Recipe: Sausage Spinach Tortellini Soup
If you know me, you won’t be the least bit surprised to see that the first recipe I’m sharing is my all-time favorite soup: Sausage Spinach Tortellini Soup. The title might be a mouthful, but so is the soup! This is one of those soups that elevates the form to a meal, with the inclusion of meat, pasta, and greens, and has become my go-to when I need something simple, quick, nutritious, and comforting. During Minnesota winters, we probably eat this 2-3 times a month!
Prep work is minimal, the cook time is relatively short for a soup, and it’s very easy to modify for vegetarian diets or meal prep (see notes). Plus, it’s one of those rare few-ingredient recipes that still offers plenty of flavor!
Serves 6-8
Ingredients
1 tbsp olive or vegetable oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 heaping tbsp minced garlic (4-5 cloves)
1 lb ground hot Italian sausage*
2 tbsp chopped basil
28 oz crushed tomatoes
32 oz vegetable broth
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp Italian seasoning (optional)
9 oz refrigerated or frozen cheese tortellini**
5 oz fresh spinach
Instructions
Heat oil in large, heavy-bottomed pot (like a Dutch oven) over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté until soft and almost translucent.
Add in sausage and garlic. Stir frequently for 6-8 minutes, breaking up the sausage into bite-size and smaller pieces, until no longer pink.
Stir in basil, crushed tomatoes, vegetable broth, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes.
Add spinach and stir once to combine. Add tortellini and stir to combine, making sure the pasta is submerged. Simmer for another 10 minutes, or until tortellini is tender.
Enjoy immediately with bread.
Notes
*To make vegetarian: use a plant-based meat substitute in place of the sausage. If using vegan sausages (not ground), roughly chopping them first will make it easier to break them up while cooking.
**To meal prep: Follow instructions through Step 3. Only add the spinach and cook just long enough to wilt the spinach, 2-3 minutes. Allow the soup to cool before pouring it into containers to refrigerate or freeze. When ready to eat, cook a pack of tortellini per manufacturer’s instructions, and then portion out into reheated soup.