Tuscan Bean Soup with Italian Sausage
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This Tuscan Bean Soup with Italian Sausage is a hearty, rustic dinner that’s cozy and satisfying. It’s easy to make without a lot of effort.
Why This Recipe is a Favorite
This creamy Italian sausage soup recipe comes together in one pot. It’s hearty and rustic, with a truly delicious Italian flavor.
The beans have fiber, so it’s filling, the sausage adds tons of flavor, and the creamy broth pulls everything together into a warm and cozy meal for a chilly evening.
It comes together quickly, but you can meal prep this recipe too, so it works for busy weeknights.
Happy Kitchen Secrets
Here are my important mom-tested cooking tips for making this recipe! I’ve made this countless times to save you from a failed attempt.
- Cut away any tough or fibrous stems from the kale or spinach leaves.
- Brown the sausage well. Doing so forms a nice crust, which deepens the flavor of the white bean soup.
- Leave the drippings. After you brown the sausage, leaving the drippings in the pot gives the onions a head start on all that wonderful Italian flavor.
- Simmer the soup. Letting the soup simmer before adding the cream keeps the texture smooth and rich while allowing it to thicken.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
You’ll start with mild Italian sausage, which gives this soup its savory flavor base. Ground sausage works perfectly, but if you can’t find it, buy links and then remove the casings.
If your family likes spicy foods, you can swap the mild sausage for spicy Italian sausage!
Make it kid friendly: This soup is mildly spicy as written, but the spice level is easy to adjust. If anyone is sensitive to spicy food, omit the red pepper flakes and let everyone add their own at the table if they want.
Cannellini beans, navy beans, or great northern beans work well for a classic Tuscan white bean soup like this.
To make the Italian sausage soup creamy, you'll want to use heavy cream or half-and-half. If you have issues with dairy, you can use full fat coconut milk instead.
I like to use homemade chicken broth, but stock works, too. Vegetable stock is a good substitute.
Kale adds a hearty, rustic texture, but baby spinach works just as well. A little Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper flakes add to the flavor and spice level.
How to Make the Tuscan Bean Soup
This is a summary of the steps involved. Scroll down to the recipe card for the full step by step instructions! ⬇️
Jump to Recipe
- Brown the Italian sausage. Break it up as it cooks so you get nice little crumbles. After it's cooked, spoon the meat into a bowl and set it aside. Don’t clean the pot.
- Sauté the diced onion in the pot. Let it cook until it softens and smells good (about five minutes). Stir in the garlic and let it cook for about 30 seconds - watch it closely so it doesn't burn.
- Stir in the broth, cannellini beans, tomatoes, and spices. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Stir in the kale and cream, then continue to simmer until the kale softens and wilts, about 5 minutes.
- Add the cooked Italian sausage back to the pot of Tuscan bean soup. Give it a good stir to combine, then simmer to let the sausage warm back up.
- Taste and adjust the seasonings if needed. The soup is now ready to serve, or you can cool it down and refrigerate or freeze to it serve later.
Finishing Touches and Garnishes
After you ladle it into bowls, a sprinkle of grated Parmesan cheese, a dollop of pesto, and/or some crushed red pepper flakes will add a bit more Italian flavor.
Storing Leftovers
After dinner, let the soup cool completely, then store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Reheat it in a pot on the stovetop over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. You can also reheat individual bowls of soup in the microwave, stopping to stir so it heats evenly.
Tuscan Bean Soup Recipe FAQs
Yes, but be aware that dairy products sometimes separate during the freezing and thawing process. When the soup is cool, transfer it to freezer-safe containers. It freezes well for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
As written, the recipe does make a creamy Italian sausage soup. To give it the creamiest consistency, use heavy cream rather than half-n-half.
If you make this recipe, please give it a star rating and leave a comment below to let me know how it went!
Tuscan Bean Soup with Italian Sausage
Ingredients
- 1 pound mild ground Italian sausage or links with casings removed
- 1 medium onion peeled and diced
- 3 cloves garlic peeled and minced, or 1 tablespoon minced
- 4 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
- 30 ounces canned cannellini beans or great northern beans, drained and rinsed
- 14½ ounces canned diced tomatoes
- 1 cup heavy cream or half-and-half
- 4 cups roughly chopped kale or spinach, stems removed
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes more/less, to taste
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt more/less, to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper more/less, to taste
- grated Parmesan cheese for serving (optional)
Instructions
- In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, brown the sausage over medium-high heat, breaking it into crumbles. Remove sausage and set aside, leaving about 1 tablespoon of drippings in the pot.
- Sauté the onion until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Add chicken broth, beans, diced tomatoes (with juices), Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 10-15 minutes.
- Stir in the cream and kale. Cook until kale is wilted and tender, about 5 minutes.
- Return cooked sausage to the pot. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve hot with freshly grated Parmesan and extra red pepper flakes, if desired.
Notes
- Let the soup cool completely, then store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Reheat it gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. You can also reheat individual bowls in the microwave, stopping to stir so it heats evenly.
- To freeze, let the soup cool completely, then transfer it to freezer-safe containers. Freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat gently, stirring well as it warms.
Nutrition
Pairing Suggestions
The creamy Italian sausage soup is hearty enough to stand on its own, but a few simple sides will make it feel more like a complete meal.
- Bread: Serve it with crusty bread or cheesy garlic bread so everyone can dip into the creamy broth.
- Salad: A simple green salad with an apple cider vinaigrette balances the richness of the soup nicely.
