Creamy Tortellini Soup
by Chungah
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A quick 30-minute creamy tortellini soup! Made with Italian sausage, greens, Parmesan and quick-cooking tortellini. So fast, easy, and cozy!
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Why you’ll love this creamy tortellini soup
- Weeknight miracle dinner. This recipe calls for quick-cooking refrigerated tortellini, allowing the soup to come together in just 30 minutes, start to finish.
- Cold weather comfort food. We’re talking about the best kind of cozy, comfort food here. The velvety tomato broth with crumbled sausage and pillowy tortellini with sneaked in greens just hits different, especially when you’re under the weather or during those blistery snow days.
- Perfect with crusty bread. This is just one of those soups best served with all the crusty bread to sop up every last drop of all the creamy goodness.
- Incredibly flexible, forgiving recipe. This is a great opportunity to use up all those wilting veggies and leftover proteins instantly.
How to make creamy tortellini soup
- Crumble the sausage. Remove the meat from its casing (if using links) and cook the sausage in large chunks in a Dutch oven over medium heat, breaking the sausage into small pieces as it continues to cook. Drain the excess fat, leaving just enough for flavor.
- Sauté the aromatics. Stir in the garlic, onion, and Italian seasoning (or any additional herbs on hand).
- Whisk in the flour. Stir in the flour until lightly browned. The flour will serve as a natural thickening agent for the soup.
- Simmer. Add the chicken stock, tomato sauce, and Parmesan rind, simmering on low heat until slightly thickened. The longer it simmers, the more it will reduce.
- Add the tortellini. Stir in the fresh tortellini until cooked through, about 5 minutes. If using dried tortellini, cook them in a separate pot and add it here.
- Make it creamy. Add the kale, heavy cream, and basil until warmed through, seasoning one last time with salt and pepper.
- Serve warm. Serve immediately with crusty bread. If preparing for leftovers, store the tortellini separately as the tortellini in the soup can absorb the broth very quickly.
variations and substitutions
Protein swap
This is a great time to repurpose leftover shredded rotisserie chicken! Or you can substitute the Italian sausage for ground turkey (or beef) or shrimp.
Vegetarian-friendly
For a vegetarian option, use canned cannellini beans or navy beans, or extra-firm tofu that has been pan-fried or baked (also substituting the chicken stock for vegetable stock).
Additional vegetables or veggie swap
Add in any lingering vegetables such as carrots, celery, bell peppers, zucchini, or green beans.
Different greens
Swap out the kale for spinach, cabbage, swiss chard, or collard greens, adding towards the end of cook time.
Skip the tomatoes
For a more cream-based soup without tomatoes, try this recipe instead.
Slow cooker method
Make this in the crockpot instead, cooking low and slow for 7-8 hours.
freezing and storage
Storage
Store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Pro tip: if you are planning for leftovers beforehand, store the cooked tortellini and soup base separately.
Reheating
Gently reheat on the stovetop and add a splash of chicken stock, milk, or heavy cream to restore the desired consistency.
To Freeze
Freeze the soup base only without the tortellini and heavy cream as cream soups tend to separate when frozen. Once cooled completely, store in individual freezer bags. To reheat, thaw overnight and gently reheat on the stovetop, adding freshly cooked tortellini and heavy cream just before serving.
What to Serve with Creamy Tortellini Soup
Tools For this recipe
Dutch oven
Creamy Tortellini Soup: Frequently Asked Questions
Leafy greens such as spinach, cabbage, swiss chard, and collard greens are all excellent options.
I love using quick-cooking fresh cheese tortellini for a more neutral base but your favorite tortellini would also work very well here.
Absolutely! But dried tortellini should be cooked separately 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! 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
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.
Equipment
Notes
- Use refrigerated tortellini. Fresh refrigerated tortellini tastes much better than dry tortellini and cooks up so much faster.
- Save leftover Parmesan rinds. Get more out of those expensive Parmesan cheeses by using up the leftover rinds! Adding a Parmesan rind slightly thickens the broth and adds a level of nutty richness to the soup.
- Add in leafy greens. This is a great recipe to sneak in leafy greens for those picky eaters. Spinach, kale, collard greens, swiss chard, or arugula are all great options.
