passata (strained tomatoes) Grated Parmigiano Reggiano to top Directions: Saute the onion in with the olive oil in a pan until soft and translucent. Add the garlic in and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add in the nduja and stir into the aromati...
Post a Comment
Read more

Gumbo

Welcome back!  Today, we have a Louisianian classic: gumbo! Gumbo is an interesting amalgamation of cultures: European, African, and Native American. A key feature of this dish is the okra, which comes Africa, as well as the roux, which is French. It also has a "Holy Trinity" of vegetables, which is commonly used in Cajun recipes, and consists of celery, onion, and bell pepper. Gumbo is often served with rice, and honestly, I have never seen it eaten with anything else. Gumbo Makes about 6 servings Ingredients: Roux: 1/3 cup oil or butter 1/2 cup flour Vegetables: 1/2 onion, chopped 1 stalk celery, chopped 1/2 bell pepper, chopped 1 garlic clove, minced 1 cup tomatoes, chopped 1 pound okra, cut Soup and spices: 2 tablespoons tomato paste 3 to 4 cups broth 2 bay leaves 2 teaspoon cajun creole seasoning 1 teaspoon thyme 1 teaspoon gumbo file powder 1 teaspoon sugar 1 teaspoon worcestshire sauce 1 teaspoon chili pepper Meat: 1 link (about 12 ounces) andouille sausage, cut 1/2 po...
1 comment
Read more