This creamy kale and sausage soup is the perfect hearty meal to help you beat the January blues! Crispy sausage, potatoes, and kale are cooked in a creamy broth with just a hint of lemon for a meal that the whole family will love.
Table of Contents
This recipe is…
You may also know this soup as Zuppa Toscana, which literally translates to ‘soup in the style of Tuscany,’ and was widely popularized by Olive Garden. While I’ve never personally eaten Olive Garden’s version (my trips to Olive Garden pre-gluten free always involved breadsticks, more breadsticks, maybe a little salad, and fettuccine alfredo) we decided to go ahead and make it our own.
Sausage and Kale Soup
This creamy kale and sausage soup is so, so good! When I released my first cookbook, one of your favorite recipes was my lemony kale and sausage soup. This soup takes the base of that recipe (crispy sausage, kale, and plenty of lemon) and amps it up even more with the addition of bacon, onion, garlic, potatoes, and cream (or coconut milk for dairy-free)! If you have a household full of kale-haters, this soup is the PERFECT way to convince them that not only may kale not be awful, but it’s actually really, really good!
Ingredients for Kale Sausage Soup
The sausage and bacon in this creamy kale and sausage soup give it a wonderful savory flavor, while the potatoes add just a bit of healthy starchy carb content, the cream a touch of richness, and lemon juice adds a bright acidity that really lets the flavors sing. Here’s everything you’ll need to pull this soup together:
- Bacon – for this recipe, you’ll need 6 slices of diced bacon,…
- Italian Sausage – …2 pounds of bulk Italian sausage,…
- Olive Oil – …1 tablespoon of olive oil,…
- Onion – …1 small diced onion,…
- Garlic Cloves – …4 cloves of minced garlic,…
- Potatoes – …1 1/2 pounds of peeled and chopped potatoes (we used russets!),…
- Chicken Broth – …8 cups of chicken broth (store-bought or homemade!)…
- Seasoning – …1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning, a 1/2 teaspoon of coarse sea salt, a 1/4 teaspoon of ground black pepper,…
- Kale – …1 head of de-stemmed and chopped curly kale,…
- Heavy Cream – …3/4 cup of heavy cream (or full-fat coconut milk for dairy-free),…
- Lemon juice – a 1/4 cup of lemon juice (the juice from about 2 lemons), and…
- Red Pepper Flakes – …a 1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes (optional).
How to Make Creamy Kale Sausage Soup
We decided to make this creamy kale and sausage soup on the stovetop because the bacon, sausage, and onion all need to be pre-cooked and from there it’s just a short time until it is done. Here’s exactly what you’ll need to do:
- Cook the Bacon – add the bacon to a large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pot and drain off the fat.
- Cook the Sausage – increase the heat to medium-high and add the sausage and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, until the sausage is brown and crisp, breaking it up as it cooks. Remove the sausage from the pot and drain the excess fat.
- Saute the Onion + Garlic – add the olive oil to the pot along with the onion and garlic, and saute for 3 to 4 minutes, until the onion is translucent and garlic is fragrant.
- Add the Sausage, Potatoes, Broth, and Seasoning – return the cooked sausage back to the pot along with the potatoes, broth, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Cover + Cook – cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 25-30 minutes until the potatoes are tender.
- Add + Wilt the Kale – add in the kale, then cover and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes, until the kale is wilted and bright green.
- Stir in the Heavy Cream, Lemon Juice, Red Pepper Flakes, and Bacon – stir in the heavy cream, lemon juice, and crushed red pepper flakes, and bacon, and cook for a 3-5 minutes, until warmed through, then taste for seasoning, adding additional salt and pepper if needed.
- Serve + Enjoy!
Whichever method you choose, we hope you enjoy this soup all winter long! If this soup is calling your name, you might also love our Squeaky Clean Chicken & Veggie Soup for a similar, but more brothy option.
Kale Sausage Soup Frequently Asked Questions
You can absolutely make this creamy kale and sausage soup in a slow cooker or in the Instant Pot by sautéing everything in the Instant Pot, then cooking on high pressure for about 7 minutes. After that, you’ll simply stir in your kale and let it cook until wilted and bright green, then stir in your cream and lemon juice and serve.
You sure can! We recommend storing this soup in an airtight container (or several individually-portioned airtight containers) in the freezer for 3-4 months. The day before you’re ready to enjoy it, simply set the container in the fridge to thaw overnight, and then warm the soup in a pot on the stove before serving!