- Add the cream slowly. Always add the heavy cream at the very end, pouring very slowly to prevent curdling.
- Store tortellini separately for leftovers. When planning for leftovers, store the cooked tortellini separately from the soup to prevent it from soaking up all the broth.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with homemade crusty bread or garlic knots for dipping—classic sides for creamy tortellini soup.
Did you make this recipe?
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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!
Loved this for a chilly weeknight! The only thing I wasn’t clear on was instructions for whisking in the flour. Was I supposed to push the sausage and onion to the side and just whisk the flour on the bottom of the pot by itself, without liquid? The sausage just clumped up in the whisk so this really didn’t make sense to me. I just gave up and stirred it all together with a spoon. Not sure if that was right but it still tasted great! Will definitely make this again.
So flavorful. So delicious. So easy! It fed my hungry household of 6 (four of them teenagers) with second helpings for a few and one small/snack size portion left over. I did increase the tortellini to 13 ounces, but everything else directly as written. Will need to double the recipe for extra left overs next time. Thanks for another great recipe!
I’ve made this several times, doubling the recipe each time. This is magnificent and the leftovers are fantastic!
This soup was delicious! Added some red pepper flakes and used spinach in place of kale. Flavorful and hearty. This is the third recipe of yours that I have tried. Always incredibly yummy! Love your street tacos and shrimp boil pan dinner as well! I will look forward to more recipes! Thank you, Chungah!
This was extremely easy and absolutely delicious! I will make this again and again, for sure.
Absolutely delicious! Perfect for a cold night. Husband and teenage son LOVED it. Even the kale. Love your recipes!
Super fast and delicious. If anybody is really hungry that’s no more than 4 servings. I used 500g of tortellini (1.1 lbs) and was enough for 5. Great weekday recipe. Thank you.
This was seriously damn delicious…just what we needed on a cold day in Scotland. I was worried it wouldn’t make a main meal but it did even better with left overs for lunch the next day. The only thing I added was 1/2 tsp pepper flakes. Thank you for an awesome and easy recipe
I simply love your recipes and have tried several. This soup recipe was the latest I tried. It was so damn delicious. Thank you. My husband went for seconds. My only edit was that I used spinach (I had on hand) vs. kale. I will definitely make this again and again.
I used ground chuck because I did not have Italian sausage. Could have used only 3/4# but no problem, just a lot of meat. Did not have kale so I used 4 ounces of spinach and it was just right. Did not have fresh basil so stirred in 2 tsp. dried basil at same time I stirred in the Italian seasoning. Husband raved about it and had 2 large servings. Once again this site did not disappoint. I strongly recommend this recipe if you like the ingredients. Even with my subs. due to need, it was excellent! I would like to thank you for providing me with such dependable recipes. This site is a 5* for sure.
This soup is really delicious and comes together effortlessly. Thank you!
Is the nutrition information available for this?
This recipe is fantastic! I used sage bulk breakfast sausage in the recipe because that’s what I had in the fridge instead of Italian. I also used half and half instead of heavy cream for the same reason. It is wonderful! My last add was a 1/2 tsp of sugar for balance on the tomatoes.
I have made this soup at least a dozen times since I found the recipe about 1 year ago. We just love it! And I have made it for others and they love it as much as we do! I make it exactly as written most often but I have used Spinach instead of Kale a few times and it is just as good. Try this soup, you won’t be disappointed.
Best soup ever! You know it’s a keeper when your 13 year old granddaughter asks for a 2nd bowl. Will be making this regularly and doubling the recipe. Thanks so much for sharing.
How do you keep the tortellini from becoming overcooked and mushy?
I love soup and have been searching for recipes to add to my repertoire. This one definitely was added to my recipes. I made it exactly except i didn’t have basil on hand. My sausage was 2/3 sweet and 1/3 hot. It was delicious. Mine didn’t need any added salt or pepper – probably seasoned successfully from the sausage. Thanks for the great recipe.
Followed directions to a “t” and will be making this regularly again withno modifications needed for this family! Thank you!
This was absolutely fabulous! I left out the heavy cream because the soup was delicious before that step. Super easy and cozy weeknight dinner.
Made this tonight for dinner. Delicious and will be making it again and would not change a thing. My husband loved it too.