Brown the sausage: Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat and add the sausage, breaking it into crumbles with a spoon. Cook about 5 minutes until no pink remains and some browned bits stick to the bottom of the pot.

Soften onion and carrot: Add the diced onion and sliced carrots to the pot with the sausage. Stir occasionally for about 4 minutes until the onion turns translucent and the carrots start to soften.

Add garlic and seasoning: Stir in the minced garlic and Italian seasoning, cooking for 30 seconds until fragrant. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot as it cooks.

Pour in broth and tomatoes: Add the chicken broth and diced tomatoes, stirring to combine. Scrape the bottom of the pot again to dissolve the remaining browned bits into the liquid.

Simmer the chicken: Nestle the whole chicken breasts into the broth and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for 15 to 18 minutes until a fork shreds the chicken easily and the inside is opaque with no pink.

Shred the chicken: Remove the chicken breasts to a cutting board and shred them with two forks. Return the shredded chicken to the pot.

Stir in the beans: Add the cannellini beans to the pot and stir to combine. Let the soup simmer for another 2 to 3 minutes so the beans warm through.

Add cream and spinach: Lower the heat and stir in the heavy cream and baby spinach. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring gently, until the spinach wilts and the broth turns creamy and pale orange.

Finish with parmesan: Stir in the grated parmesan cheese until melted into the broth. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.

Serve the soup: Ladle the soup into bowls while hot. Top with extra parmesan if you like.