Ingredients (~6 servings)
- 3/4 lb Italian pork sausage
- 1 Tbsp olive oil, plus extra if needed
- 3/4 cup chopped yellow onion
- 1/2 cup shredded or small diced carrots
- 1/3 cup thinly-sliced or small diced celery
- 2 large cloves garlic, minced (~2 tsp)
- 1 1/2 Tbsp double concentrated tomato paste
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 can (14.5 oz) petite diced Roma tomatoes in juice
- 1 tsp dried Italian seasoning, plus extra if needed
- ~9 oz refrigerated cheese tortellini
- 1/3 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 1 1/2 packed cups baby spinach, roughly chopped (~2 oz)
- 4 large fresh basil leaves, roughly torn
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper
Brown the Sausage and Set Aside
In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, brown the sausage in 1 Tbsp olive oil.
As the sausage cooks, break it up into small to medium pieces using a wooden spoon or meat masher.
When the sausage is browned, remove it from the pot with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat behind. Place the sausage in a bowl and set aside.
Cook the Aromatics
You’ll need about 2-3 Tbsp of fat in the pan to cook the vegetables. If the sausage hasn’t released this much, add additional olive oil as needed. If there’s way more fat than this, drain off all but 2-3 Tbsp.
Add the onion, carrots, and celery with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Cook until just starting to soften, ~5 minutes.
Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and cook for 1-2 minutes, until the garlic is fragrant and the tomato paste starts to develop a brick-like color.
Deglaze and Build the Base
Pour in the wine and scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
Simmer, stirring often, until almost all of the liquid is evaporated, ~2-3 minutes.
Stir the reserved sausage back into the vegetables, along with any accumulated juices in the bowl. Sprinkle the flour into the pot and cook, stirring for 1-2 minutes.
The flour will clump at first but keep stirring – it’ll incorporate.
Add Broth and Simmer
Gradually pour the broth into the pot, stirring until well combined with the sausage mixture.
Stir in the diced tomatoes with their juice and Italian seasoning. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Cook the Tortellini and Finish
Add the tortellini and cook until al-dente, anywhere from 2-3 minutes to 5-8 minutes, depending on the brand you’re using.
Adjust the heat to maintain a gentle boil and stir the soup a few times as the tortellini cook so they don’t stick to the bottom.
When the pasta is tender, turn off the heat and immediately stir in the Parmigiano Reggiano, spinach, and basil. Stir for just a couple of minutes, until the spinach is wilted. Stir in the heavy cream.
Season the soup to taste with salt, pepper, and additional Italian seasoning if needed. The salt needed will vary depending on your broth and sausage.
Serve hot with additional Parmigiano Reggiano and black pepper on top. Italian bread for dipping is a solid choice here.
Creamy Sausage Tortellini Soup
Ingredients
Ingredients (~6 servings)
- 3/4 lb Italian pork sausage
- 1 Tbsp olive oil plus extra if needed
- 3/4 cup chopped yellow onion
- 1/2 cup shredded or small diced carrots
- 1/3 cup thinly-sliced or small diced celery
- 2 large cloves garlic ~2 tsp, minced
- 1 1/2 Tbsp double concentrated tomato paste
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 can petite diced Roma tomatoes in juice 14.5 oz
- 1 tsp dried Italian seasoning plus extra if needed
- ~9 oz refrigerated cheese tortellini
- 1/3 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 1 1/2 packed cups baby spinach ~2 oz, roughly chopped
- 4 large fresh basil leaves roughly torn
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper
Instructions
- Brown sausage in 1 Tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat, breaking into small pieces. Remove with slotted spoon and set aside, leaving fat in pot.
- Add 2-3 Tbsp total fat to pot (add more oil if needed). Add onion, carrots, celery, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper. Cook 5 minutes until softening.
- Stir in garlic and tomato paste. Cook 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
- Add wine and scrape bottom of pot. Simmer 2-3 minutes until liquid evaporates.
- Return sausage to pot. Sprinkle in flour and stir 1-2 minutes.
- Gradually add broth, stirring to combine. Add tomatoes with juice and Italian seasoning.
- Bring to boil, reduce to low, and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add tortellini and cook 2-8 minutes until al dente, stirring occasionally.
- Turn off heat. Stir in Parmigiano Reggiano, spinach, and basil until spinach wilts. Stir in cream.
- Season to taste with salt, pepper, and additional Italian seasoning.
- Serve hot with extra Parmigiano Reggiano and black pepper.
