Spinach Tortellini Soup is an easy and cozy soup recipe that is ready under 20 minutes. This stovetop recipe is straight-forward and uses a handful of pantry-friendly and fresh ingredients such as spinach, tomatoes, bean, and parmesan cheese to make a clear and flavorful broth.
Spinach Tortellini Soup makes a delicious and light meal for lunch or dinner. It is also warm and comforting, perfect for a colder day or when you are craving comfort food but don’t want something super heavy.
For more soup recipes, check out our reader favorites such as Egg Drop Soup, Navy Bean Soup , Ravioli Soup, and Creamy Tomato Soup.
Tortellini Soup with Spinach and Tomatoes
There is something so wonderfully cozy and warm about this Italian inspired spinach tortellini soup flavored with tomatoes, basil and parmesan cheese.
Tortellini soup is one of my favorite ways (and possibly easiest ways) to transform tortellini pastas, whether frozen or refrigerated, and turn it into a quick flavorful and delicious one-pot meal.
Our tortellini soup is a light and clear tomato base infused with herbs and spices. Along with cheese-filled tortellinis, you’ll also find chucks of tomatoes, white beans and spinach. Don’t forget to garnish with basil and fresh parmesan for the best simple meal ever!
The secret ingredient that really gives this spinach tortellini soup an incredible depth of flavor is the parmesan rind. As the rind simmers in the soup, it slowly releases salty, nutty, umami notes that make the broth taste richer and more complex.
To make this super easy, we will use ready-made tortellini, and you can use either frozen or refrigerated tortellinis. If it is frozen, there is no need to defrost it before adding it into the pot!
I’ve been craving lighter meals as we approach spring, but we still get chilly weather every now and then. This is one of those in-between-seasons kinda soup that I love to make this time of the year.
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients that will be going into our spinach tortellini soup:
- onions – diced up onions brings a lot of flavor to the broth. Use yellow, sweet or white onions.
- garlic – this gives the broth a lot of flavor as well. Use fresh garlic instead of garlic powder for best flavor.
- chicken broth – use good quality chicken broth for best flavor! Vegetable stock can be used to make this dish vegetarian.
- diced tomatoes – can diced tomatoes is used to truly thicken and flavor the broth.
- parmesan rind – this may sound like an odd ingredient but let me tell you: it is the secret ingredient that gives the soup a lot of flavor. Cooking the soup with a parmesan rind, much like cooking soup with a ham bone or ham hock, gives the broth so much incredible flavor.
- frozen tortellini – I use frozen for easy storage and also texture of pasta but feel free to use refrigerated. Either cheese or spinach/cheese tortellini will work great!
- white beans – cannellini beans, also known as great northern beans, will work great here too. This brings additional protein to our soup and also help makes it thicker and more hearty
- fresh spinach – Baby spinach will soften easily in the soup! There is no need to chop them up even though they look like whole big leaves at first.
- salt & pepper – use in the end to open up and bring out all the flavors! Use more or less based on preference and taste. Feel free to add other herbs and spices to your spinach tortellini soup. Some ideas for seasoning, in addition to salt and pepper, include Italian seasoning, oregano, thyme, parsley, or basil.
- fresh basil – used as garnish. Much like how fresh spinach is better than frozen, this contributes to the rich flavors in tortellini soup much more than dried basil!
- parmesan cheese – use good quality parmesan cheese! Grate it from a block for the best taste. This is a quarter cup, but it’s really up to you how much you want to add. This is also used as garnish.
- cooking oil – use any neutral oil such as olive oil, avocado oil, canola oil, vegetable oil, etc.
How to make it
Let’s make some cozy Spinach Tortellini Soup! If you have a Dutch oven, use it for this. It’s one of the best cooking tools I ever invested in!
If you don’t, it’s totally fine. Just use a large size pot or stock pot.
Saute aromatics
Add cooking oil into the Dutch oven and turn up heat to medium/medium high. When pot is heated up, add onions and saute them. Lower heat if pot is getting too hot. We don’t want to burn the onions!
Saute for a few minutes until they are softened. Stir occasionally and avoid burning them.
Then add garlic and cook garlic until fragrant.
Add broth, tomatoes and parmesan
Add chicken broth, diced tomatoes and parmesan rind into the pot.
Boil, then add frozen tortellini
Bring soup to a boil, and then add the frozen tortellini into the pot. Cook according to package direction.
