Creamy Tortellini Soup
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details.
Creamy tortellini soup made with Italian sausage, cheese-filled tortellini, kale, and Parmesan rind for extra richness. A cozy comfort food recipe ready in just 30 minutes.
Featured Comment
This creamy tortellini soup is one of the most popular Damn Delicious recipes. A quick and hearty Italian-inspired soup with sausage, kale, and tender tortellini simmered in a Dutch oven.
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 all this creamy goodness.
Oh, and the wine. That helps warm you up too, no?
Tips for the Best Creamy Tortellini Soup with Italian Sausage
- 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 or large cast iron pot – essential for simmering creamy tortellini soup evenly.
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 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?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
I made this soup last week, and it is off the charts delicious! I made my own Italian sausage, which was pretty spicy, and it gave the soup a wonderful heat. I also made a batch without meat for my vegetarian college student and she loved it as well (I added a pinch of smoked paprika and crushed red pepper, some of the spices that were in the Italian sausage I made). This will definitely be on our soup rotation.
Me and my husband love this one! We usually go with spinach instead of kale. I make sure to make extra as it works great for leftovers for lunch the next day. I like to make it with some crunchy garlic bread. Great recipe!
Absolutely amazing recipe!!!! Everyone loved this!!!!!!!
This was dry easy to make & amazing!!! The kids and I loved it. It’s a keeper
I love this soup so much! It’s extremely easy for a weeknight! I opt out on the sausage and just add some extra veggies (celery and carrots), and it makes for a delicious hearty vegetarian soup. We are making it tonight for the third time this winter season!
Thanks for the recipe! My husband and son voted for it to go into the our regular rotation.
Absolutely, the best!! Can this be frozen? I’d like to make more and then freeze to have it on hand.
Best soup recipe out there. I make this all the time for my family. Kids and husband approved. They can’t get enough so this time i have to double the recipe so i can have more then one bowl.
Loved this easy soup – so did everyone else! I replaced the sausage with cremini mushrooms (about 8 oz) and used spinach in place of the kale because that’s what I had on hand. It was delicious! I will make this soup again and often since it was so delicious!
My boyfriend finished the entire thing (I helped myself to seconds too ;)). Extremely good!! I’m definitely doubling the batch next time so we have leftovers. Definitely make this soup! The only thing I didn’t do was add the meat. It was still so delicious!
Oh man this was soooo good. And super easy to make if you prep all the chopped veggies and herbs first. We ate it with crusty baguettes and didn’t stop till the bowl was empty!
I made this soup for my husband. He loves this soup! I gotta say it tastes awesome. Will be making it again next week. I have requests for more of this delicious soup!
Entire family loved it. Definitely a keeper and will make again many times. Thank you!
This is so delicious!! Definitely a favorite in our house.
This was amazing!!! The kids and I loved it. It’s a keeper.
Delicious! Everyone raved, even the toddler. I used frozen tortellini with no problems .
Super easy, quick and very delicious! This is a keeoer for sure! Didnt change a thing other than made 1/ 2 a recipe and used the fat/oil to make the rogue with the flour instead of draining it.
My boyfriend and toddler loved it ! I used johnsonvilles spicy Italian sausage that was already grounded and rather than using fresh basil, I used 2 tbs of dried basil leaves. Nice recipe!!!
Made this last night for dinner. Was super easy and delicious. Next time I will try with spinach as others suggested. If you don’t have tortellini I think this would be just as good with any other pasta in its place. Some fresh baked bread to dunk in the broth was fantastic! Will definitely make this again.
Wow! This was SO delicious – my entire family devoured this soup! I used high-quality italian sausage and homemade tomato sauce and this was perfection. I’ve been making it for extended family members too and everyone requests the recipe after!
This was so easy to make and delicious. I used whatever I had at home, which was frozen Italian meatballs, carrots, onions, pasta sauce, dried basil, and heavy whipping cream. My family devoured it and I’m excited to make more. Thank you so much for sharing!