This hearty Tuscan Lentil Soup is packed full of veggies and protein. It’s a breeze to make and can easily feed a crowd!
Hearty and flavorful Tuscan Lentil Soup is sure to be one that you bring back on repeat in your home! Homemade Cheese Breadsticks, Easy Focaccia, or Garlic Parmesan Artisan Bread would be perfect for sopping up this tasty broth.
Olive Garden Copycat
I’m back with another lentil soup recipe (have you already tried my Sausage Lentil Soup or Veggie Loaded Lentil Soup??).
This particular soup is inspired by a really popular Tuscan soup… chances are you’ve probably tried it before (and enjoyed some endless salad and breadsticks with it too). I’m making it *slightly* healthier by adding a few more veggies, ditching the cream and loading it with LENTILS.
If you’ve never cooked with lentils before, I’m here to tell you that you need to! They’re basically little teeny tiny superfoods, packed full of protein, fiber and B-vitamins.
Serve it up piping hot and enjoy with a sprinkle of shaved parmesan cheese! This Tuscan lentil soup is definitely going into our regular rotation. I really, really, like that it’s filling, flavorful and packed full of veggies and protein. Next time you’re in the mood for something a little different, I hope you’ll give this recipe a try.
Just heat + Enjoy!
SAUSAGE. In a large stock pot or Dutch-oven set over medium heat, add the oil. When the oil is hot, the add the sausage and cook until browned, about 5 minutes; drain any excess fat.
BROTH. Stir in the garlic and onion, cook until fragrant. Sprinkle in the oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, paprika, salt and black pepper. Add the bay leaf and then pour in the chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then add the potatoes and lentils and cook for 10 minutes.
VEGGIES. After the 10 minutes, add in the tomatoes and zucchini, continue simmering for 15 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Stir in the spinach and wilt, about 2 minutes. Serve immediately, top with parmesan shavings if desired.
Tuscan Lentil Soup in the Slow Cooker
SAUTE. Brown your sausage, garlic and onion first.
COMBINE. Add them to the slow cooker followed by the remaining ingredients aside from the spinach.
HEAT. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours adding the spinach right before you are ready to serve the Tuscan lentil soup, just until it wilts.
Recipe Tips
- For a spicier soup, use all spicy Italian sausage and maybe even add a little cayenne pepper!
- This Tuscan lentil soup is perfect for veggie lovers! Add in any veggies you’d like such as mushrooms, carrots, butternut squash, or sweet potatoes.
- Rinse the lentils well in a colander before tossing them into the boiling broth.
Storing Info
STORE this soup will keep well covered in the fridge for a few days.
FREEZE this soup for up to 6 months and enjoy it warmed up later on. Either way be sure to store it in an airtight container, leaving a little space at the top for expansion if you are planning to freeze it.
Here are some more fantastic soups:
Tuscan Lentil Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb ground Italian sausage - spicy, mild, OR sweet
- 1 yellow onion - diced
- 4 cloves garlic - minced
- 3/4 tsp dried oregano
- 3/4 tsp dried basil
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp kosher sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 8 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 small russet potatoes - cubed
- 1 cup dry green lentils
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes - quartered
- 1 zucchini - thinly sliced
- 3 cup fresh spinach
Instructions
- In a large stock pot or Dutch-oven set over medium heat, add the oil. When the oil is hot, the add the sausage and cook until browned, about 5 minutes; drain any excess fat.
- Stir in the garlic and onion, cook until fragrant. Sprinkle in the oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, paprika, salt and black pepper. Add the bay leaf and then pour in the chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then add the potatoes and lentils and cook for 10 minutes.
- After the 10 minutes, add in the tomatoes and zucchini, continue simmering for 15 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Stir in the spinach and wilt, about 2 minutes. Serve immediately, top with parmesan shavings if desired.
This looks so amazing! I’m sure my family will love it.
Thanks Marie! I’m always surprised by how much our toddler love lentils… it’s always nice to make something the whole family will enjoy 🙂
Oh yummy! This look really good!
Thanks Shawnna!
I love lentils! Gotta give it a try!
