On a cold night, this tortellini soup recipe will be your best friend! Packed with fresh veggies and pasta, it's warming, flavorful, and easy to make.
This tortellini soup recipe has always been one of my favorites, but I gained a new appreciation for it this week. Over the last few days, a big, blustery snowstorm has turned Chicago into a winter wonderland. When Jack and I come inside from a chilly walk or shoveling snow, a hot bowl of tortellini soup is the perfect way to warm up.
If you’re also craving cozy, nourishing meals right now, you’ll love this tortellini soup recipe. It cooks up in just over 30 minutes, so it’s easy to make on a weeknight, and it’s packed with flavorful veggies and herbs. The chewy, cheesy tortellini makes it filling and fun to eat, and a vibrant kale pesto takes the whole thing over the top. On a cold night, it’s guaranteed to hit the spot.
Tortellini Soup Recipe Ingredients
Ready to make this tortellini soup recipe? Here’s what you’ll need:
- Tortellini, of course! Look for fresh tortellini in the refrigerated section of your grocery store, or use your favorite frozen tortellini. To make this recipe vegan, use vegan cheese tortellini. I like the Kite Hill Brand.
- Onion, garlic, carrots, and fennel – They add savory depth of flavor.
- Fresh thyme – It makes this tortellini soup taste fresh and aromatic.
- Diced tomatoes and their juices – Along with vegetable stock, they create the brothy base of the soup. I love their sweet and tangy flavor with the cheesy tortellini.
- Balsamic vinegar – It gives the soup a delicious tangy kick.
- Red pepper flakes – For a little heat.
- Kale – For extra veggie power! I add kale leaves to the soup and dollop a vibrant kale pesto on top.
- And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
This tortellini soup recipe is super easy to make! First, heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat, and sauté the onion, carrots, and fennel until they soften. Stir in the garlic, vinegar, tomatoes, broth, thyme, and red pepper flakes, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.
In the meantime, cook and drain the tortellini. Add it to the soup along with the kale leaves, and simmer for 2 minutes more. Before you eat, season to taste. That’s it!
Tortellini Soup Serving Suggestions
When you’re ready to eat, ladle the tortellini soup into bowls. Garnish it with fresh basil or parsley and a generous scoop of kale pesto. (Tip: keep the kale pesto handy. If you’re anything like me, you’ll add more to your bowl as you eat!)
I often serve this tortellini soup on its own, but it’s also lovely with a salad on the side. Pair it with mixed greens tossed in Italian dressing or lemon vinaigrette or with one of these salad recipes:
- Pear Salad with Balsamic and Walnuts
- Italian Chopped Salad
- Citrus Salad with Fennel and Avocado
- Caesar Salad
- Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad
- Green Bean Salad
- Or any of these 19 Best Winter Salad Recipes!
Round out the meal with homemade focaccia or good crusty bread. Enjoy!
More Favorite Soup Recipes
If you love this soup, try one of these delicious recipes next:
- Many-Veggie Vegetable Soup
- Best Lentil Soup
- Tomato Basil Soup
- Butternut Squash Soup
- Wild Rice Soup
- Carrot Ginger Soup
- Or any of these 30 Best Soup Recipes!
Tortellini Soup
Equipment
- Le Creuset Dutch Oven (I use my Staub to make soup)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 2 medium carrots, chopped
- 1 fennel bulb, diced
- ½ teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 3½ cups vegetable broth
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 9 to 12 ounces cheese tortellini, or vegan tortellini
- 5 cups torn kale
- Kale Pesto
- ½ cup chopped fresh parsley or basil
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, fennel, salt, and a few grinds of pepper and cook, stirring, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 8 minutes.
- Add the balsamic vinegar, garlic, tomatoes, broth, thyme, and red pepper flakes. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.
- Meanwhile, cook the tortellini in a pot of salted boiling water according to the package directions until al dente. Add the tortellini and the kale to the soup and simmer for 2 more minutes.
