One Pot Tomato Soup with Tortellini and Italian Sausage

Take your tomato soup to a whole new level by adding Italian sausage and cheesy 3 cheese tortellini! This recipe is an easy one to make and it only messes up one pot.  I love a meal that is an easy clean up.  I used a mild sausage but if you like it spicier use a spicier sausage, add red pepper flakes or some dashes of cayenne pepper.

At first I thought there weren't enough tortellini but once they puffed up after cooking the balance was better.  I would still almost use another 1/2 bag of them!   As the garden is coming into season, again, squash from the garden would be a nice addition to this soup.

One Pot Tomato Soup with Tortellini and Italian Sausage           Printable Recipe

1 pound Ground Mild Italian Sausage (If you can't get it ground, buy cased sausages and remove the casing)
1 small onion, shredded or finely diced
28 ounce can crushed tomatoes (or 2 pints home-canned diced tomatoes pureed*)
4 cups homemade chicken broth (or 2 - 14.5 oz cans)
10 basil leaves, sliced thin
1 Small Pkg (9 oz) Three Cheese Tortellini
Approx 2 cups fresh spinach
1 cup shredded Parmesan
salt and pepper to taste


In Dutch oven, add your sausage and onion.  Cook over medium breaking up the sausage and cooking until everything is cooked through and onions are soft.

Dump in tomatoes but keep the can.  Pour some of the broth into the tomato can to get the last of the goodies out.  Dump it and the rest of the broth into the pan. Also add the basil (keeping some back for garnish if you want.) Cover and let simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile chop your spinach.  I don't care for the stems so I break them off and toss them.

You can add your spinach whole but sometimes there are rather large leaves in the bag.  I find they stay whole and then they are long and stringy which makes them more messy to eat.

Add the chopped spinach and tortellini to the tomato soup base.  Simmer for 10 to 12 minutes or until the tortellini is done.   Sprinkle in Parmesan and stir until melted in the soup.

Ladle into bowls and sprinkle on more shredded Parmesan and your bits of basil if you saved them back.

* Don't put all the liquid in when you puree it that way you can be sure it is the thickness you want it.  Somewhere like a thicker semi-chunky sauce.)