Creamy Tortellini Soup
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A quick 30 min dinner! Made with crumbled sausage, kale, Parmesan and tender tortellini. So easy, so cozy, so good.
Featured Comment
I’ve loaded up on parkas and electric blankets for myself and Butters. But I don’t know, guys. It’s going to be a dicey winter for us Californians. But what I do know is this – have as much of this creamy tortellini soup as possible until the polar vortex passes. That and all the crusty bread to sop up every last drop of this lovely creamy goodness.
tips and tricks for success
- Use fresh tortellini. Fresh cheese tortellini cooks quickly and keeps the soup creamy without becoming mushy.
- Add the cream slowly at the very end to prevent curdling and to keep your tortellini soup creamy and smooth.
- Save leftover Parmesan rinds. Adding them while simmering in a Dutch oven gives this creamy tortellini soup a nutty depth of flavor.
- Store tortellini separately for leftovers. Store cooked tortellini separately when meal prepping or freezing so the soup doesn’t lose its creamy broth.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with homemade crusty bread or garlic knots for dipping—classic sides for creamy tortellini soup.
What to Serve with Creamy Tortellini Soup
Tools For Making Tortellini Soup
Dutch oven
Tortellini Soup: Frequently Asked Questions
Swiss chard, baby spinach, collard greens, and cabbage are all great options.
We love using fresh cheese tortellini for a more neutral base but your favorite tortellini would also work very well here.
Absolutely! Dried tortellini can be cooked in a separate pot and added to the soup at the end of cooking time until warmed through.
Heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream) has one of the highest fat contents with about 36-40% fat. Half and half or whole milk are suitable substitutes, but will yield a lighter result.
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers without the tortellini and heavy cream (cream soups tend to separate when frozen) in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop, adding freshly cooked tortellini and heavy cream when serving.
Creamy Tortellini Soup
Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound Italian sausage, casing removed
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium sweet onion, diced
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (3-inch) Parmesan rind, optional
- 1 (9-ounce) package refrigerated three cheese tortellini
- ½ bunch kale, stems removed and leaves chopped
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Equipment
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add Italian sausage and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the sausage as it cooks; drain excess fat.
- Stir in garlic, onion and Italian seasoning. Cook, stirring frequently, until onions have become translucent, about 2-3 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
- Stir in chicken stock, tomato sauce and Parmesan rind, if using. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced and slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in tortellini; cover and cook until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
- Stir in kale until wilted, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in heavy cream and basil until heated through, about 1 minute; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately.
Did you make this recipe?
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Delicious recipe but I do have to point out that you list a 15 minute cook time. If the recipe is followed with the minimum cook times you’re at 22 minute cook time, not 15. Took me closer to 50 minutes to complete
I actually have a question. Can you do this in a crock pot? Thanks!
I have never left a review in my life and I don’t even like sausage but this might be the best soup I’ve ever made. Absolutely delicious. I made it as is except I maybe didn’t use all the sausage and it was spectacular. It was so good, I burned my mouth and tongue because I refused to let it cool.
Loved it. I used spinach and it turned out excellent. Topped it off in the bowl with mozzerella.
I made this with a 6oz can of tomato paste because I didn’t have an 8oz can of sauce. I added 6 cups total of chicken stock (I love a brothy soup!)
It tastes great! Super easy to do! Thank you for sharing!
We loved this recipe. I used hot Italian sausage and it was wonderful!
I’ve made this so many different times for many friends and family during the winter time. It’s amazing, especially with warm, crusty fresh bread! Now that it is finally cold again, I’m making it again today and doubling the recipe! Thanks so much!
Thank you for this recipe. It was absolutely fantastic…better than a 5 star restaurant! Everyone loved it. Only changes: I used hot ground Italian sausage and spinach in place of the kale. I cooked the tortellini separate and added them in the last few minutes…simply AMAZING!
Legitimately one of the best things I’ve ever cooked.
And I say that as a dad who cooks 5-6 nights a week and is pretty darn good at it.
The ONLY substitution I made was me being lazy, I had made up a huge batch of mini pork and beef meatballs the day before, so I saved about 3 dozen of those and tossed em in while the onions were sweating instead of the ground sausage.
Incredible. Something so good I would go to a restaurant just to get that soup.
So easy and quick! I used spicy Italian sausage instead of sweet. Also added fresh sliced mushrooms and white beans for more texture. Delicious!
If you’re thinking about making this DO IT. It is one of the best recipes I’ve tried. I never leave reviews and this one I had to. I only swapped out kale for spinach and followed the rest and it is so delicious.
This was amazing! It took me a bit longer than 30 to prep and cook…but that’s typical for me. It was worth every minute! I love tortellini and creamy soup. Plus the aroma is fantastic!
This is so yummy! Even my kids, who are super picky eaters, love this. So quick and easy to make. Well done! I used hot Italian sausage and came out so amazing.
Thanks for sharing. This was a great recipe. Super fast and easy to prepare. It will definitely be a staple around my house.
Amazing soup! So flavourful and creamy. I used Richmond’s vegan sausages instead and worked out really good 🙂 would defo make again.
Wow! Very easy, inexpensive, and delicious!!! I will use a little bit more stock next time but this is a keeper for sure.
Amazing recipe. Great for the whole family. Super flavorful.
I put a bit of a twist on this – I set out to make the exact recipe, but with a vegetarian daughter, I had to sub the chk broth for veg broth, and I used a homemade Ital sausage made with Impossible Meat. Something went wrong (but also right) at the point I added the broth; the “meat” began to break down, and thickened the liquid – a LOT. I added the tomato sauce, then followed the rest of the instructions. Ended up with an absolutely incredible tortellini w/”meat” sauce dish, nice & thick. I’m going to try this one again with real sausage, but if anybody wants to replicate my method, just add an extra tbsp or 2 of flour at step 3 for a thickener. Overall, great flavors in this!
I’m not usually a soup person but I’ve made this soup about three times since I found it two months ago – SO GOOD! I added just a pinch of chili powder to add a kick to it.
I used hot Italian sausage and red onion. This came out amazing!! My husband and I loved it. It made enough for each of us to have one hearty bowl for dinner and each of us one bowl for lunch the next day! I also topped with some shredded parmesan cheese. Will definitely be making this often!
Yummy soup! My whole family loves it! Great for a weeknight dinner. Made exactly as recipe said. We had a lot of tortellini in it, so might add some more broth next time.
I use spinach instead of kale, and brick of cream cheese. Delicious!
Excellent soup!! Made exactly as per recipe and this is now my favorite soup! I typically do not leave recipe reviews but this was so good that I had to come back to share my appreciation. Love your work Chungah! Your site is awesome… and damn delicious!