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WW Recipe of the Day: Slow Cooker Olive Garden Toscana Soup Made Lighter
Are you a fan of Olive Garden’s Soup and Salad special? My mom and I are. So Olive Garden is a frequent choice when we meet for lunch. This slow cooker toscana soup is a lighter, healthier, easier adaptation of their famous Zuppa Toscana!
Recipe Notes
To lighten Olive Garden’s version, I substituted hot Italian-style turkey sausage for pork sausage and non-fat evaporated milk for the cream. I have nothing against pork sausage and cream. In fact, I love them both. But it’s January. And after a month or more of frequent feasting, it feels good to lighten up where I can.
How Many Calories and WW Points in this Copycat Crock Pot Toscana Soup?
According to my calculations, each 1-1/3 cups serving of my enlightened version of Zuppa Toscana has 175 calories and 5 WW Points.
To see your WW Points for this recipe, track it in the WW App!
(You must be logged into WW on a smartphone or tablet.)
5 PointsPlus (Old plan)
Ingredients
- Hot Italian turkey sausage links – a lighter healthier tasty alternative to pork sausage that is lower in WW points.
- Peeled and chopped potatoes – I used russet potatoes but any potato should work.
- Chicken stock or broth – This is available in boxes or cans. I use Better Than Bouillon, a concentrated bouillon paste that you dissolve in hot water to create a broth.
- Crushed red pepper flakes (optional) – Adds a nice touch of heat to this soup.
- Chopped kale, tough stems discarded – Be sure to discard the tough stems and middle ribs from the kale before chopping.
- Non-fat evaporated milk – a lighter healthier lower points alternative to cream in this soup recipe
- Salt and pepper – important for maximizing the flavor profile of this soup. Add to taste.
How to Make Slow Cooker Toscana Soup, Step-by-Step
Step 1: Gather and prep your ingredients.
Step 2: Brown the sausage in a nonstick skillet and transfer to a cutting board (affiliate link). When the links are cool enough to handle, slice them 1/2-inch thick and add to the slow cooker. (I used my 4-Quart.)
Step 3: Cut the potatoes into quarters lengthwise. And then cut the quarters into thin slices. Add the potatoes to the slow cooker.
Step 4: Stir in the chicken stock, and crushed red pepper flakes, if using.
Step 5: Cover and cook on LOW 6-8 hours, or until potatoes are tender.
Step 6: Fifteen to 20 minutes before serving, stir in the chopped kale and evaporated milk and cook until the kale wilts and soup is heated through.
Step 7: Season to taste with salt and pepper.
If you’ve made this lightened up Slow Cooker Toscana Soup, please give the recipe a star rating below and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. And stay in touch on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates.
Lighter Slow Cooker Toscana Soup Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound hot Italian turkey sausage links
- 2 medium russet potatoes, peeled
- 5-1/2 cups chicken stock or broth
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
- 2 cups chopped kale, tough stems discarded**
- 1/2 cup non-fat evaporated milk
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Brown the sausage in a nonstick skillet and transfer to a cutting board (affiliate link). When the links are cool enough to handle, slice them 1/2-inch thick and add to the slow cooker. (I used my 4-Quart.)
- Cut the potatoes into quarters lengthwise. And then cut the quarters into thin slices.
- Add the potatoes to the slow cooker.
- Stir in the chicken stock, and crushed red pepper flakes, if using.
- Cover and cook on LOW 6-8 hours, or until potatoes are tender.
- Fifteen to 20 minutes before serving, stir in the chopped kale and evaporated milk and cook until the kale wilts and soup is heated through.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Notes
(You must be logged into WW on a smartphone or tablet.) 5 PointsPlus (Old plan) **Be sure to remove the tough stems and ribs from the kale before chopping.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe source: Slightly adapted from Fix-It and Forget-It Big Cookbook: 1400 Best Slow Cooker Recipes (affiliate link) by Phyllis Good
More Easy Healthy Soups for WeightWatchers
- Olive Garden Slow Cooker Pasta Fagiioli uses lean ground beef to reduce the fat, yet keeps the soup hearty and filling.
- This lighter Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup Made Lighter is a deliciously low fat copy cat recipe that turns out just as rich, creamy and flavorful as the original – but with less fat and fewer calories.
- I substituted chicken apple sausage for the kielbasa in this Slow Cooker Cabbage Soup with Sausage, and let me tell you it makes an incredibly satisfying meal.
- Quick and easy Lentil Swiss Chard Soup makes four generous 1-1/2 cups servings with just 216 calories each.
I’ve been searching for a low calorie version of this soup & I believe I’ve found it! Thanks for publishing this recipe!
Hi Kate,
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
This is one of my favorite soups. I will definitely be trying this one.
FABULOUS!!!!!! Absolutely loved this soup exactly as is. No changes to the recipe necessary! I will definitely save this one.
Glad you liked it Taryn!!!
any reason y I couldn’t just use regular ff milk instead of evaporated?
Hi Jennifer,
The evaporated milk adds a bit of richness. (The orignal zuppa toscana calls for cream.) It will be lighter, but I don’t see why regular ff milk wouldn’t work.