Creamy Tortellini With Sausage
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Creamy Tortellini with Sausage is an easy meal to cook for dinner that the whole fam will love.
Tortellini is such a great pasta to add to most any sauce or even soup, like this Vegetable Tortellini Soup recipe. Cooking with tortellini is so easy and delicious. Adding chicken or cheese stuffed tortellini can make a quick and delicious meal. I love cooking with tortellini because it cooks quick and adds tons of flavor.
Adding sausage, vegetables and a creamy sauce, this tortellini recipe will have everyone coming back for more.
What’s the best Tortellini for this recipe?
There are so many options for store bought tortellini, plain cheese stuffed, spinach and cheese or various meats and cheeses. Any of these varieties would work and be delicious in this recipe.
Refrigerated tortellini are what I generally like to use, they cook quicker than the dried variety, but again either will work great in this recipe.
⭐️ Full ingredient measurements and recipe instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How to make Creamy Tortellini with Sausage
I love this recipe, because it is a quick dinner, ready in under 30 minutes, is made in one pan and boasts so much flavor. Let’s walk through the steps with a few tips and tricks to make this tortellini recipe.
Step 1: heat a large skillet, like this enameled cast iron skillet, over medium high heat. Add in the Italian sausage and a little olive oil and cook until browned, about 2-3 minutes. It’s okay if the sausage is not fully cooked at this point, it will continue to cook with the pasta, just make sure it is browned on all sides.
Tip- I usually buy sausage that is in the casing and then just cut the casing to remove the sausage. You can also find the mild Italian sausage in a package, not in casing.
Step 2: to the same pan with the sausage, add in the chopped onion and cook and stir for about 1 minute, then add in the garlic. Cook for an additional 30 seconds, until the garlic is fragrant. Don’t forget to season at this point as well!
Step 3: add the cans of diced tomatoes and the heavy cream to the pan. Bring the liquid just to a boil and turn down the heat to medium low if needed to keep the liquid on a low boil.
Step 4: add the tortellini into the pan and allow to cook as the cream boils, stirring occasionally for 8-10 minutes, or according to the package directions, until the pasta is tender.
Step 5: lastly, remove from the heat and add the spinach and parmesan cheese, stir to combine. The spinach will wilt quickly as it is mixed in and heated up.
Spice it Up or Keep it Mild
This easy dinner recipe has just a mild spice when made as written with the mild Italian sausage and red pepper flakes. If you want to remove the red pepper flakes to take, this will help it be very mild.
You can also easily make this dish spicier by replacing the mild Italian sausage with a hot Italian sausage. Another way, would be to add an additional 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes to the pan when the spices are added.
One Pot Meals to Try
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Creamy Tortellini with Sausage
Ingredients
- 1 pound mild Italian sausage
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup diced onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 2 diced tomatoes 14.5 ounce cans
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 pound cheese tortellini
- 1 cup parmesan shredded
- 1 ½ cups fresh spinach
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium high heat, add the olive oil and cook the ground sausage until browned.
- Add in the onion and cook while stirring for 1-2 minutes until softened.
- Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- Season with salt, pepper Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes.
- Pour in the diced tomatoes and heavy cream. Stir to combine and turn the heat to medium and bring the liquid to a slow boil.
- Add in the tortellini and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the pasta is soft and the sauce has thickened.
- Add in the spinach and mix into the sauce until wilted, stir in the parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Nutrition facts are just an estimate
- frozen spinach can be used, thaw and discard any juices before adding to the pan.
- store any leftovers in an air tight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator
I tried this last night and it was delicious. Followed directions pretty well and used some of the suggestions in the commentary. One thing, the store was out of heavy cream so I had to use a substitute (non-dairy). It tasted just fine. I can’t wait to make it again with real cream just to taste the difference.