Zuppa Toscana - Tuscan Soup: Recipes from Italy's Tuscany central region!

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Tuscan Bean Soup with Asiago Toasts

An easy recipe to make, very yummy. By Cynthia Nicholson.

Servings: 6

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 pound smoked turkey or chicken sausage, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
  • 1 ¼ cups chopped fennel
  • 1 ¼ cups chopped onion
  • 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
  • two 14 ½-ounce cans reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • one 14 ½-ounce can diced tomatoes
  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon sage
  • one 19-ounce can cannellini beans, liquid reserved
  • ½ cup shredded Asiago cheese
  • 12 slices (1/2-inch-thick) baguette, cut diagonally
  1. In a 6-quart saucepan, heat the oil and sauté the sausage over medium heat. Cook sausage until heated through, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove sausage and drain drippings, reserving 1 tablespoon drippings in pan.
  2. Add the fennel and onion to pan; sauté until softened, about 10 minutes.
  3. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth, tomatoes, pepper and sage. Cook 10 minutes.
  4. Add cannellini beans with reserved liquid and cooked sausage. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat and cook 1 minute. Reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes more.
  5. Heat broiler. Mound 2 teaspoons Asiago cheese on each bread slice and place on baking sheet. Broil until cheese and bread are lightly toasted, about 1 to 2 minutes.
  6. Divide soup among 6 soup bowls; serve with toasts.

Some suggestions from Janet in Austin, TX - Add an extra clove of garlic with the first garlic and then a cubed yellow squash and two zucchini during the last 5 minutes of simmering. "The flavors were absolutely delicious, better than any Tuscan-style soup I have ever had." Enjoy!

Buon appetito!

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