Zuppa Toscana Casserole

Zuppa toscana casserole turns the rustic Italian soup into a hearty meat and potatoes casserole that will feed the hungriest appetites. This dish features layers of potatoes, Italian sausage, bacon, and veggies baked in a rich cream sauce.

We love making soups and stews in our house.

But being the mom to 4 boys with seemingly endless appetites means that often if I serve soup, they are hungry just minutes later.

So I often favor serving soups with sides like bread or biscuits.

Or I avoid it all together in favor of a heartier main like a casserole.

And that’s sad because soup is delicious.

But this zuppa toscana casserole is basically soup and a hearty casserole in one dish.

It gives you all the flavors of zuppa toscana, a creamy Olive Garden Italian soup featuring sausage and kale but adds layers of potatoes to up the hearty factor.

That’s one satisfying dinner!

Ingredients

To make this you’ll need:

• Bacon– Cooked crisp and crumbled. Save the bacon grease!
• Italian sausage– Cooked, crumbled, and drained.
• Potatoes– Thinly sliced russet potatoes
• Onion– A small white onion, peeled and diced.
• Garlic paste– You can find this in the produce section of most grocery stores.
• Kale– Wash it, remove the stems, and chop it
• Flour– To thicken the soup
• Chicken broth– Use lower sodium if you’d like to better control how salty this is.
• Heavy cream– Don’t substitute it for a lower fat dairy product
• Egg– Beaten and tempered
• Salt and pepper– To taste
• Parmesan cheese– Shredded

How to Make

Let’s break down how to make zuppa toscana casserole.

To do it, start by spreading the sliced potatoes out in an even layer in the bottom of a 9×13″ baking dish that you have sprayed with nonstick spray.

Spread the sausage and bacon evenly out over the potato layers.

Then add the bacon grease to the same large skillet you cooked the sausage and bacon in set over medium heat.

Once the skillet is hot, saute the onions and garlic in the grease for 2-3 minutes or just until the onions soften.

Stir in the kale, cooking it just until wilted.

Then work the flour into the skillet, stirring so it coats everything.

Let the flour cook for a minute.

Then whisk the broth into the skillet.

Let the mixture simmer until it slightly thickens.

Then stir in the cream until evenly incorporated.

Transfer a a tablespoon of the hot liquid to a small bowl, then add the beaten egg and stir to combine.

After the first tablespoon is combined, keep tempering the egg by stirring in another tablespoon of the hot liquid, then one more.

Whisk the egg mixture back into the skillet to combine it with the rest of the mixture.

Then add half the Parmesan cheese sauce to the skillet, stirring, just until melted and smooth.

Pour the sauce mixture evenly out over the potatoes.

Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 400° for 50-60 minutes.

Then carefully remove the foil and sprinkle the remaining cheese evenly out overtop.

Bake the casserole for another 25-30 minutes.

Carefully remove the hot dish from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes so that sauce sets.

Serve and enjoy!

Storing Leftovers

Store leftovers tightly wrapped in the casserole dish or in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Reheat in the microwave or in hot oven until warmed through.

Tips and Tricks

• Any kind of onion will work if you don’t have a white onion.
• You could cook the sausage and bacon ahead of time and just reserve the bacon grease in a refrigerated tin until you are ready to make the cream sauce.
• Want to up the cheese factor more? Mix in some shredded mozzarella along with the Parmesan.

Other Casserole Recipes

Zuppa toscana is one of my family’s favorite hearty meals.

Make it and enjoy!

Looking for other casserole recipes?

Try these:

• Hobo Casserole
• Chicken Pot Pie Casserole
• Shrimp Scampi Casserole
• Chicken Divan Casserole
• Chili Cornbread Casserole

If you’ve tried this ZUPPA TOSCANA CASSEROLE, or any other recipe on the site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!