WW Recipe of the Day: Slow Cooker 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.
Lightened Up Slow Cooker Zuppa Toscana
This slow cooker toscana soup is a lighter, healthier, easier adaptation of their famous Zuppa Toscana, which has 220 calories and 8 WW Freestyle SmartPoints per serving.
Recipe Notes
To lightened 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.
WW Friendly Zuppa Toscana
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 Crock Pot Copycat Toscana Soup?
According to my calculations, each 1-⅓ cups serving of my enlightened version of Zuppa Toscana has 175 calories and
5 *SmartPoints (Green plan)
5 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)
4 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)
5 *PointsPlus (Old plan)
To see your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, Click here!
Are You Ready To Slow Cook Yourself Slim?
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.
Slow Cooker Toscana Soup Made Lighter
Ingredients
- 1 pound hot Italian turkey sausage links
- 2 medium russet potatoes, peeled
- 5-½ cups chicken stock or broth
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
- 2 cups chopped kale, tough stems discarded**
- ½ cup non-fat evaporated milk
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Brown the sausage in a nonstick skillet and transfer to a cutting board. When the links are cool enough to handle, slice them ½-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.
Equipment
Recipe Notes
Recipe source: Slightly adapted from Fix-It and Forget-It Big Cookbook: 1400 Best Slow Cooker Recipes (affiliate link) by Phyllis Good
*Points® calculated by WW. *PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® calculated by Simple Nourished Living; Not endorsed by Weight Watchers International, Inc. All recipe ingredients except optional items included in determining nutritional estimates. SmartPoints® values calculated WITHOUT each plan's ZeroPoint Foods (Green plan, Blue plan, Purple plan) using the WW Recipe Builder.
If you like crock pot toscana soup, you might also like:
Martha is the founder and main content writer for Simple-Nourished-Living.
A longtime lifetime WW at goal, she is committed to balancing her love of food and desire to stay slim while savoring life and helping others do the same.
She is the author of the Smart Start 28-Day Weight Loss Challenge.
A huge fan of the slow cooker and confessed cookbook addict, when she's not experimenting in the kitchen, you're likely to find Martha on her yoga mat.
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Jennifer
any reason y I couldn't just use regular ff milk instead of evaporated?
Martha McKinnon
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.
Taryn
FABULOUS!!!!!! Absolutely loved this soup exactly as is. No changes to the recipe necessary! I will definitely save this one.
Martha McKinnon
Glad you liked it Taryn!!!
Kris
This is one of my favorite soups. I will definitely be trying this one.
Kate
I've been searching for a low calorie version of this soup & I believe I've found it! Thanks for publishing this recipe!
Martha McKinnon
Hi Kate,
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!