This easy vegan Zuppa Toscana recipe is creamy, dairy free loaded with greens and potatoes. Sub in mushrooms for the “sausage” to make it a fat free whole plant based version. To make this soup lower in calorie you can use a mix of golden potatoes and cauliflower florets.
Servings: 6
Cook time: approximately 30 minutes
Ingredients
- 4 links Vegan Italian Sausage (I used Light Life, but there are several brands to choose from (or 24 oz mushrooms, sliced)
- 2 lb golden potatoes sliced into 1/4 inch slices
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 7 cups vegetable stock
- 1/3 cup dry white wine or more stock
- 1 tsp olive oil optional
- 5 sprigs thyme
- 1 leaf bay
- 2-3 tsp red chili flakes or to taste (I like it spicy but change to 1 tsp if you are sensitive to spice)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 4 cups kale chopped (or sub with spinach)
- 1 pinch ground fennel (optional)
- sea salt to taste
Cashew Cream
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 1 cup filtered water
Instructions
Make the Cashew Cream:
- Start by soaking the cashews in hot water for 20 minutes while you prep your soup. Drain the soaked cashews then add them to a powerful blender together with one cup of filtered water. Blend until smooth and creamy.
Make the Soup:
- Preheat a large pot over medium flame. Add the olive oil and sausage and pan sear for a few minutes until golden brown. Transfer the sausage to a bowl and keep warm.
- Add the onion and red chili flakes to the sausage drippings and cook a few minutes until translucent. Stir in the garlic, cook until you can smell its fragrance then pour in the white wine.
- Use a flat wooden spoon and scrape all the brown bits from the bottom of the pan until the wine has evaporated.
- Add the sliced potatoes, thyme, bay leaf and smoked paprika then pour in the veggie stock. Bring to a simmer, add the nutritional yeast and a pinch of sea salt. Cook for about 10-15 minutes until the potatoes have softened but still hold their shape. Check after 5 minutes and keep a close eye on them.
- A couple of minutes before the potatoes are ready add the chopped kale or spinach. Give everything a good stir then mix in the cashew cream. Simmer another minute or so until the kale has wilted and the soup is creamy.
- Add the cooked vegan sausage back into the soup, adjust seasonings and serve hot with freshly cracked black pepper on top.
Whole Food Plant Based Method
- To make this Zuppa Toscana whole food plant based compliant simply replace the olive oil with a splash of veggie stock and the vegan sausage with 24 oz of your favorite mushrooms. Add a pinch of ground fennel to make up for the authentic Italian sausage flavor.