WOW – this looks SOO good! Can’t wait to try it! Pinning now. ;D
I also could NEVER get sick of lentils – they are one of the best things to me, and bonus points for it being healthy too 🙂 Looks so good!
I substituted the sausage in this dish with tofu. It was absolutely wonderful. I highly recommend this recipe.
Great soup! Made it for dinner tonight. I’m vegetarian so swapped out the meat for Quorn and the stock for a veggie one. I will be making this again.
I cannot begin to explain how much I love this soup! I love lentils but up until now, I was the only one in my family to eat them. I made this soup, prepared to eat it by myself all week (which is totally not a bad thing!) but I was surprised to see that my whole family lives this soup! Lentils, zucchini and all! AND they requested it again since the first time I made it!
Isn’t it yummy?! I’m always surprised by how much our toddler LOVES lentils. I’ll have to post some more of our favorite lentil recipes 🙂
Hi Natalie. I’m a little confused about the sausage. I’m from Australia. Is it cured sausage, raw sausage. Did you take it out of it’s casings when you fried it?
Hi Elana! I used raw ground sausage, but you could also use the kind in the casing too bad just remove it before cooking. Hope that helps!
Sorry I will not be revisiting your blog because of all the adds. It extremely distracting. Just thought you would like the feed back.
Hi Suze, I’m sorry you feel that way, but the ads are necessary for me to offset the significant costs associated with running a site that is free for users. Because of the ads you are seeing (which I really try hard to place in spots that will not be overly distracting) I am also able to stay at home with my two children while contributing to my family’s income. Feel free to use reader view on your device to browse ad-free.
I hope to try this recipe this week. I didn’t get zucchini with my farm CSA pickup but I have eggplant, peppers, and a butternut squash I may use. Any suggestions or thoughts?
I’d swap the eggplant for the zucchini (maybe do a little less, and add in a cup or two of cubes butternut squash! Hope you love it!
Thanks! Should I roast the eggplant or the squash prior? I always have a hard time cutting squash before roasting it.
You could do it either way, if you want to add in the roasted veggies at the end I think that would work. You’ll just have to be extra careful when cutting “cubes” since the squash will be tender.
November 5, 2016
A wonderful receipe. Made for some friends and one friend said it was the best soup she ever ate. I added 3 carrots thinly sliced and used some Herb provence spice too.
Natalie thank you.
Thank you so much Jane!
This was great! I used Boca veggie crumbles, veggie broth and added some leftover raw mushrooms and it’s fantastic! What a delicious, versatile soup – thank you!
Made this soup tonight. I used Hot turkey sausage. Had some carrots added them. Also added some kale.
A huge success with the family. Will be making this often. I encourage everyone to give this hearty soup a try. A great winter delight.
I have this on the stove simmering right now. Smells amazing. Rainy day today and it will make a perfect meal. Thank you
looks healthy and hope would be tasty as well. I will try this out and will find that out. thank you for sharing such a great thing with us. cheers!
I have made this 3 times. It is absolutely DELICIOUS!! My kids and boyfriend love it too. Thanks for the recipe
This has become my favorite “go to” soup! It’s quick and easy to make, and everyone who has tried it absolutely loves it! I’ve made it with mild and hot sausage, and it is delicious either way. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!
Made this pretty nearly exact to the recipe except adding more seasoning and my picky mom ate TWO servings! She normally doesn’t eat all her food and NEVER asks for a second helping!! Fantastic!!
Absolutely delish! Made this weekend. Perfect, hearty Fall soup! Will make again very soon! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Thanks Kristen!
I have made this three times in the last month. Substituted peppers for the zucchini and a can of San Marzano tomatoes slightly broken up. Also used veggie broth and left out the sausage to make it vegan. Always tastes great!
So this soup is amazing!
Could you make this with ground beef, do you suppose, or would that be weird??
I think that would be delicious!
I am at work and found your yummy recipe! I can envision a bag of something small and green in my pantry – hoping it’s lentils but might be split peas. If it’s split peas – would that just be too weird to put in place of the lentils in this soup? Seems like it has an excellent base where multiple substitutions to the contents are fine and it’ll still be delicious. Let me know what you think.
