Creamy Sausage Tortellini Soup is the ultimate comfort food. The recipe features sweet potatoes, spinach, garlic, and three-cheese tortellini - all smothered in a creamy delicious broth. This one-pot meal takes only 40 minutes to make and requires minimal cleanup as only one pan is used! Perfect dinner for busy weeknights!
Ingredients
- 12 ounces sausage - such as spicy Italian sausage
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon paprika - regular or smoked
- 1 large sweet potato - peeled and cubed
- 5 cloves garlic - minced
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 6 cups water
- 8 ounces tortellini - I used three-cheese tortellini (refrigerated) - Buitoni brand
- 4 ounces fresh spinach
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 4 tablespoons fresh thyme
Instructions
Brown the sausage:
- Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat for 3-5 minutes.
- Add the olive oil and the crumbled sausage.
- Cook for several minutes over medium heat, stirring until the sausage is browned and cooked through.
- Stir in the Italian seasoning and paprika.
- Remove the meat with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Remove all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the Dutch oven.
Cook the aromotics:
- Add the tomato paste to the pot and cook for a couple of minutes until it darkens.
- Add in the red pepper flakes and minced garlic and cook for another 30 seconds to a minute, until the garlic is soft and fragrant.
Cook the sweet potatoes:
- Stir in the peeled and cubed sweet potato and return the browned sausage to the pot.
- Add 6 cups of water. Note: You don't need to use chicken stock as the sausage imparts lots of flavor to the soup.
- Bring to boil. Mix everything well, ensuring the tomato paste dissolves.
- Once the soup is boiling, reduce to simmer, cover the pot with a lid, and cook for 15 minutes until the potatoes are cooked through.
Cook the tortellini:
- Add tortellini to soup in the pot, cover with a lid and boil for 10 minutes over medium heat. Note: Use the cooking time indicated on the tortellini package as your guide.
Finish with spinach and cream:
- Add spinach right in the end, stir in until it slightly wilts.
- Remove the soup from heat. Add the cream and stir it in.
- Season with salt and more red pepper flakes (add spice especially if you did not use spicy sausage). Top with fresh thyme.