Healthy Zuppa Toscana Recipe

If you are like me, Italian restaurants are one of your weaknesses...even the restaurant chains...No, I am not ashamed of it...I LOVE ITALIAN FOOD!
Now comes the problem of calories...Italian food is notorious for giving you your calories for your money, and as a college student I skipped the whole "Freshman 15" phase, but I am not looking into a Sophomore 15 either, so as painful as it is, I am attempting to avoid the fat-filled deliciousness that is Italian food. Today, I was craving my favorite soup from Olive Garden, Zuppa Toscana. In a deperate attempt to motivate myself not to eat it, I looked up the calories in their soup...Sparkpeople.com said 170 calories and 4 grams of fat! SAWEEET! I can eat my soup after all..then I saw all of the other entries...819 calories...370 calories...nobody knows! I gave up and looked up a recipe with similar ingredients I found one with 269 calories and 16 grams of fat...and I put my own twist on it!
Here it is!
The original:
Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana

Recipe Ingredients for Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana

1	tablespoon olive oil
1	pound Italian sausage
1	cup chopped onion
2	cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1/2	teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 1/2	cups water
28 2/5	ounces chicken broth
2	russet potatoes, chopped
1	teaspoon salt
1/2	teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2	cups kale or spinach, washed, stemmed and chopped
1/2	cup whipping cream

Recipe Directions for Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana

1. Place oil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Add sausage and cook until uniformly gray, about 7 minutes, breaking up any large chunks with the back of a spoon.
2. Remove sausage from pot and reserve. Add onions, garlic and red pepper flakes to the pot and cook for 6 minutes. Add water, broth, potatoes, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the kale and the reserved sausage and continue to simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 20-30 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and stir in cream. Serve immediately.

Read more: Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Recipe | Healthy Recipe Ideas http://caloriecount.about.com/olive-garden-zuppa-toscana-recipe-r9422#ixzz2U4YnNrkK

My Healthier Twist:

Recipe Ingredients for Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana

1	tablespoon olive oil
1	pound turkey bacon ( can use sausage)
1	cup chopped onion
2	cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1/2	teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 1/2	cups water
28 2/5	ounces low fat chicken broth
2	russet potatoes, chopped
1	teaspoon salt
1/2	teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2	cups kale or spinach, washed, stemmed and chopped
	1/2 cup of 2% milk 2 teaspoons of corn starch Revision of Directions Remove from heat and stir in milk and corn starch until thickened. Serve immediately.

I know it is not a big change...but heck it'll save ya fat!