Creamy Tortellini Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground Italian sausage, mild or spicy
- 1 medium white onion, diced
- 1 large carrot, diced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes*
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 (15-ounce) can white beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 (15-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 (9-ounce) package cheese tortellini
- 3 cups chopped fresh kale
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh basil
- fine sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
Instructions
- 1
Brown the sausage
- 2
Heat a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, crumbling it with a wooden spoon as it cooks, until browned. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a clean bowl and set aside.
- 3
Sauté the veggies
- 4
Add the white onion and carrot to the leftover sausage grease (adding in extra oil if needed). Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and sauté for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the tomato paste and crushed red pepper flakes and sauté for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
5 min - 5
Simmer
- 6
Add the chicken stock, white beans, Italian seasoning and stir to combine. Continue cooking until the soup reaches a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 5 minutes or until the carrots are tender.
5 min - 7
Blend
- 8
Using an immersion blender, purée the soup until smooth.
- 9
Finish
- 10
Add the cooked sausage, diced tomatoes, tortellini, kale, cream, Parmesan, basil and stir to combine. Continue cooking for 3-5 minutes or until the tortellini is tender.
5 min - 11
Season
- 12
Taste the broth and season with salt and pepper as needed. (I added about 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper.)
- 13
Serve. Serve immediately garnished with extra Parmesan. Enjoy!
