Colorado fingerling potatoes bring a tender sweet element to this sausage potato soup. Seasoned with rosemary and thickened with half and half makes this a savory delight. An easy flavorful soup recipe that your family will love.
And looking for more soup recipes with potatoes? Don’t miss my Hamburger Potato Soup. Easy, hearty and very lovable.
This fingerling potato and sausage soup has definitely earned its merits as one of our very favorite comfort food Soup Recipes. What makes it so good? The broth becomes irresistible by taking on seasonings from the Italian sausage. And is rich and buttery by adding half and half.
Sprinkling the meat with a little flour before adding the broth, thickens the soup to a “just right” consistency.
And, icing on the cake … it’s an easy soup to make.
And, this year’s Colorado harvest of tiny fingerling and new potatoes have given us some of the sweetest and most flavorful I can remember. With so many stellar ingredients, the potatoes become the star of this recipe. Every year, I make this Italian sausage potato soup.
What Are Fingerling Potatoes?
Fingerling potatoes are 2 – 4 inches long; finger-shaped; red, orange, purple or white skin; red orange, purple, yellow or white flesh. And sometimes streaked with veins of color. They have a waxy firm texture and can be used for pan frying, roasting or in salads. The flavor is referred to as nutty, buttery and earthy with a medium sugar content. Fingerling varieties are Austrian, Crescent, Banana, French, Larette, Red Thumb, Rose Finn Apple, Purple Peruvian. Source: Colorado San Luis Valley Potatoes.
So with all that said, let’s talk about how I put these sweet little fingerlings to work for this sausage and potato soup.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Half and Half
- Chicken Broth
- Italian Sausage, hot or mild.
- Onion, sweet, yellow or white
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Dried Rosemary
- Flour
- Garlic
- Bay Leaf
- Potatoes: Fingerling, or small new potatoes.
Crushing Dried Herbs: You’ll get more flavor out of dried herbs if you crush them before adding to recipes. First measure the herbs in a measuring spoon, then empty the spoon into your hand. Crush the dried herbs with the fingers of your other hand to release the herb’s flavor. Then add it to the recipe.
Ingredient Substitutions
- Potatoes: Fresh locally grown fingerling potatoes are sweet, tender and absolutely divine. If you can’t find fingerling, small potatoes, or new potatoes are an excellent choice. Larger Yukon gold potatoes, cut into cubes is also a great substitution. Save those starchy russet potatoes to make mashed or baked potatoes. Russets won’t hold up as well in a long simmer soup.
- Half and Half: By all means substitute cream to make it even more that luscious.
- Substitute Fresh Rosemary for dried.
- Flour: Make this a gluten free sausage potato soup by using gluten free flour.
- Italian Sausage: To lighten things up, substitute a good quality Chicken Italian Sausage for the traditional pork variety.
Step by Step Instructions, It’s Easy
- Step 1: Brown sausage in a large saucepan or Dutch oven set over medium high heat, breaking it up as it cooks. When it is starting to brown, add onion and cook until they are wilted and transparent; add garlic and cook for one minute longer, stirring frequently.
- Step 2: Sprinkle flour over the top of the sausage mixture and quickly stir in. At this point the mixture will be very dry in appearance.
- Step 3: While stirring, slowly add the chicken broth; stir until it comes to a boil.
- Step 4: Add the potatoes, bay leaf, rosemary and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil before reducing the heat to low. Cover and simmer until the potatoes are fork tender, approximately 30-40 minutes.
- Sep 5: Add the half and half and salt and pepper. Simmer on low for an additional 10 minutes. If using fresh rosemary, remove the stem and remove the bay leaf. Serve piping hot.
Tip: Make sure that the soup is simmering on low heat. Too high of heat can cause the half and half to separate. No need to worry if using heavy cream, the fat content in cream is more friendly to heat.
Variations:
- I make this sausage potato soup often and many times add a fist full of spinach leaves just before serving. No need to add any additional cooking time. The hot soup will wilt the spinach almost immediately.
- During Colorado sweet corn season, I’ve also added kernels of fresh corn that’s been freshly cut from the cob. Corn is a great partner for potatoes.
- I’ve been known to swirl in a heaping tablespoon of sour cream at the end of the cooking time. It adds a little layer of tangy goodness.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.
- This soup will also freeze well for up to three months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then gently reheat on low heat stovetop. Heating the soup over too high of heat may cause the half and half to separate.
With all that said, grab some potatoes and give this recipe a try. This is one of our favorite Italian Sausage Soup Recipes.
More Soup Recipes You Might Like
And if you love soup as much as we do, don’t miss my Soup Category. You’ll find lots of great soup, chili and stew recipes including the most popular recipe on my site for Chicken Noodle Soup.
And if you’re looking for more quick and easy soup recipes, take a look at this Black Bean and Ham Soup. Using canned beans and a ham steak = pronto on the table.
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Creamy Sausage Potato Soup
Ingredients
- ½ pound Italian sausage mild or hot
- 1 small sweet onion peeled, both ends removed and sliced into thin strips end to end
- 1 large clove garlic crushed
- 2 Tablespoons All-purpose flour or gluten free flour
- 2 ½ Cups Chicken broth
- 1 pound fingerling potatoes cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary or one sprig fresh rosemary
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon Red pepper flakes
- 1 ½ Cups Half and half or heavy cream
Instructions
- Brown sausage in a large saucepan or Dutch oven set over medium high heat, breaking it up as it cooks. When it is starting to brown, add onion and cook until they are wilted and transparent; add garlic and cook for one minute longer, stirring frequently.
- Sprinkle flour over the top of the sausage mixture and quickly stir in. At this point the mixture will be very dry in appearance.
- While stirring, slowly add the chicken broth; stir until it comes to a boil. Add the potatoes, bay leaf, rosemary, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil before reducing the heat to low.
- Cover and simmer until the potatoes are fork tender, approximately 30-40 minutes. Add the half and half and salt and pepper. Simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Remove the rosemary stem and bay leaf. Taste to see if more salt is needed and serve piping hot
Notes
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.
- This soup will also freeze well for up to three months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then gently reheat on low heat stovetop. Heating the soup over too high of heat may cause the half and half to separate.
- I make this soup often and many times add a fist full of spinach leaves just before serving. No need to add any additional cooking time. The hot soup will wilt the spinach almost immediately.
- During Colorado sweet corn season, I’ve also added kernels of fresh corn that’s been freshly cut from the cob. Sweet corn is a great partner for potatoes.
- Use gluten free flour to make this a gluten free soup.
Nutrition
Creamy Sausage Potato Soup (Italian Potato Soup) …It’s What’s for Dinner.
