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This Creamy Tortellini Soup recipe consists of layers upon layers of cozy flavor! It’s an easy vegetarian soup recipe loaded with cheese tortellini and tender veggies cooked in a flavorful, creamy broth.
If you love this recipe for tortellini soup, your next one on the list to try should be my creamy crack chicken soup and then this warm and cozy creamy chicken noodle soup.
This creamy Tortellini Soup is so simple yet so delicious. It combines cheesy tortellini and fresh spinach in a creamy broth, made with just the right amount of roux and a splash of milk. It’s easy to make in just 30 minutes using only one pot, and it results in a perfect, comforting meal.
How do I know? Anything with cheese and soup is an instant hit with the tweens in our house. This cheese tortellini soup is no exception. They love the creamy, cheesy goodness, and I love how quick and easy it is to prepare, making it a go-to weeknight dinner for us.
Why We Love This Tortellini Soup
- Quick: Ready in 30 minutes, it’s your go-to for a speedy, hearty meal.
- Creamy Comfort: Cheesy tortellini and creamy, velvety broth offer a soul-soothing dinner experience.
- Vegetarian: Packed with veggies and protein, this tortellini soup recipe is a vegetarian dish that is so tasty and really satisfying.
- Versatile: Easily adaptable, make it your own with personalized tweaks to ingredients or seasonings.
Ingredients You’ll Need
You might already be aware, but I’m a vegetable lover in a house full of pasta fiends. This creamy veggie soup filled with tortellini is our meeting ground!
- Butter: For sauteing your veggies. Use salted or unsalted butter, just remember to adjust the amount of salt.
- Vegetables: You’ll need a yellow onion, fresh garlic, carrots, and baby spinach.
- Seasonings: I seasoned the tortellini soup with Italian seasoning, salt, and freshly cracked black pepper.
- Flour: All-purpose flour forms the base for a quick and easy roux to thicken the soup.
- Vegetable Broth: Use low-sodium vegetable broth if you’re making vegetarian soup. Otherwise, chicken broth will also work.
- Tortellini: Get one package of frozen tortellini. I make this soup recipe with cheese tortellini, but you can use your favorite variety.
- Cream: You can use full cream, milk (I use 2%), or half-and-half, depending on how creamy you prefer your tortellini soup.
How to Make Creamy Tortellini Soup
Get out a big pot – just one, because I’m all about that one-pot dinner life – and let’s make this quick soup!
- Sauté: First, sauté onion, garlic, and carrots with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Once the veggies are fragrant and tender, whisk in the flour to make the roux.
- Make the Broth: Gradually pour in the broth, whisking until smooth. The base for your soup should be clump-free so that the end result is oh-so-creamy! Once combined, bring the pot to a boil.
- Add Tortellini and Spinach: While the soup boils, stir in the frozen tortellini and fresh spinach leaves. Simmer for a few minutes more to get the tortellini heated through.
- Add Cream: Pour in your choice of cream, then stir continuously as the soup returns to a boil. Let the cream cook and thicken for a few minutes, then take the pot off the heat. Season the tortellini soup to taste with salt and pepper, then serve!
Recipe Tips And Variations
Look through the following few tips to perfect that tortellini soup and take it to the next level of deliciousness!
- Adding heavy cream. Lower the heat before adding the cream, and stir continuously as you pour it in. This technique helps prevent the soup from curdling.
- Leave out the cream. For a dairy-free version, use olive oil or coconut oil in place of butter. Swap out the milk or cream with your choice of dairy-free alternatives, like oat, coconut, or rice milk.
- Less carbs. To lower the carbs, omit the carrots and use this low carb pasta.
- Protein options. Add cooked, shredded chicken to make creamy chicken tortellini soup, or check out my Instant Pot creamy chicken tortellini soup. You can also stir in cooked Italian sausage for a heartier soup.
- Veggie additions. Swap spinach for kale and add mushrooms, too, or take inspiration from my chicken vegetable soup.
What To Serve With Soup
Whoever coined the term “soup for the soul,” I’m pretty sure they were talking about my creamy tortellini soup recipe. I serve up bowls of this soup with a thick slice of my garlic and cheddar drop biscuits for myself and garlic breadsticks for the rest.
Also, before slurping up the soup, I almost always serve a big chef salad, then top the soup with add-ons like crumbled bacon, freshly grated parmesan cheese, croutons, or shredded cheddar. If all that doesn’t work, serve it bistro-style with a side of watermelon salad or this wonderful lemon kale Caesar salad paired with pinwheel sandwiches.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
- Store any leftover soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 to 4 days.
- Reheat portions in the microwave or in a saucepan on the stove until the soup and tortellini are warmed through again.
