Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Soup
Cheese-filled tortellini make this creamy soup especially generous, with sausage and vegetables around each little pasta parcel. The spinach softens into the broth near the end. Ladle out a warm bowl once the pasta is tender, adjusting the sauce so it is as thick as you like.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 240 min
- Total
- 255 min
- Original yield
- Serves 10
- Ingredients
- 14 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Appetizers · Appetizers & snacks · Main course
- Primary protein
- Chicken · Beef · Turkey
- Cuisine
- American
- Cooking method
- Slow cooker
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 15 minutes or less · Total: over 60 minutes
- Dish type
- Pasta · Soups · Soups & stews
A few quick notes
1. Brown sausage before the cooker
Start with browned sausage in the slow cooker, adding vegetables, garlic, seasoning and broth for the first covered cooking stage.
2. Skim before adding dairy
Lift surface fat from the cooked soup before stirring in the dissolved cornstarch, evaporated milk and tortellini for the next stage.
3. Submerge the spinach
Press spinach leaves completely into the liquid before covering briefly again, letting them wilt without remaining dry on top.
Get to know the ingredients
Dried tortellini
The ingredient example uses dried three-cheese tortellini, added only after the long soup-base stage for its separate high-heat cooking time.
Dissolved cornstarch
Mix cornstarch with the listed water until dissolved before stirring into the soup with evaporated milk, helping the sauce thicken smoothly.
Finishing milk
Keep the milk for the consistency adjustment after spinach wilts, adding in third-cup increments only until the soup suits you.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 10. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 5 steps completeMake room for Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Soup
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
Adjust thickness, then season
Stir in milk as needed, taste before adding more salt and pepper, then serve with the warmed crusty bread suggested.
A little more help as you go
Switch to high for pasta
The tortellini stage uses high heat even if the soup base cooked on low, with the cover replaced until pasta is cooked through.
Leftovers take up liquid
The soup thickens as it cools and may need extra milk when reheating to restore its creamy consistency.
A few questions you might have
Can I use another ground meat?
You can use chicken, turkey or beef sausage, or plain ground meats if you prefer them to Italian sausage.
Can I leave the meat out?
You can omit meat for a vegetarian option; vegetable broth is also listed among the broth choices.
Can I use half-and-half instead of evaporated milk?
Half-and-half is listed as an alternative, stirred in with the cornstarch mixture before tortellini cooks under cover on high.
Does spinach cook for the full soup-base stage?
It goes in after tortellini is soft and cooked through, then wilts under cover for another five to ten minutes.
When should I add more salt?
Wait until the final milk adjustment, then taste. The directions call for extra salt only if the finished soup needs it.
Any more cooking tips?
Italian sausage gives this soup an amazing flavour, but you can substitute it with ground chicken, turkey or beef sausage. OR use plain ground meats if you don’t like sausage. For vegetarian options, leave the meat out all together. The soup thickens as it cools and absorbs quite a lot of liquid. Extra milk may be needed when reheating leftovers to reach your desired level of creaminess.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: cafedelites.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.
