Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana, a creamy Tuscan Soup (義大利濃湯)

This is a slightly revised version of two excellent online recipes (one from TuscanRecipes.com,  the other from Food.com) for a creamy Tuscan Soup, known as Zuppa Toscana served in the Olive Garden Restaurants here in the States. 

In this write-up, we try to make a lighter version of this soup, by using Half and Half instead of Heavy Cream, and reducing sausage and bacon by half.

I. Preparation

1. 1/4 - 1/2 lb of Italian Sausage or your favorite fully cooked sausage ( Pan-fry uncooked sausage; then chop into 1/4"-square chunks).  Set aside.  
2. 4-6 strips of bacon or 2 Tbsp of bacon bits (Pan-fry uncooked bacon till brown but not crispy; then chop into 1/2"-square chunks; or chop first then pan-fry). Drain oil back into the pan, then Set aside.
3. 2 cloves of garlic- minced, 1 onion- diced (Sauté minced garlic and diced onion, in the oil left from bacon browning, or in 1-2 Tbsp of veggie oil; until onion is soft.)
4. 2 medium-sized potatoes (peel and dice into bite size).  Note-  Immerse potato in water once peeled.  Some potato might turn darker color when exposed to oxygen.
5. Kale 3-4 branches (rinse and chop into 1/2"-square chunks).  Set Aside.

II. Cooking

1. Add 1 can of chicken broth (~1.5 cups) and 1.5  cans of water (~2 1/4 cups) into a 8"-10"-diameter pot, add potato chunks, sautéed onion, sausage, and bacon.  Bring to boil, and let simmer till the potatoes are cooked (about 15 minutes, taste to see if the potato is softened to your liking).  Note- Adding more than 1.5 cans of water might make this too soupy to be a creamy soup!
2. Add 1 cup of Half and Half, and the chopped kale, into the pot.  Bring to boil and let simmer for 30 seconds (longer if you prefer soft, i.e., fully cooked, kale leaves).
3. Season to taste with salt and pepper (Taste first, then start with 1/4 tsp of pepper and 1/4 tsp of salt).  Note- Please keep in mind that several ingredients, such as sausage, bacon, and chicken broth, are already salted.