Sausage and Tortellini Tomato Soup

I just made this soup for the first time and loved it (even though it's getting warmer out where I am). It's pretty easy to make, very hearty, and comforting. The ingredients fit my dietary needs but you could easily use full-fat cream cheese or a different kind of sausage.

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon olive oil

½ cup chopped onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 lb raw hot Italian poultry sausage, casings removed

32 oz fat free low sodium chicken broth

1 (28 oz) can unseasoned crushed tomatoes

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon salt

A pinch of black pepper

½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

3 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese, cut into cubes

12 oz refrigerated cheese tortellini

2 cup torn fresh spinach

Directions:

Pour the olive oil into a soup pot or Dutch oven and bring over medium-high heat. Add the onions and stir to coat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes until the onions are softened. Add the minced garlic, stir together and cook for another 30-60 seconds. Add the sausage and stir together. Cook, breaking the meat up into small pieces, until the sausage is cooked through and fully broken up.

Add the broth, crushed tomatoes, basil, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes, increase the heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Uncover the pot and add the cream cheese. Whisk the cream cheese in while simmering until the cheese is dissolved. Add the tortellini and spinach and stir together. Cover the pot and simmer for 10 minutes until pasta is cooked.

I found the recipe here.

bon appetit