15 Soul-Warming Italian Soups

Tuscan-Kale-and-Squash Minestra
Photo: © David Malosh

When you're craving a hearty, comforting, warm bowl of soup, these Italian classics are sure to check all the boxes. Our roundup includes stick-to-your-ribs lentil-sausage soup, richly flavored Tuscan tomato-bread soup, loaded Sicilian meatball soup with veggies and pasta, and more. Pair them with some grated Parmesan and a slice of crusty bread, and keep your ladle at the ready for inevitable refills.

01 of 15

Ribollita

Ribollita
Jen Causey

The foundation of this deeply savory bread and bean porridge from chef Adam Leonti includes grassy-green, peppery olive oil; earthy, rustic bread; small, thin-skinned white beans; and most importantly, sofrito, the finely chopped, slow-cooked mixture of carrots, onions, and celery that gives ribollita its extraordinary flavor.

02 of 15

Stracciatella

Stracciatella
© Abby Hocking

Stracciatella is the Italian version of egg drop soup. This tasty one from chef Hugh Acheson combines shredded chicken, spinach, basil, peas, grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, and eggs.

03 of 15

Minestrone with White Beans and Italian Sausage

Minestrone with White Beans and Italian Sausage
© Kristin Gladney

Minestrone is a hearty, vegetable-filled soup that often contains beans and sometimes pasta. We've omitted the pasta here but added some Italian sausage. With minestrone, it seems, there is no end to the delectable variations.

04 of 15

Italian Wedding Soup

Italian Wedding Soup
© Pernille Pedersen

For this minestra maritata, or Italian wedding soup, tiny pork meatballs are simmered with orzo, chickpeas, spinach, and Parmesan. Naturally, this soup pairs well with a floral Northern Italian red wine.

05 of 15

Pasta Fazool

Pasta Fazool
© Abby Hocking

For his riff on pasta e fagioli (pasta and beans), F&W Culinary Director at Large Justin Chapple makes this pasta fazool with canned tomatoes and dried oregano; that way, it can be prepared any time of year.

06 of 15

Sicilian Meatball Soup

Sicilian Meatball Soup
© Hector Sanchez

Flavored with Parmesan and garlic and studded with raisins, scrumptious Sicilian meatballs turn vegetable soup into an irresistible meal. If the soup waits, the pasta may absorb much of the liquid; just add water or more stock.

07 of 15

Chunky White Bean Soup with Pan-Fried Salami

Chunky White Bean Soup with Pan-Fried Salami
© Ethan Hill

This Italian white bean soup is a hearty mix of cannellini beans, garlic, kale and carrots. What makes it spectacular is salty little bits of salami, which get quickly pan-fried until crisp, then stirred into the soup before serving.

08 of 15

Fava Bean Pasta e Fagioli

Fava Bean Pasta e Fagioli
© Paul Costello

Chef Mike Lata's spring version of pasta e fagioli uses fresh fava beans in place of borlotti or cannellini beans, along with meaty bits of bacon and a sprinkling of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.

09 of 15

Pappa al Pomodoro

Pappa al Pomodoro
© Fabrizio Ferri

This hearty Tuscan tomato-bread soup starts with a whopping five pounds of fresh tomatoes. After they're blanched and the skins and seeds have been discarded, the tomatoes simmer with onion, garlic, and crushed red pepper, then get thickened with cubes of Italian bread. The finished soup is served with a drizzle of olive oil and a dollop of ricotta.

10 of 15

Tuscan Kale and Squash Minestra

Tuscan-Kale-and-Squash Minestra
© David Malosh

Minestra is a light, brothy Italian soup with vegetables. In this version, Tuscan kale and butternut squash are sautéed with onion, garlic, and rosemary, then simmered in chicken stock with pasta and white beans.

11 of 15

Lentil and Garlic Sausage Soup

Lentil and Garlic-Sausage Soup
© Ray Kachatorian

The inspiration for chef Tom Fundaro's garlicky lentil soup is the traditional cotechino pork sausage from the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna, where it's cooked slowly until moist and almost sticky, then served over creamy lentils. Fundaro's recipe skews pan-European, with French lentils, Manchego cheese, and any really good garlic sausage.

12 of 15

Chickpea Soup with Swiss Chard

Chickpea Soup with Swiss Chard
© Emma Lee

The humble chickpea is enormously popular in Italy, especially for soups. Here, in this Tuscan specialty, it's joined by tomatoes, macaroni, Swiss chard leaves, and a generous quantity of garlic.

13 of 15

Ligurian Seafood Soup

Ligurian Seafood Soup
© Rob Howard

This gorgeous dish of layered shellfish and seafood is based on a recipe that sommelier Richard Betts found in a 1995 issue of F&W. He freely adapts the recipe to whatever looks best at the market, but he always follows the same formula: fish on the bottom, shellfish on the top. "It's so impressive," he says. "When you pull it out of the oven, people freak."

14 of 15

Tuscan White Bean and Escarole Soup with Tuna

Tuscan White Bean and Escarole Soup with Tuna
Eva Kolenko

White cannellini beans, tuna, and escarole are simply combined in chicken stock with garlic and rosemary for this easy soup that comes together in just 30 minutes.

15 of 15

Spinach and Egg-Drop Pasta Soup

Spinach and Egg-Drop Pasta Soup
© James Baigrie

"In our house, stracciatella was a catch-all," chef Tom Valenti says about this simple, rustic soup. "We started with good homemade stock and added whatever was around: beans, leftover sausage, shredded chicken." With a few truffle shavings, this soup can be dressed up for an elegant dinner party.

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