Sausage and Tortellini Soup

If I had to pick one soup and designate it as my absolute favorite, I think it would be a tie between this soup and French Onion Soup. But because my boyfriend is not a fan of French Onion Soup, I make this soup a lot. More than any other soup. As I build my blog, you'll notice that my soups are broth based. I believe that you can get a great soup without all the extra fat and calories and I love that wine is so easily used in soups and the flavor it adds is unbeatable. What I love most about this soup, besides its incredible flavor, is how easy it is.

I like a little bite to this soup so I use Italian hot sausage and sweet sausage. Feel free to use whichever fits your taste buds the best though.

Sausage and Tortellini Soup

(photo courtesy of all recipes.com)

1 lb. Italian sausage (sweet, mild or hot), casings removed (or you can use ground)

1 medium Vidalia Onion, roughly chopped

3 cloves Garlic, minced

6 cups beef broth

1 cup dry red wine (I use a dry Cab or shiraz)

4 cans of fire roasted diced tomatoes (I like to get ones seasoned with garlic or basil for more flavor)

(if you want to use fresh tomatoes, you'll need about 4 large tomatoes, seeded peeled and chopped)

1 cup sliced carrots

3-4 large basil leaves

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 - 8 ounce can tomato sauce

2 cups sliced zucchini

8-10 ounces of fresh tortellini (frozen or bagged work also)

1) In a stock pot, brown the sausage until cooked through. Remove sausage and reserve 2 tablespoons of grease from the sausage. Sauté onions and garlic in the drippings from the sausage.

2) Add beef stock, wine, tomatoes, carrots, basil (I make it look like confetti), oregano, tomato sauce and sausage to the onion mixture. Bring to a boil for about 20 minutes, then reduce to a simmer and allow it to simmer for 3-4 hours. (you can do less cooking time, I prefer my soups that get to sit in the pan for a while and get happy)

3) Stir in the zucchini and cook for another 30 minutes. Add tortellini during the last ten minutes. Garnish with freshly grated parmesan cheese

4) ENJOY!