Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup has sausage, cheese tortellini, veggies, and herbs in a creamy broth. Finish with Parmesan and crusty bread for a hearty meal.
author’s note
Quick, Creamy, Crave-Worthy!
This recipe actually came together on a random weeknight when I was staring into the fridge trying to figure out dinner.
I had some leftover Italian sausage from pizza night and a pack of tortellini just sitting there. Pasta bake was the easy choice, but I thought, why not soup instead? I’d recently made my Creamy Parmesan Italian Sausage Soup and couldn’t stop thinking about how good that creamy broth would be with tortellini.
So I browned up the sausage, tossed in some carrots and onions, whisked together a creamy base, and threw in the tortellini at the very end.
My kids slurped it right up, my husband went back for seconds, and I knew I had a winner. Now this soup shows up on repeat at my house every winter.
Ingredients In Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup
| Ingredient | Tips & Swaps |
|---|---|
| Italian Sausage | Use mild for kids or hot for spice lovers. Blot grease for a lighter broth. Ground chicken or turkey sausage also works. |
| Three Cheese Tortellini | Cook separately to prevent bloating in leftovers. Any fresh or frozen tortellini works. |
| Carrots & Onion | Dice small so they cook evenly and melt into the broth. Celery can be added for more flavor. |
| Chicken Stock | Use a high-quality stock for the best flavor. If you only have broth, add a bouillon cube for extra richness. |
| Spinach | Baby spinach wilts quickly. Kale or Swiss chard can also be swapped in, but add a few minutes earlier to soften. |
| Half & Half or Cream | Half & half keeps it lighter, heavy cream makes it extra rich. |
| Parmesan | Always grate fresh for the best flavor. |
How To Make Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup
- Boil tortellini as directed, drain.
- Brown sausage in olive oil, remove, and drain.
- Sauté onions, carrots, and garlic in pot.
- Add butter and flour, then slowly whisk in chicken broth and simmer.
- Mix in sausage, seasoning, spinach, and cream; simmer until spinach wilts.
Tips For Success
- Salt the pasta water generously for flavorful tortellini.
- Sauté veggies fully so you don’t end up with crunchy onions in your soup.
- Don’t boil after adding cream; just gently simmer to prevent curdling.
- Adjust spice level with hot Italian sausage or a pinch of red pepper flakes.
Storage
- Refrigerate: Store soup and tortellini separately in airtight containers for up to 3-4 days.
- Freeze: Avoid freezing the Sausage Tortellini Soup due to dairy and tortellini, which can separate and become mushy upon thawing.
- Reheat: Warm the soup gently on the stove, adding tortellini last to prevent over-swelling. Do not boil.
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Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup
Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup mixes Italian sausage, cheese tortellini, veggies, and herbs in a creamy broth. Perfect with Parmesan and hearty bread for a cozy meal!
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 19 ounces Italian sausage hot or mild
- 1 cup finely diced yellow onion 1 small onion
- 1 cup finely diced carrots peeled; about 2 to 3 large carrots
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic about 3 to 4 cloves
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 5 cups chicken broth or stock, I recommend Swanson’s chicken stock
- 1 (12-ounce) package three-cheese tortellini see note 1
- 1-1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 3 ounces fresh baby spinach stems removed and coarsely chopped, 4 cups lightly packed
- 2 cups half-and-half or heavy cream
- Salt and pepper to taste
- freshly grated Parmesan cheese to preference
- Hearty baguette for serving, optional
Instructions
- See note 2. If you’d prefer to cook the tortellini separately, start it now. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Generously season the water with salt (I add 1 teaspoon to every 4 cups). Add tortellini and cook according to package directions, minus 1 minute. Remove, drain, and run under cold water for 30 seconds.
- In a large pot over medium-high heat, drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil and add the sausage. Cook and crumble sausage until browned. Transfer cooked sausage to a paper-towel-lined plate and dab grease with another paper towel. Set aside.
