Last weekend the weather was so warm, we were walking outside with short-sleeve t-shirts on and enjoying brunch at a restaurant that had all of the windows open. This weekend? Back to boots and sweaters and bundling up baby with temperatures in the teens. I’m ready for that spring weather to make a come back, but if it’s going to be arctic-cold for a little while longer I’m going to make the best of it. We had some friends over for lunch this weekend (life with a newborn guys, lunch dates are the new dinner date!) and took advantage of these chilled temperatures with a crackling fire in the fireplace and a hearty lunch menu. I was craving something warm like a homemade soup, and decided to test a new recipe with tons of my favorite soup ingredients: hot Italian sausage, white beans, carrots, spinach, and some tasty cheese tortellini. I served it with homemade popovers (I swear by this recipe) and some garlic-herb butter (just mixed in some parsley, rosemary, and garlic with softened butter). It was a success; everyone went back for second helpings! Keep yourself warm and full until this cold weather breaks, the full recipe is below:

Sausage and Tortellini Soup.
 
Ingredients
  • Olive Oil
  • 3 Hot Italian sausage links
  • 1 Large onion, chopped
  • 1 Large shallot, minced
  • 3 Garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 Large carrots, cubed
  • 4 Cups of packed fresh spinach
  • 5 Cups of chicken broth
  • 2.5 Cups of crushed San Marzano tomatoes
  • 2 Cans of cannellini beans (white beans)
  • ¼ Cup of Parmesan cheese
  • 9 Oz. of cooked tortellini
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. In a large Dutch oven, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil and brown sausage.
  2. Remove sausage links, and chop into small pieces.
  3. Return sausage pieces to pot and sauté with onions, shallot, garlic and carrots for 5 minutes.
  4. Add spinach to pot and cook until wilted.
  5. Add in broth, tomatoes, beans, and Parmesan cheese. Stir to combine and simmer for 1-2 hours.
  6. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  7. Immediately before serving, add cooked tortellini to the soup.
  8. Garnish with more Parmesan cheese before serving.

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