Tomato Tortellini Soup

There is nothing like soup.

It is by nature eccentric:

No two are ever alike, unless of course,

you get your soup from a can.

Laurie Colwin, Author of "Home Cooking"

There's nothing wrong with soup from a can. I am definitely not a food snob, and prepared soups offer tons of convenience and versatility. This recipe actually uses a couple of cans of tomato soup to add flavor and body to the final finished product. I am not averse to using a can of cream of chicken soup or cream of celery soup in a casserole or some other recipe either.

But I do love making homemade soups in the wintertime. I have my old standbys. But I'm always on the lookout for something new, too, and I couldn't resist this one while scrolling through Facebook. See? Something good comes from Facebook. 

I did some recipe revision since I couldn't get all the ingredients locally. And I think it turned out well. But I've also included a link to the original recipe, which used a slow cooker. That would be a great option if you're going to be gone all day.

I was surprised the recipe didn't have added salt. However, the flavorful Italian sausage, the prepared tomato soup and the chicken broth offered just the right amount of salt without adding more. 

If you have leftovers - like we did - you will likely need to add a little milk as you reheat it. Pasta invariably absorbs liquid. If you try it, let me know what you think!

 

Tomato Tortellini Soup

Adapted from Plain Chicken blog

 

1 lb. Italian sausage

32 oz. chicken broth (or water plus bouillon)

28 oz. can petite diced tomatoes with sweet onions

2 cans tomato soup

1 tsp. dried chives

1 20-oz. package refrigerated cheese tortellini, uncooked

1 8-oz. package cream cheese, softened

In a Dutch oven, brown Italian sausage; drain fat. Add chicken broth, tomatoes, tomato soup and dried chives. Cover and bring to boiling. Turn down heat to low. Add cheese tortellini and cook until done. Put heat on low and add cream cheese, stirring frequently to melt. Serve when cream cheese has melted and made a creamy broth.

The original recipe used a slow cooker. You can combine the broth, tomatoes and chives and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. When it's 15 to 30 minutes before you want to serve the meal, put the tortellini and cream cheese in the slow cooker with the broth and turn it up to high. 

Note: The original recipe used two 8-ounce containers of chives and onion cream cheese spread, softened. That's not an ingredient I can buy locally. I used only 1 regular 8-ounce cream cheese and added the dried chives. HERE is the link to the original recipe from the Plain Chicken blog.