This is absolutely spectacular!!! My lentils needed more time to cook. I would add more tomatoes, and add them and the zucchini later in the cooking time. Easy on the salt, there’s plenty in the Italian sausage! YUUummmmm!
This recipe is AMAZING!! It’s on my menu every month. I tell all my friends and family about it, constantly. I do add some Kale because my family likes it some much. But other than that, i make it just like the recipe calls and it’s delicious!
Thanks Kamille, love that you made it your own with the kale! I have the opposite problem, mine love spinach but are iffy on kale 😉
I love this recipe. I change the sausage for Fieldroast Italian “sausage” (vegitarian) and use veggie stock. It’s so tasty!
I;m really anxious to try this soup. My mother used to make it with oxtails but haven’t been able to find them. Sounds delicious!!
Thanks for sharing.
Very good recipe. I added carrots and a little celery and sweet red pepper. I added some Worcestershire sauce and a little balsamic, and some tomato paste after tasting to give a bit more depth. I also used a little less broth as I like soups thick. Made ahead for a November snowy book club meeting, delish. I may use straight hot sausage next time as my family likes a lot of spice.
This soup is SO good! I was browsing around for some hearty soups for winter and came across this one. So glad I did! Definitely will be making again! I love that it’s packed full of veggies and love the lentils with the sausage!!
Can you explain the recipe 8c broth not sure what that means + the other c
I suspect the Chef means 8 cups.
Delicious Soup! I followed the rescipe, except I added carrots along with the onions. Also, added a can of diced tomatoes plus the fresh ones. Used mild Italian sausage. My husband requested that I make it again. Nicely pairs with Parmesan cheese and warm crusty bread.
This is what we love to share!
Thanks a lot
http://www.design-tuscany.com
I am looking forward to trying it for a church function was wondering if there is leftover do you think it would be okay to freeze and pull out again.
It should freeze just fine 🙂
I had a bunch of lentils I had already cooked and wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with them. I found this recipe but I wasn’t sure about making it because I’m not a huge fan of vegetable soup. I’m so happy I did because OMG it is so good! I’m literally typing this while I eat my soup. I didn’t change anything except my lentils were already cooked and I didn’t have zucchini. I had sweet Italian sausage but spicy sounds delicious too. Thank you so much for a fabulous recipe!! It’s somehow light but rich and filling with such good flavor. I will be making this again (and sharing) and look forward to looking through the rest of your blog.
I don’t care for cooked tomatoe skins. Are cooked cherry tomatoes more tender than larger tomatoes? Has anyone tried blanching & removing skins from tomatoes prior to adding to soup, or any other ideas besides canned tomatoes? Looking forward to trying soup this Fall!
Thanks!
Delicious & easy- highly recommend!
Thank you for sharing that!
This recipe looks delicious and so comforting! Have you adapted it for Instant Pot cooking? It seems like it would be a great one to try in the IP, but I’m not sure about the cooking time with pressure.
I have not, but I need to!! Thank you!
I made this soup last year and it has become my favourite soup! My husband doesn’t like lentils, but with this soup he does.
I just spent ages looking for this recipe again as I couldnt remember where I found it. SO HAPPY TO FIND IT AGAIN.
IF YOU HAVENT MADE THIS RECIPE YET.,,,, DO! Youll be so happy you did.
THANKS FOR IT.
Clare
Thanks for that review!! I am glad you found it, too! Thank you so much!
Came across this on Pinterest this afternoon. Made a few exceptions using what we had – the stock from our Thanksgiving turkey, Lacinato Kale for the spinach, about 14 oz from a large can of San Marzano crushed tomatoes for the cherry tomatoes, brown lentils, and dried Italian herbs for the dried Oregano. It was incredibly simple and delicious! Thanks for sharing!
That is perfect!! Thank you for sharing that. Glad you liked it!
This has to be the most flavourful, wonderful lentil soup that I have made! Thanks for the recipe!
You are welcome! Thank you for saying that! Love that you liked it!
Would this recipe work using red lentils ?
I personally haven’t tried, but I am sure that would be a great option 🙂
Wow! This lentil soup is the bomb! From the moment I started cooking it smelled devine and tasted as wonderful as it smelled. This one is a keeper and I will add it to my repertoire.
