Creamy Tortellini Soup

After what seems like eons of sub freezing temperatures, we finally got a day of sunshine and slight warmth yesterday! For most people, this meant a chance to get outside and walk/run/play. At our house, it meant finally taking down our Christmas lights. We aren't the Griswold's (or the Wellington's if you're familiar with Clearwater), but I managed to miss the entire AFC championship game while taking down and packing up or lights. I am grateful for Sunday's brief polar reprieve and this soup serves as a nice belly filler/warmer as well.

If you've perused any type of social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest) in the past few months, you've probably seen a version of this come across your feed. We had a quick cook version at our friend's a couple of weeks ago and liked it so much I attempted a crock pot variation. It was a rousing success at our house and is especially satisfying when the temperature needle hasn't been above freezing in a while. 

In my last post, I mentioned that there are now "PRINTABLE VERSIONS" available. For a few days, I had some web link issues that have since been fixed. I apologize for the malfunction if you tried to use them and were unable to access the links. They are now all repaired. Below the list of ingredients on each recipe page, you will find a link that opens a window with a printer friendly version for those of you that are interested. 

Ingredients

1 bag frozen cheese tortellini (Approximately 18 oz)

1 lb sausage (I used Mild, but you could use hot, sweet, etc.)

3-4 heaping cups raw spinach leaves (Rough chopped)

1/2 onion (diced)

1 can petite diced tomatoes (You could also use Italian style)

32 oz chicken broth

32 oz vegetable broth

1 cup heavy whipping cream (8 oz)

1/2 shredded Parmesan cheese

1 TBSP garlic powder

1 TBSP Italian seasoning

1 tsp crushed red pepper

1 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp salt

Optional Garnish

Shredded Parmesan cheese

Julienned (finely chopped) spinach/basil leaves

Click here for a PRINTABLE VERSION

I bought the Kroeger (Dillons) version, but there are others available. You can usually find them in the frozen section next to the bread and rolls. Sometimes, they are near the butter and frozen cookie dough. happy hunting!

This is one of the few recipe posts where all of the ingredients aren't immediately added to the crockpot. Brown and DRAIN your sausage first before adding it to the crockpot. This will allow you to get of a ton of fat drippings from the sausage (there are still going to be some at the end). 

Add the browned sausage, petite diced tomatoes, onion, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, crushed red pepper, black pepper and salt to the crockpot. 

Now pour in the vegetable and chicken broths. Stir and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours. 

About 30-45 minutes before serving, turn your crockpot to HIGH. Add the frozen tortellini, heavy cream, spinach leaves and shredded Parmesan. Stir and cook for an additional 30 to 45 minutes.

This is my version of a "heaping cup". Depending on your fondness for spinach, you can add more or less than the prescribed amount (3ish cups). Don't worry if it seems like a lot when you first put it in. The spinach with wilt/cook down quickly. I would at least cut the leaves in half before you add them (I didn't in the picture above).

Cook the soup until the spinach is wilted and the tortellini is done to your liking. In general, I'd say 30-45 minutes.

Voila! A hearty and creamy soup to fill you up on a cold winter's night. Top with shredded Parmesan and spinach/basil and serve with a crusty bread. Enjoy!