This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Scotts Miracle-Gro. All opinions are 100% mine.
One of my pins that gets repinned on Pinterest frequently is the recipe for Zuppa Toscana Soup. A friend of ours made this for us and it's the perfect hearty soup for when the weather turns chilly.
Scott's Miracle-Gro® asked me to take a look at their Fall gardening tips and to share some projects or recipes that I am planning on making this autumn. I am still new to this whole "gardening"thing so I searched by region to see what edible plants I can grow in the fall in the southeast. I found out that I can plant kale in the fall and so I added that to my to-do list because it's a staple in our household.
They recommened Miracle-Gro Organic Choice Garden Soil for planting fall edibles such as kale, spinach and purple cauliflower. I mean, I'm sure you can just plant regular old cauliflower too but who wants white cauliflower when you can have purple?
Anyhow, since kale is one of the main ingredients in our favorite winter soup, I thought I'd share that recipe here. I'm really excited to be able to pluck fresh kale out of our backyard this year, it's never any fun to crave soup and find that you're fresh out of, well, fresh kale.
This recipe is adapted from allrecipes.com and tuscanrecipes.com- I add a few different things in 
- 1lb mild italian sausage
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 6 slices of bacon, crumbled
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- About 14 ounces of chicken broth
- 4 large russet potatos (I leave the skin on and chop them up in bite sizes)
- 1 cup of heavy cream
- 1 1/2 cups of kale leaves
- salt and pepper
First, cook the italian sausage and crushed red pepper in the olive oil, then drain and set aside. At the same time, cook the bacon (typically I use leftover bacon that I set aside for this meal. You could also use bacon bits in a pinch but it won't be nearly as yummy.) Then saute the onions with garlic in the bottom of whatever pot you are using. People mention this thing called a "dutch oven" a lot but I have no idea what that is. I am a terrible cook and this meal always comes out great, that is how good this recipe is.
Pour in the chicken broth, bring to a boil and add the potatos. Add salt and pepper to taste. I don't add a lot of salt because, hello bacon! Let boil until the potatos are tender and then turn the heat down and add in the heavy cream, sausage and bacon and simmer until heated through. Stir in the kale about five minutes before you serve it.
The bacon/sausage does make it have a slightly greasy layer to the top of it. I make sure to drain the sausage/bacon really well so that it isn't hugely overwhelming. But seriously? It's totally delicious. And I think it's probably my favorite re-heated soup. If I make a batch, I eat it for lunch for the next few days.
(Hint: Soup is messy for toddlers but when I give it to Scarlette, I just cool it down and then put it in her Sili Squeeze so she can drink it straight from that )
Scott's Miracle-Gro® wants to help you Find beauty in the Fall! Click here to visit the Miracle-Gro Facebook page and chat with other fellow gardeners for more tips and tricks!
About Kayla Aimee
