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Creamy Tuscan White Bean Lemon Soup. My family’s favorite quick and easy Italian-style soup. Spicy Italian chicken sausage mixed with onions, shallots, garlic, and Italian seasoning. All cooked together to create a wonderfully creamy and spicy soup. Add carrots, celery, sun-dried tomatoes, a couple of cans of white beans, and fresh baby spinach. Then, just before serving, add a bit of cream, parmesan, and lemon juice to balance the spice and give a touch of creaminess to this delicious, hearty winter soup. Ladle into bowls and top each with extra parmesan and fresh parsley. It’s just the yummiest!
Ever since Christmas Eve, we’ve had some of the snowiest weather. It’s been heavy winter days filled with chilly temperatures and a good amount of snow. At this point in the winter, I’m still loving this cozy weather.
It always inspires me to create some of my favorite recipes of the year. And from the looks of the numbers, some of your favorite recipes too.
I guess we can’t deny that there are a lot of us who really do enjoy a cozy meal!
I’ve been on a major soup kick. I feel like I have new ideas every single day! But when I created this simple, spicy Tuscan-style soup, I knew it was something special.
The flavors, the colors, and the creaminess were all indications that this soup would be delicious. It turns out that this has become one of my favorite soups – and my family’s too!
I blame a lot of this on the spicy Italian chicken sausage. It’s one of my favorite Whole Foods purchases. I usually pick up a pound from the meat counter. If you’re lucky, they’ll make it for you, and the seasonings are just perfect!
I love the spicy sausage in the creamy broth. The addition of lemon just before serving creates the perfect balance. Such a yummy winter soup!
These are the details
Ingredients
- sun-dried tomatoes – use the tomatoes with the oil in the jar
- spicy Italian chicken sausage – you could also use pork sausage
- onions
- shallots
- garlic
- carrots
- celery
- Italian seasoning
- broth
- canned white beans
- baby spinach
- cream or whole milk
- parmesan cheese
- lemon zest and juice
- fresh parsley
Special Tools
None! All you need is a nice big Dutch oven/soup pot. This recipe really is so easy!
Steps
Step 1: the sun-dried tomatoes
Start with the sun-dried tomatoes. I love using a jar of oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. Not only are the tomatoes delicious, but I also use the oil from the jar to cook the chicken. The oil is always seasoned, so it adds even more flavor. Just make sure it’s extra virgin olive oil.
Most people will discard the oil, but you must use it! It adds a lot of flavor to recipes.
Step 2: cook the sausage
Add the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes to a Dutch oven. Add the sausage and onions and brown them. Then mix in the shallots, garlic, carrots, and celery. Mix in the Italian seasoning too.
Let the veggies soften up a bit.
Step 3: add the broth and simmer
Next, add the broth and simmer until all the veggies are tender and the soup start to really smell yummy!
Step 4: finish the soup
Now add the spinach, the sun-dried tomatoes, and white beans. Mix in the cream, parmesan, and lemon, cooking until warmed throughout.
The cheese will melt into the creamy broth.
Serve
When you’re ready to eat, divide the soup between bowls and top it with extra parmesan and freshly chopped Italian parsley.
And, of course, no bowl of Italian soup is complete without some crusty bread (I particularly love a loaf of warm ciabatta) or my Nonnie’s homemade beer bread. Both are great with this soup!
Looking for other soups? Here are a few ideas:
Easy Chipotle Cheddar Beef Chili
Healthy Slow Cooker Turkey and White Bean Chili
Healthy Slow Cooker Chipotle Bean Chili
One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake
Healthy Chipotle Chicken Sweet Potato Skins
Slow Cooker Chipotle Chicken Tortilla Soup with Salty Lime Chips
Crockpot Chipotle Queso Chicken Chili
Lastly, if you make this Creamy Tuscan White Bean Lemon Soup, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. If you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Creamy Tuscan White Bean Lemon Soup
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 373 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 1 jar (8 ounce) oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 pound spicy Italian chicken sausage
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 shallots, chopped
- 6 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 1/2 cup chopped celery
- 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
- 6 cups broth
- 2 cans white beans
- salt and black pepper
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 1 cup whole milk or cream
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- chopped fresh parsley, for serving
Instructions
- 1. Drain 3 tablespoons of oil from the sun-dried tomato jar into a Dutch oven. Chop the sun-dried tomatoes and set aside.2. Set the pot over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and onion. Cook, breaking up the meat as you go until browned. Add the shallots, garlic, carrots, celery, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Cook another 5 minutes, fragrant. 3. Add the broth. Simmer for 10 minutes over medium heat until the veggies are tender. Add the spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, and white beans. Mix in the cream, parmesan, and lemon. Cook for another few minutes until warmed through.4. Divide the soup among bowls and add additional parmesan and fresh parsley. Enjoy with warm bread – of course!
