Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana

I dont know how many of you have had this soup at Olive Garden but Darren and I love it. We get this instead of the salad. It is sooo tasty. I use more potatoes, sausage and bacon. It just adds more flavor. Plus Darren likes it more meaty and chunky. Dont use turkey bacon, it really takes away from the flavor. And try to cut the fat off the bacon after you cook it. It gets kind of rubbery. If you want you can add 1/2 t. fennel and I would use and Italian sausage, I think I use Isernios. And I didnt know what chicken base was, I was using chicken broth but finally figured out it was chicken bouillion cubes and it adds way more flavor than chicken broth. You dont really need 12 links, I think those are small ones. I just add as much as I think looks good. And use a big pot, it makes alot of soup. Serve with a salad and some nummy bread and you will get rave reviews.

1 1/2 C. spicy sausage links -- 12
2 medium potatoes, cut in half lengthwise, and then cut into 1/4" slices
3/4 C. onions, diced
6 slices bacon
1 1/2 tsp. minced garlic
2 C. kale leaves, but in half, then sliced
2 T. chicken base
1 qt. water
1/3 C. heavy whipping cream

Methods/steps
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place sausage links onto a sheet pan and bake for 25 minutes, or until done; cut in half length-wise, then cut at an angle into 1/2 inch slices.

Place onions and bacon in a large saucepan and cook over medium heat until onions are almost clear. Remove bacon and crumble. Add garlic to the onions and cook an additional 1-minute. Add chicken base, water, and potatoes, simmer 15 minutes. Add crumbled bacon, sausage, kale and cream. Simmer 4 minutes and serve.

New England Clam Chowder

This recipe is really nummy. I used canned clams. I used 2 5oz cans and the juice. And I added a can of chicken broth because I didnt have enough clam juice. You will probably need to add some water too if you dont use fresh clams and the juice. We are having it for leftovers because we thought it would be better if it sat. So try to make it earlier in the day so all the flavors can meld together.

7 pounds cherrystone clams, scrubbed and rinsed
3 cups water
4 strips bacon, finely chopped
1 medium Spanish onion, diced small
2 tablespoons flour
3 large red potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 cup heavy cream

In a large soup pot over high heat, add clams to 3 cups water. Bring to a boil and cook just until clams open, about 10 minutes. Remove clams from broth and set aside. (Discard any clams that don't open.) Strain broth through a sieve lined with a coffee filter and set aside.


Clean your soup pot; then over medium-high heat, sauté bacon until it's browned and fat is rendered. Using a slotted spoon, remove bacon to a paper towel. Discard all but 2 tablespoons of bacon fat. Add diced onion to the pot and sauté until translucent.


Stir in flour and cook 1 minute, being careful not to brown. Whisk in reserved clam broth. Add potatoes and thyme, and simmer 10 minutes.


Remove clams from shells, reserving liquid, and chop roughly. Strain liquid; then add clams and liquid to the pot. Stir in parsley and cream and cook just long enough to heat clams through, about 3 minutes.