Zuppa Toscana with a Vegan Twist

There are meals that have the ability to transport you. It can be to another place or time but either way is incredible how that happens. Zuppa Toscana has that magical power on me. I feel I'm wondering the streets of Italy whenever I make this recipe as the aromas invade my home. 

Zuppa Toscana is a beautiful soup brought to the world from the mom and pop restaurants in Tuscany. Is one of those recipes that grandma can put together in a few minutes when you go visit her. Or if she knows you are sick expect this soup to come your way. I think that's why it has become so popular all over the world. It just gives you that sense of home and warmth that we all crave every now and then. 

The original recipe is simple but it has a few things that we rather leave out. In a traditional Italian kitchen, Zuppa Toscana is made with fresh vegetables, a few spices, heavy cream, meat and even bacon. This is a bit of a calorie bomb. But since we are not using a few of those ingredients, don't you worry, we will make it better. 

First of all, we are using pre-marinated mock meat. I had a bit leftover from a Vegan Goulash recipe I made. I wanted to put it to good use. The mock meat makes this Zuppa Toscana more of a meal and it adds a whole lot of flavour. 

Also, we are using soy cream instead of regular cream to add extra body to our soup and get a nice silky texture. By making these little changes we are reducing the calories per serving to just 500 and we get to enjoy a healthy cruelty-free bowl of soup. 

To bump up the protein and be able to make this Zuppa Toscana a healthy lunch and/or dinner option I included in this recipe smoked tofu. It takes your soup to another level with all the extra flavour that you'll get from it. 

Smoked tofu is not as popular as regular tofu but you can definitely find it at your local market. Maybe there aren't as many options available as for regular tofu but whatever brand you get will do the trick just fine. 

It's quite different from regular tofu when it comes to flavour, it actually has a flavour. Enough that sometimes I even snack on smoked tofu. My son was the one that came up with this idea. I had some slices on the counter and he helped himself to some. He loved it! And now I have to always keep an eye on my smoked tofu while I cook, otherwise, he'll steal all of my ingredients. 

This is the perfect fall/winter soup. It's healthy, heartwarming and absolutely delicious. Serve this Zuppa Toscana while it's nice and warm alongside a few slices of whole grain bread and you will have the perfect meal for these cold crisp days.