- Season to taste with about ¼ to ½ teaspoon more salt and a few generous grinds of pepper.
- Serve in bowls with scoops of kale pesto and fresh parsley for garnish.
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Outstanding! Thank you for yet another wonderful recipe 🙂
I substituted a tablespoon of ground fennel seed for the fennel bulb, added a little bit extra water and cooked the fresh tortellini right in the soup. Was incredible. Thank you!!
This soup was the most delicious soup I have ever had! Such delicious flavors! Thank-you!
Excellent soup! Made it per the recipe except spinach vs kale. Simple. Quick and delicious.
I’m going to make this tomorrow. We don’t like fennel or kale in our house so I’ll substitute with celery and spinach. Going to double the recipe because this sounds great and we love leftover soup for lunch the next day!
Your Recipes are AMAZING! I just finished the leftover soup for lunch. Last night I made it exactly as written except I added the packaged-refrigerated Tortellini directly to the soup to cook, adding extra water and broth to make up for it. It only needed 5-7 minutes and it worked out fine. I had a jar of basil pesto so I used that… it was SO GOOD! I’m hooked on your recipes now. Thank you!
Hi Rebecca, I’m so glad you loved it!
This was incredible!!! We subbed vegan kale pesto that we grabbed at Whole Foods and because I was short on time I used a bag of organic kale instead of fresh. It was SO good I can’t wait to make it again. I really thank you for sharing these yummy recipes with the world
I’m glad you’ve been loving it and the recipes in general!
Made it exactly like the recipe. I think that this is a recipe for those who love fennel. My family didn’t enjoy it although they did eat it. The leftovers lingered in the fridge.
Easy and delicious recipe for a weeknight.
Lovely. I used homemade stock, a splash of white wine and some fresh thyme. Perfect winter soup. Thanks
I’m so glad you loved it!
Delicious! I did make some substitutions based on what we had on hand.
– added a red pepper since we didn’t have enough carrots
– added 1/2 small can of tomato paste and 5 sundried tomatoes due to no fresh tomatoes
– used chicken broth and doubled the amount
– added turmeric for my arthritis
Will definitely make again.
Would a basil pesto work as well?
Hi Mendy, basil pesto would be great!
Fabulous soup!!! Pulled herbs and such out of my garden. The balsamic is a true game changer for this recipe.
This is another family favorite. I love how the flavors come together.
Is there a reason to cook the tortellini separately rather than adding in frozen and letting it cook in the soup?
I’m wondering the same thing… I have refrigerated tortellini that only takes 5-7 minutes to cook, I think I’ll cook it in the soup when I make this today. I’ll let you know how it goes! 🙂
Hi Rebecca, you could cook it in the soup. If it causes the soup to become too thick, just add a little water.
The soup itself was good and easy to make however, I am not a big fan of thyme and as such, I put in less than what the recipe called for, but the taste was still very overwhelming. If I did make it again, I would probably put 1/4 of what the recipe calls for or none at all.
Delicious
This was so delicious! I didn’t have fennel so I substituted celery. I added some spicy Italian sausage as well to get some fennel flavoring and kick up the protein content. Added a little bit of fresh cream and Parmesan on top. Such a warm comfort dish.
I was craving tortellini soup and this is exactly what I needed!
Nicely explained.. My daughter loved the recipe.. thanks for sharing such a nice recipe
Loved your stuffed shell recipe
Yum!!! Added a few extra cups of water and garnished with some fresh Parmesan as well. Absolutely delicious! Sarah – Melbourne, Aus
Hi Sarah, I’m so glad you loved the soup!
Delish and easy! I omitted the fennel and used spinach instead of the kale. Cooked it all day long – minus the tortellini – in the crockpot. Threw the cooked pasta in and it was ready to go. Next time I might put some shredded rotisserie chicken in there just to change it up a bit. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Jennifer, I’m so glad you loved it! Great idea to prep the base in the slow cooker.
Can you use tuscan kale?
yep!