Sausage Spinach Tortellini Soup

Submitted by: VICKI OTT

Vicki’s Spinach Tortellini Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

• 3-4 precooked Italian chicken link sausages, sliced on an angle about 1/4 inch thick, I like to use Trader Joe’s Organic Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage, when I can get it, otherwise, I look for a brand with NO nitrates, nitrites, antibiotics or added hormones

• 1/2 of a large yellow onion, diced

• 4-5 cloves of garlic, minced

• 1 14.5-ounce can of low sodium fire-roasted tomatoes, diced

• 7 cups low sodium chicken broth

• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

• 4 fennel seeds

• 1 14.5 can of reduced-sodium cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

• 1 10-ounce package of cheese tortellini, I like the brand by Giovanni Rana

• 6 cups fresh baby spinach

• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped

• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, I use Kosher salt, and start with 1/4 teaspoon of each and adjust by taste

• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

• 6 ounces of Parmesan cheese, freshly shaved
  

Instructions:

Melt butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the sausage and onion and sauté, stirring constantly until onion is almost cooked and sausage begins to brown, add the garlic and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes longer. Add the tomatoes, chicken broth, Italian seasoning, and fennel seeds, and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat to medium and add the beans and tortellini, and continue to cook for 5-9 minutes until tortellini is soft. Add the spinach, basil, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste and stir for a couple of minutes until spinach is wilted. Pour the lemon juice over the soup.

Serve immediately with shaved Parmesan cheese on top, and with warm crusty bread on the side. Serves 6. Can be frozen and used within 2 months.