Creamy Tortellini Soup
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My favorite cozy weeknight soup made in 30 min! Loaded with tender tortellini, sausage and kale! And it’s so easy!
Featured Comment
Have you seen the news? It’s apparently -50 degrees windchill in Chicago right now. I wish I was joking. Meanwhile, it was 69 degrees F here in LA today. How will Butters and I survive in the Windy City?
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 and tricks for success
- Use fresh tortellini. Fresh tortellini will cook much faster than dried or frozen tortellini, and will yield more softer pasta.
- Add the cream slowly. Always add the heavy cream at the very end, pouring very slowly to prevent curdling.
- 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.
- 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 all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
what to serve with tortellini soup
Tools For This Recipe
Dutch oven
Creamy 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
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.
Video
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I mean, my family thought I worked for hours! This was such a “soup for the soul”! Delicious and definitely a go to! Thank you for sharing!
Sooo delish! Easy to make and the flavors of the ingredients meld to make the most tasty soup ever! Thank you for this wonderful recipe.. I will be making it regularly.
This is absolutely delicious, to the point I crave it!! Want to make again today and like using hot Italian sausage which I can’t get hold of today. I have some spicy V8 juice to use up, was thinking about using that instead of the tomato sauce and just put a little more flour in to make up for the viscosity difference. Has anybody done that or have recommendations?
We really enjoyed this creamy, flavorful soup. I used both cheese and mushroom tortellini, along with spinach and sliced fresh mushrooms. My kids added a sprinkle of freshly shredded parmesan. Served with a nice crusty Italian bread for dipping made a perfect fall meal.
My favorite soup! I sub chopped spinach for the kale. It’s always a huge hit, i make it all fall/winter long!
Great, easy to prepare recipe, full of flavor. First time I made it, people asked for the recipe.
Does this recipe work without cream? I don’t have any. All I have is homogenized milk…
I have made this numerous times, and it is very customizable. I have used hot Italian sausage, I’ve thrown in chopped zucchini, I’ve also made it without the cream before. Always delicious! I even quadrupled the recipe for a family gathering and kept it warm in one of those big electric roasters. There are never any leftovers unfortunately lol!
Do you think this would work with half and half instead of heavy cream to reduce the calories?
Absolutely!
One of my all time favourite soup recipes. My family always requests it, highly highly recommend.
Can I sub dried tortellini?
Can I double the recipe
You can easily double this. I have quadrupled the recipe for a large family gathering and kept it warm in an electric roaster.
Have made this many times. I sub spinach for kale. SO damn delicious.
So good. So full of flavor. Easy to make too.
Delicious! One of a family’s favorite
Where’s the nutrition information?
Just made this for dinner and it was incredible!
I’m vegetarian so I cut out the sausage, and added a pinch of anise seeds.
Will definitely be making again in the future, might try adding mushrooms next time!
I am not an experienced cook at all. Are you supposed to use the ENTIRE Onion for 6 servings? It seems like a lot for 4 cups of chicken broth.
So onion can be deceiving. Raw onion is pungent, but when you cook with them, it more “smooths” the flavors over. It almost helps it all to blend better.
This is my absolute most favorite soup recipe! I double it because my husband and I gobble it up! When doubling I use 1 lb mild and 1 lb hot sausage. Make this immediately! It will not disappoint !
Made this for the family and they loved it! Used spinach instead of kale and added Italian sausage ravioli only because I had it in the freezer. Will make this again….84° in Honolulu but a/c made it cool enough to enjoy soup for dinner with warm crusty Italian bread.