- To freeze: While it’s technically safe to freeze this soup, I usually don’t recommend it. Cream soups are tricky to freeze, as the texture and flavor tend to change for the worse once the soup is thawed.
More Creamy Soups
- Roasted Creamy Mushroom Soup
- Cream of Zucchini Soup
- Creamy Tomato Bisque
- Slow Cooker Creamy Cauliflower Soup
- Creamy Roasted Asparagus Soup
- Creamy Lobster Bisque
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Creamy Tortellini Soup
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 large carrots, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 12 ounces frozen tortellini
- 1 cup heavy cream, you can also use milk OR half-and-half.
- 5 ounces fresh baby spinach
Instructions
- Melt butter in a Dutch oven or soup pot set over medium heat.
- Add onions, garlic, carrots, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper, and cook over medium-low heat for 6 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Whisk in the flour; whisk until crumbly.
- Slowly add the broth and continue to vigorously whisk until everything is well combined and there are no clumps.
- Bring the soup to a boil and add in the frozen tortellini. Continue to cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 6 minutes or until tortellini is tender and heated through.
- Whisk in the cream or milk and add in the spinach; bring back to a steady boil and cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until smooth and thickened.
- Remove from heat and let it rest for 5 minutes. Taste the tortellini soup for salt and pepper and adjust accordingly.
- Serve.
Notes
- Cream: I like to use heavy cream for a creamier, silkier texture, but this soup also works with milk or half & half. Also, stir continuously when adding the cream so it doesn’t curdle.
- Dairy-Free: To make this soup dairy-free, use coconut oil instead of butter, and you can also use nut milk to replace the cream.
- Frozen Cheese Tortellini is my favorite frozen pasta for this particular soup, hence the name “tortellini soup”, but you can use whatever pasta you have on hand.
- Spinach: Baby spinach is my go-to leafy green for soups, but you can also use kale, watercress, collard greens, etc.
- Add Protein: Stir in some cooked, shredded chicken or cooked Italian pork sausage.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
This one’s a keeper! We used mini tortellini and coconut milk. So good! Will definitely make again.
I’m vegan, and was wondering if maybe a plant milk would work for this recipe??
Hi! Yes, absolutely! 🙂
Okay great, I definitely can’t wait to try it! Thank you!! 🙂
I just made this for my husband and myself. Pregnant me was craving something hot and creamy. This was delicious though I have to admit I didn’t measure a single thing. I love recipes that you can just estimate each ingredient and adjust to taste. I also wanted more veggies (I’m a vegetarian so I often add more to any recipe) so I added a can of diced tomatoes without draining it and it was the perfect touch. Will make again.
You know you found a good soup when your kid ask you almost begs you make it. This easy to make and my family loves it. I have made this several times. We got a football game tonight need something ready eat eat so we can get to going. So I’m making this yummy soup.
I really liked how this soup tasted and how quickly and easily it went together. I didn’t have spinach so I added peas and mushrooms. It was a great choice for meatless Monday.
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Delicious looking soup.
It’s a perfect rainy day for soup and I’ve been wanting to try this one! I modified it just a little by adding chicken stock instead of vegetable stock. And also because my family needs something a little more hearty, I knew I wanted to try adding some spinach & asiago chicken sausage. It was the perfect combination. I’ve definitely added this to our list of favorites!
Thank you for sharing!
Hi! I just moved to New Zealand from Austin, Texas this last December and I kept waiting for summer to start and then all of a sudden the first day of autumn came and went and I was like, “THAT’S what you call summer?!” And now it’s May and winter is creeping in and it’s like Kiwis have never heard of central heating. Back home it’s already getting close to the 90s and I’m down here in the southern hemisphere wearing my leopard print slippers and a hoodie tied up around my face (with a knit Peruvian hat sticking out underneath because this shows my boyfriend I’m about to die from the cold and we need a house with GD central heating please!) and I’m cooking your creamy tortellini soup and oh my gosh…it was just what I needed. So delicious and comforting! They say it snows in June here…this Texas girl will be making all your soup recipes. Our kitchen is the warmest room in the house, so that’s where I’ll be, bundled up and cooking your soups.
What is the nutritional values, please.
What is the nutritional values, please?
Hi Evelyn!! The nutritional facts were there, but a glitch in the system wiped them all out. I am so sorry about that, and thank you for letting me know that they were gone! I just included a new “nutritional facts” card right underneath the recipe box. I hope this helps. Thank you!
Can you tell me what a serving size is?
Hi Ariana! Usually, one cup of soup is a serving size.
Great, easy recipe! I added mace (nutmeg) and a bit of fenugreek at the end which really added to the depth of flavor, but it was good before I added them.
Do you think that this would freeze well?