A fun twist on the classic Italian soup, this Creamy Tortellini Minestrone is loaded with tender veggies, cheesy tortellini, and lots of flavor!
Lately my other half has started doing about 99% of the grocery shopping.
This means my list has gone from single word ingredients to lengthy descriptions of what I’m looking for.
KALE is now “one pkg curly kale – only if dark green and super fresh” and TOMATOES are now “the reddest effing tomatoes you can find – cherry/grape tomatoes on the vine and Roma.”
I’m fairly certain he thinks I’m crazy yet he still insists on doing the shopping, even when I write things like “fresh chilled kosher dill pickles from the cold section – bring home a shelf stable jar and I WILL CUT YOU!”
Of course this is all under the guise of being helpful but I *think* it has more to do with the fact that he gets to sneak copious amounts of junk food into the pantry without me being any the wiser.
The amount of oreos, potato chips, gummy bears, and white cheddar doritos in my house right now is rediiiiiiiculous.
If y’all have been here a while, you know he likes to stock up on random things.
One time he brought home so much shrimp, I had to come up with about a zillion shrimp recipes for the blog to help get through it all. (I kind of loved it – HA!)
Lately he must be on a tortellini kick because darlings, we are SWIMMING in it!
All this to say, get ready for a tortellini-recipe-palooza of epic proportions, starting with this tortellini-ified minestrone that I basically want to marry.
Creamy Tortellini Minestrone
This totally luxe soup pairs a thick and creamy tomato soup base with oodles of fresh veggies and tender cheesy pasta. SIGN. ME. UP.
It features a delicious medley of onion, celery, zucchini, carrot, kale, and kidney beans.
Creamy Tortellini Minestrone
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion (yellow or white)
- 2 ribs celery
- 3-4 carrots
- 1 small zucchini squash
- 3-4 cloves garlic
- 1-2 TBSP olive oil
- 1 TBSP Italian seasoning blend (Mrs. Dash is my favorite)
- ¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 can diced fire roasted tomatoes (14.5 oz)
- 1 can plain tomato sauce (14.5 oz)
- 1 can dark red kidney beans (15.5 oz) drained and rinsed
- 9 oz refrigerated cheese tortellini
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1-2 cups finely chopped kale
- salt and pepper to taste
- grated parmesan cheese for topping, to taste
Instructions
- Peel and finely dice your carrots and onion. Finely dice celery. Peel garlic and finely mince.
- Heat 1-2 TBSP oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery. Sauté until tender, approx. 5-6 minutes, adding zucchini and garlic and towards the end. Season with Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper flakes.
- Add broth, fire-roasted tomatoes, tomato sauce, and kidney beans.
- Bring soup to a rolling boil, then reduce heat to low/simmer to allow the flavors to mingle and the carrots/onion to fully soften. Cover and simmer 5-10 minutes.
- If you happen to have a full wedge of parmesan cheese with the rind handy, you can actually cut this off and add it to the soup while it simmers. This adds delicious parm flavor to the soup! Simply remove before serving.
- Once the veggies have reached your ideal tenderness, bring the soup back up to a medium simmer and add your fresh tortellini and heavy cream. Allow the tortellini to simmer approx. 5 minutes until tortellini is tender and the cream has thickened.
- Lastly add finely chopped kale and stir into the hot soup to wilt the greens. Give it a taste and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add any extra seasoning your heart desires plus grated parmesan cheese. Dive in while it's hot!
Notes
Nutrition
If you get a chance to try this creamy tortellini minestrone soup, let me know!
Leave some love in the comment form below or tag your photos with @peasandcrayons on Instagram so I can happy dance over your creation. I can’t wait to see what you whip up!
A family favorite! Delicious and creamy! I have to make a double batch every time! I add Italian sausage and change the beans to cannellini 🥰
I’ll have to try it with italian sausage next time – sounds good! So glad your family is loving the recipe — thanks Joan! 😃
This was yummy flavors blended well. I did not have cream so I used cashew cream instead.
Yay! I’ve heard cashew cream works so well!
Can we substitute almond or coconut milk for the heavy cream? Also, can spinach be substituted for the kale? Thanks!
Hi Kim! Spinach works great! For the cream you can 100% leave it out! I usually make my minestrone without cream (like this lentil minestrone – SO GOOD!) but decided to add it to this one to mix things up. Coconut milk will give a coconutty flavor to the soup which I don’t think quite works with the Italian flavors? I’d have to try it to know 100%.
We loved this soup! I added Italian sausage. Just browned it up prior to the first step. Will definitely make this again. Thanks!
Sounds like a tasty addition! Thanks Ashley!
This soup was AMAZING! This will be a staple for us throughout the winter.
The tortellini takes to the next level. My husband things the kale makes it, but is is definitely the tortellini. It is a must try. It is delicious.
This is our new ALL TIME favorite wintery soup – but I think we’ll enjoy it year round as well. Sometimes we use tortellini with meat inside instead of the vegetarian kind. But we love it both ways! Thank you Jenn for another great veggie-packed recipe.
I’m so thrilled you’re loving the recipe! Thank you!
Absolutely delicious. I subbed gluten free tortellini.
I need down to track down some gluten-free Tortellini to try – awesome! So glad you enjoyed it, Sandi!
I loved the combination of the tomato base with the cheesy tortellini, so good!
Thank you, Britni!
This was amazing! can’t wait to make this all winter too! Yum
Yay!! Thank you Noelle!
This is a great recipe! Love soups for fall weather, can’t wait to make this a lot this fall!