This post was originally published on January 13, 2025
Can this be made the day before? Would there be any changes? Thanks!
Hi Tracy,
Totally, that will work nicely for you:) You can keep the recipe as written! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
I loved the flavor… but I think next time I will do half of the beans and add cheese tortellini
Hi Mimma,
Thanks so much for making this recipe! So glad it was enjoyed, cheese tortellini sounds like a great addition! xT
Hello, I am a vegetarian and would love to make a vegetarian option it sounds so good! Is there something I can substitute for the chicken sausage or leave it out? thank you!
Hi Sandy,
You can totally leave out the sausage and even add more beans if you like:) I hope you love this recipe! xT
Wow!!! It’s gotta be easy, healthy and quick ESPECIALLY on a Monday night after work…and it was! Absolutely LOVED it. So filling with just one bowl.
Hey Lynn,
Thank you! So glad to hear this soup was a hit, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! xT
YUM! I used spicy pork sausage and it was still bomb. I did drain the beans. I think I will probably have to add broth to the leftovers because it’s thick. I love a dense soup!! I had a normal sized bowl for dinner and was full before the bowl was empty. The beans filled me up!
Thanks so much, Lauren! Love to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks for making it and your comment! xT
I used the chicken sausage but I could not find spicy chicken sausage. I added red pepper flakes for the spice.
Otherwise I followed the recipe as it directed.
My husband and I both really enjoyed the soup. We liked the lemon flavor. The soup was refreshing and yummy on a cold day.
I do have two questions first of all are you supposed to drain the beans? The broth was not very thick so I started to think that I shouldn’t have drained the beans.
Second could you use some other kind of sausage?
Hey Jean,
Thanks so much for trying this soup, I’m so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Yes, you can drain and rinse the beans and then really any sausage that you enjoy will work nicely here. I hope this helps for next time! xx
Are the beans rinsed and drained, as called for in most recipes, or undrained?
Thank you.
Hi Ellen,
Yes, you can go ahead and drain and rinse the beans. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
I made this tonight and it was really delicious! The lemon flavour was fantastic. I added some diced potatoes to make it a bit more hearty and would cut out the salt next time. Thank you!
Hi Loralea,
Happy Monday! I appreciate you trying this soup and your feedback, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! XxT
Are you supposed to chop the Sun dried tomatoes?
Hi there,
Yes, you will want to chop the sun dried tomatoes. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Do you take the casings off the sausage or just slice it?
Hi Claire,
I used ground sausage for this recipe, so it did not have any casings. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
This looks amazing but do you have a vegan version this?
Hi Nancy,
Sorry, I do not. But, you could skip the chicken sausage and use your favorite non dairy ingredients for the milk and cheese. I hope this helps! xT
I used impossible ground sausage and it was delish!
Could I add salsa verde?
Only if it’s red salsa verde
Hi Becky,
I haven’t tried that with this recipe, I’m not sure it’s necessary:) You could certainly give it a try if that’s something you would like to do! xx
Will make today .. looks delish !
Thanks so much, Fran! I hope you love this recipe. Happy Monday! xx
What type of broth? And could kale be used instead of spinach?
Hi Sara,
I like to use chicken or veggie broth for this soup and yes, kale would also work nicely for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try! xxT
This sounds and looks really cold for a cold Winters day.
Thanks so much, Kelly-Jane! I hope you love this recipe! xxT
Would this recipe still work without the milk if you are lactose intolerant?
Hi Lisa,
I would use a dairy free milk that you enjoy like coconut milk, that will work nicely here. I hope you love this recipe! xx
Do you drain the white beans, or not?
Hi Mary,
Yes, you can drain the beans. Please let me know if you have any other questions:) xx