October 20: Soup-er Sunday: Creamy Sausage Potato Soup

It’s Sunday again already. And that means it’s another Soup-er Sunday! 

What’s cookin’? It’s a thick, creamy, veggie-filled potato-sausage soup. 

I found today’s recipe on Carlsbad Cravings’ blog. She calls it “Better Than Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana.” Have you ever visited her blog before? I’ve made several of her recipes and they’ve all been great. They do tend to have long ingredient lists (this one is no different), but the outcome is always worth it.

Because of the extensiveness of the list and because her directions were spot on (including cook times), this is one of those posts where I’m not going to write out the ingredients or instructions like a typical recipe. Instead, I’m sending you on over to Carlsbad Cravings (linked above) and I’ll take you through how this soup came together for me. The only thing I did differently than you’ll see listed in her recipe is that I used 20oz of turkey sweet Italian sausage links instead of pork sausage. However, in her recipe notes, she said subbing in turkey sausage would be fine, so I went for it. 

Here goes!

Here's the stars of the show. (Not pictured: supporting cast.)

Start by browning bacon in a large stockpot. 6 slices.
Once cooked, remove to paper towel.

In 2 Tablespoons of reserved bacon grease, cook onion, celery, & carrots 

Here's how they look as they cook down. 

Add sausage & garlic

Cook, stirring, about 3 minutes, or until meat is browned 

Perfect!

Sprinkle in flour (thickener) and cook 2 minutes

Stir the whole time

You can see the texture changes 

As the flour cooks out, the mixture starts holding together 

Add corn, creamed corn, potatoes, and cannellini beans, then stir. 

Add chicken broth

Add milk (which was mixed with cornstarch as yet another thickener)

In go the seasonings

Seasonings, dijon mustard, and bay leaves

Just before the lid goes on and it comes to a boil,
then simmers until potatoes get fork tender.
Stir occasionally.

After the potatoes are ready, time for the half and half.
Cook until warmed.

Then half the cooked bacon, crumbled.

Then the kale/greens

Stir until wilted.

Ladle into bowl, top with bacon & Garlic Parmesan seasoning (recipe below)

This came out really well. We all enjoyed it. 

I served it with garlic toast which I seasoned up with another of Carlsbad’s recipes (from her Easy Garlic Parmesan Breadsticks post). I halved her original recipe and then used about 2 Tablespoons of it mixed with 5 Tablespoons of softened butter. I spread that on club rolls I had on hand and baked at 375 for about 15 minutes, until the butter was melted and the bread started getting toasty browned. I don’t usually care about garlic bread, but this stuff was EVERYTHING. And a perfect accompaniment to the soup. 

What did I do with the rest of the seasoning, you ask? I sprinkled it on top of each portion of soup I served that night. Then I dumped the rest right into the pot of soup and stirred it in. No muss, no fuss, but plenty of delicious flavor!

Garlic Parmesan Seasoning (this is halved from the original)

2 Tablespoons powdered Parmesan cheese

1/2 Tablespoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon marjoram

1/2 teaspoon parsley

1/2 teaspoon salt

The soup recipe as written makes a boat load of soup. Like, for reals. We consumed just under 5 cups of it when I made it. Then I filled several containers with leftovers, probably about 8 cups worth. So just know going in that this is soup for a crowd!, or leftovers central! If you aren’t into that, half the recipe. She noted that, too, on her original post, but I made the whole portion and it was more than I could’ve imagined. Haha. 

Good thing it’s so tasty. Enjoy!