Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup

This delicious, super-easy Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup is creamy and made in only one pot in less than 30 minutes!

Look at all that creamy, delicious, wonderful bowl of warmth and comfort.  I know I should wait until everyone starts eating pasta again in February to post this, but I can’t. I just can’t wait.  I had to post it the first chance I got to post a recipe, so here it is in all its one-pot easy recipe glory.  You know I don’t believe in diets anyways; you will never be successful long-term if you can’t eat the things you love. And I love this recipe with every fiber of my being. 

I came up with the idea of this soup when I was thinking I wanted to make the flavors of my Italian sausage and spinach pasta in soup form.  I don’t know if it was a pregnancy craving or what, but I was obsessed with the idea of it.  Actually, I think my obsession with soups this past winter has definitely been pregnancy related.  But I happened to see some pesto tortellini recipe on Instagram, and it just clicked!  

And OH M GEE, is this recipe delicious!  It tastes exactly as I imagined.  A creamy soup version of my favorite pasta dish.  It’s so hearty, warm, and comforting.  Plus, it’s PACKED with veggies.  10/10 recommend you make this soup immediately.  

How to Make Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup

This recipe can be made in only one pot in less than 30 minutes!  It comes together pretty quickly.  Start by sauteeing onion and garlic, then browning the meat. Once the meat is brown, you start making soup by adding broth and tomatoes!

Once you’ve got everything boiling, you put your tortellini and cook for a few minutes.  Once the tortellini is ready, finish her with some cheesy, creamy ingredients! And, of course, don’t forget the veggies! It is that simple!

Writing this post is making me want more right now! haha

Swaps and Substitutions

• Onion – Swap other types of onions if you want.  You could technically omit it, but I wouldn’t!
• Garlic – If you don’t have any on hand, I don’t think it will make or break you in this recipe.  But if you do, definitely throw it in!
• Italian Sausage – You can use sweet or hot!  Unfortunately, I’m the only one in my household who likes spicy food, so we use sweet sausage. Also, you can totally use chicken, turkey, or whatever other type of ground Italian sausage you want.  If it comes in an actual sausage casing, just cut the meat out of the casing. 
• Italian Seasoning – Optional, but amps up the flavor, especially if your meat is under-seasoned. 
• Chicken Broth – Use vegetable broth in a pinch.  You could use water, but you’ll miss the broth’s flavor.  If you are watching your sodium, feel free to use reduced or no sodium broth, but it will change the flavor. 
• Diced Tomatoes – Could sub fresh, but don’t omit.  
• Cheese Tortellini – This could be any tortellini. This soup would be delicious in a pinch with just plain old pasta too! 
• Cream Cheese – Optional, but also not optional.  Dairy-free cream cheese will work! 
• Parmesan Cheese –  Do not omit.  I used grated, but you could use fresh!
• Half and Half – Heavy cream is traditional, but I liked half and half.  You could also get away with whole milk, but the soup might be thinner. 
• Spinach – Sub kale, power greens, collared greens, or any other hearty greens that will wilt in the soup but retain their shape.  
• Seasonings – Salt and pepper to taste. We didn’t think it needed any.  I was the only one that added red pepper flakes to my soup!
• Fresh parsley – we are obsessed with fresh parsley!  Use it if you have some on hand!  

How to Store and Freeze

To Store:  Store in an airtight container for up to five days, and reheat in the microwave or stove.  Some say that you should only use as much tortellini as you want initially and then add fresh tortellini to leftovers because the tortellini will blow up and absorb a bunch of moisture.  Our tortellini held its shape just fine for five days in the soup.  (I only know this because I made it Christmas week, and a small leftover bowl was left in the back of the fridge for over a week. I would have eaten it if I wasn’t pregnant and worried more about food safety. Our initial soup only lasted a couple of days before it was gone!)

To freeze: So for the best results, you cook the soup through step 2 in the directions in the recipe card below, stopping before you add any tortellini.  Let it cook completely, and then freeze.  When you are ready to defrost, let it defrost under refrigeration.  Bring soup to a boil on the stove and finish the cooking as if you were making it the first time, so complete steps 2-5.  Here is why:  tortellini doesn’t freeze well, and cream-based soups without a roux base also don’t freeze well.  By stopping before you add the tortellini, you have a lot of it done without compromising texture.  Freezing leftovers of the soup already made likely won’t hold an appealing texture when reheated, it will be safe and taste fine, but the texture may be weird. 

More Italian Sausage Recipes

• Five Ingredient Pasta with Sausage and Spinach 
• One Pan Creamy Cauliflower Gnocchi and Sausage
• Sausage and Apple Stuffed Butternut Squash

In the mood for soup? You may also like these recipes: 

• Loaded Veggie Kielbasa Soup
• Healthy Hamburger Soup
• Chicken Quinoa Soup
• Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
• Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
• Healthy Minestrone Soup Recipe

Tag me if you make these! I love to see what you guys make! You can tag me on Insta @hungryhobbyRD and Facebook @hungryhobby!