Sausage and Tortellini Soup

Since the weather has been cooler at night, it's been perfect for soup. I am not a huge canned soup fan, but love homemade soups. I made this last year and loved it! It it a little more expensive to make than I would have liked, but its worth it! The recipe comes from Our Best Bites. By the way, they are coming out with a cookbook in February if anyone is interested. 

Tortellini Sausage Soup
3 links Italian sausage (I got mild)
4 cloves pressed garlic
1 onion, diced
½ c. water
2 cans chicken broth
½ c. apple cider (don't leave this out!)
1 16-oz. can diced tomatoes
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 c. sliced carrots
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
2 medium zucchini, grated (great way to use your food processor if you have one)
8-10 oz. package cheese tortellini (check the freezer section of your grocery store; if you can find it there, it will almost always be way cheaper than fresh tortellini. Also, Barilla makes a great dry cheese tortellini)
2 Tbsp. dried parsley (yes, that's two tablespoons)

If you're using link sausage, remove the casings and crumble into a large soup pot. By the way, I put everything directly into my huge soup pot, so that's really the only big dish you have to wash. To remove the casings, you can use a sharp knife to cut a slit down one side of the sausage and then peel back the casing.
Begin cooking sausage over medium heat, stirring frequently. If your sausage is pretty fatty, you'll want to drain it when it's about halfway cooked. Meanwhile, chop onions and garlic and add to the sausage. Continue cooking until onions are translucent and your sausage is cooked. Your house will smell heavenly.

Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, juice, water, chicken broth, carrots, oregano, and basil. Cover and simmer for 1/2 hour.

I love using our grater, not that I use it that often but it does come in handy.

Look how cute the zucchini looks.

Add parsley and zucchini and simmer for another 15 minutes or so.

Add the tortellini and cook until tender, and then serve with bread and freshly-grated Parmesan.

I love how all the spices mix with all the ingredients. 

It is the perfect soup for fall/winter. Enjoy and have a great weekend!