Whether you’re storing this soup in the fridge or freezer, we recommend storing it in either one large airtight container or several smaller airtight containers with individually-sized portions in each. In the fridge, this soup will stay good for 4-5 days, and it’ll stay good in the freezer for 3-4 months!
Video
More Favorite Soup Recipes
Creamy Kale and Sausage Soup
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon diced
- 2 pounds bulk Italian sausage
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 1/2 pounds potatoes peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes (we used russets)
- 8 cups chicken broth store-bought or homemade
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 head curly kale de-stemmed and chopped
- 3/4 cup heavy cream or full-fat coconut milk
- 1/4 cup lemon juice about 2 lemons
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
Instructions
- Add the bacon to a large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pot and drain off the fat.
- Increase the heat to medium-high and add the sausage and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, until the sausage is brown and crisp, breaking it up as it cooks. Remove the sausage from the pot and drain the excess fat.
- Add the olive oil to the pot along with the onion and garlic, and saute for 3 to 4 minutes, until the onion is transluscent and garlic is fragrant. Add the sausage back to the pot along with the potatoes, broth, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Cover and reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 25-30 minutes, until the potatoes are tender.
- Add in the kale, then cover and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes, until the kale is wilted and bright green.
- Stir in the heavy cream, lemon juice, and crushed red pepper flakes, and bacon, and cook for a 3-5 minutes, until warmed through, then taste for seasoning, adding additional salt and pepper if needed, and serve!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
I LOVE this recipe, as does my family! When you are craving a tummy-warming, delicious and satiating soup on a cold fall or winter day, THIS hits the spot. And since there are only the three of us, I can freeze half for another day! Thank you so much for this recipe!
YAY! We are so happy you loved it, Crystal!
Hi! What are the crock pot instructions?
I left out the coconut milk and potatoes, used garlic broth and added cilantro and parsley. OMG fantastic. I’ll make it again and follow the recipe soon after I get the ingredients – but this has eliminated my fear of pureed kale soups forever!
Yum! Sounds like delicious subs! So glad you enjoyed the recipe and have taken a step in the kale soup category. 🙂 Thank you for taking the time to share with us! -Melissa
was delicious! modifications I made left out bacon, used chicken sausage and added saut̩ed mushrooms in vegan butter with porcini mushroom seasoning. used coconut cream with some oatmilk creamer Рshaking both in mason jar made it smooth.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Vanessa!
Delicious! Made this a few nights ago and my kids, husband and neighbor enjoyed it. I don’t think the bacon is necessary and will likely leave out next time but super simple and delicious using instant pot method.
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it, Carolyn! Thanks for sharing!
I’ve made this several times and it’s real popular in my house! I just love the combination of flavors! I tried it with ground chicken and it just wasn’t quite the same. Any other suggestions to lower the sodium content?
So glad you like this one, Katie! You can use low sodium broth + omit the 1/2 teaspoon of salt.
I made this last night and everyone loved it! I have sent the link to several people and told them they should make it.
So glad you enjoyed it Lori – thanks for sharing!
Never heard of this before and I have a family of kale haters. This was so yummy and so filling! Love the lemon in this!
So glad you enjoyed it, Bernadette! Thank you for sharing this with us!
So delicious! We used sweet turkey Italian sausage and it was so so good! Thank you for this recipe!
We are so glad you loved it, Stacey!! Thank you for sharing this with us.
My favorite soup recipe this fall!! It’s quick to do, but building all the flavors up in the same pot made such a wonderful layered flavor. I haven’t ever used kale in soup before & now I’m hooked! Love love love!
Yay! That’s so great to hear, Amanda! Thank you for sharing this with us!
Soooooooo delicious!!! Whipped this up while my kids were on their class zooms it was so quick. My kids are adventurous eaters so they didn’t think twice about the kale. I did however add pulled chicken meat to the recipe, my family loves a meaty soup!
Great addition! So glad you all loved it, Michelle!
This soup is amazing. I love the combo of sausage with the creamy lemon and my entire family ate kale!! I made this in the instant pot using the slow cooker setting. Perfect because I could saute everything first and then let it cook all day. A new keeper in our household!
Wahoo! That’s so great to hear, Megan! Thank you for sharing this with us!
Yum! Family loved this soup. Will definitely be adding this to.the recipe rotation.
Wahoo! Thanks for sharing this with us, Christina!
Thanks for the reminder of how good this soup is. I’ve made it before minus the lemon juice (I’m adding lemon juice this time). Perfect for a fall day.
Agreed! It’s one of our favorites!
This soup is absolutely amazing. I didn’t even have bacon and it was still FABULOUS!!
So glad you loved it, Jessica!! Thanks for sharing this with us!