| Zuppa toscana | |
| Country: | Italy |
| Region: | Tuscany |
| Course: | Primo (Italian course), one-dish meal |
| Type: | Soup |
| Main Ingredient: | Cannellini beans, potatoes, kale |
| Variations: | Olive Garden version: Italian sausage, red pepper, onion, bacon, garlic, chicken broth, cream |
Italian: Zuppa toscana, also known in Italy as Italian: minestra di pane, is a soup from the region of Tuscany, northern Italy. While there are many variations, its most common ingredients are cannellini beans, potatoes, and kale.[1]
According to the older generation, Italian: minestra di pane (Italian: zuppa toscana's ancestor) was originally created as a way to use up leftover stale bread. For the poor, it was a waste to throw this bread away; instead they made a watery soup out of it. Italian: Minestra di pane has been part of Italian culture for a long time—so long, in fact, that there are legends about Leonardo da Vinci eating it himself. This soup has become part of Tuscan identity.[2]
The American restaurant chain Olive Garden offers a very different soup under the name Italian: zuppa toscana. Rather than being based on beans, it is made with Italian sausage, red pepper, onion, bacon, garlic, chicken broth, cream, potatoes, and kale.[3] [4]