I love hearing that!! I am glad you shared that with me! Thank you so much!
I’m wondering if you have tried making this in the slow cooker? I’m sure the zucchini would need to added later, not sure about the potato. I’m planning on subbing collard greens for the spinach and canned diced tomatoes for the fresh. If I give it a go I’ll write back and let you know how it went!
I have not, but that sounds perfect! Yes, I would love to know how it turns out 🙂 Thanks!
Is it really just 1 cup of chicken broth for liquid? Just making sure! Looks relish and want to make it tonight!
It is 8 cups 🙂
My favorite soup recipe. Full of flavor and easy to make.
Mine too! Glad you agree! Thank you!
We have absolutely fallen in love with this soup. We didn’t change anything about the recipe, except maybe to add more sausage. Thank you for this piece of heaven in our lives, we’ve already made it twice and it’s become a family favorite that we’ll continue to make throughout the years!
That’s so nice of you to say! Thank you so much. I am so happy you love it!
This was absolutely delicious! Since we eat as much plant based foods as possible, I substitueds5 Beyond Meats brand Beyond Beef and added 2 Beyond Meats Spicy Beyond Breakfast Sausage. Also since I cannot eat tomatoes I skipped those and added 2 carrots instead. The gravy was thick and delicious. I It is now my favorite stew.
Great options!! Thank you for sharing what you did! Sounds good!
Great recipe, I make it often. It is delicious as written but also very flexible, I often sub carrots and celery for the zucchini when needed, add mushrooms or kale sometimes, etc. I’m going to try sweet potatoes next time because I love them with sausage. Thanks for a great recipe!
You’re welcome! Thanks for the suggestions of add ins. They all sound yummy as well!
Delicious! Will be making this again.
Yay! So glad to hear that you enjoyed the soup!
Absolutely DELICIOUS . The results were fantastic of this soup. I prepared my own chicken broth by boiling chicken skin and bones which gave this soup a lot of depth
Homemade stock really can’t be beat.
This is the very first Pinterest recipe that was perfect AS IS and that I didn’t have to doctor up with extra seasoning! One of my new favorites now! 👍🏼
Awesome! I’m so glad you found and tried it.
I have made it several times and my family loves it!! I add a bit more pepper flakes bc we love a bit of spice. DELICIOUS!!!
I’m so glad you loved it and adjusted the heat to your preference.
SO hearty and I love all of the fresh veggies in it!
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing tucsan lentil soup recipe! It is really easy to make and it tasted super delicious! Will have it again!
Deviness!!
Ha, I’ve never heard that word but I love it!
Hi, what are Italian sausages? Is the meat put in a membrane? Or is plain chopped meat?
It is very tasty. I rated it 4 because it is very greasy and because those Italian sausages 🙂
Hi Sophie,
It is the ground Italian sausage, not the Italian sausage links. If you drain the sausage well using paper towels, it won’t be very greasy.
The flavors are perfect and this lentil soup “looks” delicious.
This is very tasty soup. Used my pressure cooker but Cooked the onions, garlic and 1/2 pound turkey sausage in pan first then added that and rest of ingredients ( including homemade turkey bone broth and doubled herbs) to pressure cooker according to recipe. Cooked 30 minutes to ensure brown lentils (didn’t have any green lentils) cooked thoroughly. Flavourful and comforting. Definitely making this again.
Very flavorful! Left out the potatoes and greens but increased carrots and celery. Used Italian flavored chicken sausage links. Will keep this on the menu.
This was DELICIOUS! I do have a question though. If after i add the spinach i notice the lentils aren’t as soft as they should be, would it be ok if i cook longer? Or will that ruin the spinach? It was so good i was just bummed that i didn’t try a bigger bite with more lentils before adding the spinach!
Hi Heather, if you cook the spinach too long it will decompose. It won’t ruin the soup as certain stews are made that way, but for this recipe, we don’t want that to happen, so yes check the lentils before adding the spinach.
Easy to make! I put celery and carrots in the soup as well. Love it!!!!!
This was absolutely delicious. Quick to make too. Husband must have said 4 times how good it was. Warmed up great for lunch leftovers. Will be on my winter rotation list for sure.