- Keeping the pot at medium-high heat, add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil along with the diced onion and carrots. Season with salt and pepper (I add 1/4 teaspoon each). Sauté, stirring occasionally, for 5–7 minutes or until vegetables are soft. Add garlic and sauté 1 more minute, stirring occasionally. Add the butter and allow to melt.
- Once butter is melted, whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Slowly add in chicken broth, whisking to combine. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the mixture reaches a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and allow to simmer and thicken for about 5–8 minutes.
- Return cooked sausage to the pan, along with Italian seasoning, (if using frozen tortellini, add it here), and salt and pepper to taste (I add about 1 and 1/4 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper). Add coarsely chopped spinach and half-and-half to the pot. Stir, then simmer on medium heat for about 3–5 minutes or until the spinach is wilted (and the tortellini is cooked through, if using frozen).
- Serve immediately with lots of freshly grated Parmesan and a hearty baguette, if desired. If tortellini was cooked separately, add spoonfuls of cooked tortellini to individual bowls. Store tortellini and leftover soup separately to avoid pasta bloating.
Final step! Please let us know how it was by leaving a review.
Recipe Notes
Note 1: While any tortellini works, my favorite readily available shelf-stable tortellini is Barilla® Artisanal Collection Three-Cheese Tortellini. As for fresh-made tortellini, I love Giovanni Rana’s® Classic Cheese Mini Tortellini. It’s a little more tricky to find, but it’s fresh, delicious, and small so they incorporate better into the soup. If you’d like to cook the tortellini in the soup (instead of separately), you’ll want to get frozen tortellini that cooks in about 3–5 minutes.
Note 2: I like to cook tortellini separately to keep it from getting bloated and in case there are leftovers. (The tortellini continues to absorb liquid and becomes an unpleasant texture when stored.) If you’d like to cook it separately, bring a pot of water to boil and cook it in a separate pot. Ignore instructions for adding the tortellini into the soup to cook and simply add cooked tortellini when serving.
Storage: Keep soup and tortellini in separate airtight containers in the fridge for 3–4 days. Sausage Tortellini Soup isn’t a good candidate for freezing due to dairy and tortellini, which can separate and become mushy when thawed.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 621kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 50g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Cholesterol: 118mg | Sodium: 1547mg | Potassium: 767mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 8414IU | Vitamin C: 26mg | Calcium: 205mg | Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This soup is delicious! I made it last night and my family loved it. I followed the recipe as written. The only thing I’ll change for the next time is to buy ground sausage, not sausage links. It took a bit of work to get the sausage links crumbled.
I’m so glad you loved this Sausage Tortellini Soup! Thanks for your comment Amy! 🙂
This soup is so frigging good ! Tasty beyond belief ! The broth is amazing ,,,, I did add a bit more butter though ! I’m on my third day of eating it and today it was the best ! Thank you for an amazing recipe ,,,, this will be one of my go to faves !
I am so happy to hear this! Thanks for your comment! 🙂
What can I use instead of tortellini? Hubby not a fan.
What about mini raviolis? Otherwise I’d try this soup instead: https://axis-framework.live/white-bean-and-sausage-soup/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
A seasonal favorite in our house, and a First Place Winner in our club’s annual Soup/Chili/Chowder cook off!
Omg yay!! Congratulations, that’s so exciting to hear 🙂
I am not usually an Italian Sausage fan but this soup is fantastic. Perfect on a cold day with crusty bread.
So glad you enjoyed this Sausage Tortellini Soup! Thanks Amy! 🙂
I’ve made this several times and it’s always a hit. I use hot Italian sausage and add basil also.
Thanks for the great recipe!
I’m so happy this is always a hit! Thanks Jill! 🙂
Incredibly delicious!
Thanks Debbie! 🙂
Amazing dinner!!! Ty, for the recipe!
You’re so welcome! So glad you enjoyed! 🙂
Insanely good!! Thank you for this recipe.
I’m so happy you loved this Maggie! Thanks for your comment! 🙂
Everyone at the Firehouse loves this soup! I’m going to make a double batch this week, is there anything I should tweak or am I safe doubling all ingredients?