tortellini Archives - Posh in Progress

It's January, which for me meant it's officially soup season! I love soup, but I don't make it as often as I should. A family favorite is this slow cooker turkey chili, but I wanted to try something new. I've never made Italian sausage tortellini soup before, so I thought I'd give it a try. I researched a lot of different recipe options. Many of the soups add heavy cream. Many of them are also tomato-based soups. To keep the recipe lighter and healthier, I decided on a broth soup. I used chicken broth, but you could use beef broth too. As for the tortellini, I opted for three cheese tortellini. You could also use meat-filled tortellini if you prefer. I used fresh tortellini, but I think frozen tortellini would work too. For the sausage, I used a pork sausage, but you could use beef if you prefer. Mild or spicy Italian sausage would both work well in this recipe. The sausage I used was a bit spicy, which I thought paired really well with the cheese tortellini. I love the simplicity of this recipe, and I really love the wilted spinach. The green looks so lovely against the pale tortellini. To finish the recipe, you can top with parmesan cheese, crushed red pepper flakes, fresh herbs - like thyme. I would suggest you serve the soup with crusty bread for dipping. I had an Italian loaf that I made crostini out of simply by adding butter and placing it under the broiler for a short time. If you're looking for other soup recipes, check out this leftover mashed potato soup recipe and this Pasta Fagioli recipe. Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup Recipe Ingredients: 1 lb spicy or mild Italian sausage 1 medium onion, chopped 2medium carrots, chopped 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped 2 cartons (32 oz each) chicken broth 1 package (9 oz) refrigerated fresh cheese tortellini 1 bag (5 oz) baby spinach Directions: In a 5-quart Dutch oven or pot, cook sausage, onion, carrots, and garlic over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is thoroughly cooked; drain. Stir in broth; heat to boiling over medium-high heat. Add tortellini; reduce heat to low and cook 8 to 12 minutes or until tortellini are tender. Stir in spinach and cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until spinach is wilted.