Once that is done, add cannellini beans and spinach.
Stir and then let it simmer for a few minutes until spinach soften and shrink.
Spinach will shrink quite a bit!
At this point, I always remove the parmesan rind, then give it a taste. And then I will adjust the ingredients to taste.
I might add more parmesan, and I almost always have to add salt and pepper, to bring out all the fabulous flavors.
Salt is (almost always in my opinion) the key to opening up the flavors in a soup!
And that’s it all folks! How easy is this?
A warm bowl of delicious spinach tortellini, ready under 20 minutes! And there’s plenty to feed the whole family!
Serving Spinach Tortellini Soup
Tortellini soup should be served hot, straight from the stove, and I highly recommend topping it with a generous sprinkle of freshly grated parmesan cheese and chopped fresh basil.
I like to serve spinach tortellini soup with crusty buttery bread, or even with grilled cheese! Ahh the lovely combination of cheese, spinach, beans and pasta with tomatoes and basil…
The flavors are savory and slightly sweet. It is a warm bowl of comfort food and deliciousness in every bite!
I also highly recommend making a big pot of it for the whole fam, because you WILL want the leftovers!
Variations and Substitutions
- Making the soup creamier: adding heavy cream or half and half at the end can thicken the soup and make it richer and creamier
- Adding more protein: ground sausage, ground turkey, ground beef can be seared after sautéing the onions to add to the soup.
- Adding more vegetables: adding chopped carrots and celery and sautéing them along with the onions. Other leafy veggies such as kale can be added towards the end when spinach is added.
- Including other herbs and spices: red pepper flakes, Italian seasonings, oregano, bay leaves are great adds to the soup.
Storage Instructions
Spinach tortellini soup makes the absolute best leftovers!
Storage leftover soup in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When ready to heat, sprinkle some additional broth over soup and heat in the microwave or stovetop until hot.
Pasta (tortellini) will expand and soak up more broth while it sits in the fridge, so you’ll want to add more liquid when reheating.
Tips and Tricks
Here are some helpful tips to help you get the best spinach tortellini soup:
- Use Good Quality Broth: Use high quality broth for best flavor. You can opt for low-sodium chicken stock for a lighter version. Adjust the salt level of your soup by tasting it at the end since some broths can be saltier.
- Garnish Generously: Top soup with fresh parmesan or herbs. This adds a fresh and flavorful touch to the soup.
- Avoid Overcooking: Once pasta is cooked and spinach is added, you’ll want to remove from heat promptly. Overcooked tortellini will be mushy and overcooked spinach will wilt.
- Thickening the Soup: Feel free to add more vegetables or more of a specific ingredient at the end to make your soup more salty, more flavorful, or thicker. If you want a creamier soup, you can add heavy cream to it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Make sure to add and be generous with the basil and parmesan if you want a more intense flavor. Checking taste in the end and don’t forget salt and pepper to open up the flavors.
Absolutely! Italian sausage and chicken is a great addition to this soup. Here’s how I would do it: when onions and garlic are sauteed, add Italian sausage or cubed chicken and saute until it is no longer pink. Then continue to the next step.
Avoid overcooking the pasta. Follow the package instructions for cooking time and taste the pasta for doneness before serving the soup. Pasta will get soggy if it is not remove promptly from heat when it is cooked.
Yes, but it is advisable to freeze the soup without pasta. Freezing pasta can lead to it becoming mushy upon reheating.
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Spinach Tortellini Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ white onion diced
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 14.5 oz diced tomatoes
- ~2 inch parmesan rind
- 2 lb frozen tortellini
- 14 oz white beans
- 5-6 oz fresh baby spinach
- ¼ cup fresh basil julienned
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese grated, plus more for garnish
- 1 tsp salt or to taste
- 1 tsp black pepper or to taste
- cooking oil
Instructions
- Heat a Dutch oven, or a large pot, over medium heat. Once hot, drizzle cooking oil and add the onions. Cook until onions start to soften. Add garlic and cook until fragrant.
- Add chicken broth, diced tomatoes, and parmesan rind. Bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, add frozen tortellini and cook according to package directions.
- Add white beans, spinach, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Remove parmesan rind. Taste to see if more salt or pepper is needed.
- Garnish with fresh basil and parmesan. Serve and enjoy!
