Italian sausage-butternut squash soup with tortellini

Have just an hour to make dinner? This light, complete entrée soup will fit right in. While it bubbles away, set the table, pour the wine, or read the paper. To save time, chop the onion, garlic, celery, and fennel in the food processor while the meat browns. Keep the soup brothy, adding more broth or water as needed while simmering, and don’t overcook the vegetables or the tortellini or you’ll have a gloppy mess. You can use all pork Italian sausage for this soup, too, but do pour off some of the fat after browning the meat. I think the combination of turkey and Italian sausage keeps the soup light and fresh. Freeze the remaining meat for a pot of chili next week or to make this recipe again in a few weeks.

6-8 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
½- pound each: Ground Lean Turkey and Bulk Italian Turkey or Chicken Sausage OR 1# Turkey Italian Sausage (can sub pork Italian sausage)
Medium onion, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
1 small fennel bulb, trimmed, cored, and diced (can sub 1/2 cup chopped cabbage)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
Handful minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon each: dry thyme and rosemary, or double the amount if using fresh
1 ½ teaspoons dry rubbed sage, or a tablespoon of minced fresh sage leaves
½ cup dry white wine
4 cups (32 ounces) low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
6 cups (48 oz) water, or more if needed to keep soup bubbling and brothy
2-3 drops hot sauce such as Tabasco
2 ½ cups diced butternut squash ( about 12 ounces)
2 medium carrots- trimmed, peeled, and sliced into ¼-inch coins
8 ounces fresh cheese tortellini
GARNISH: ½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano (2 ounces)
GARNISH: ¼ cup minced fresh chives (can sub minced parsley)

Instructions

In an 8-quart soup pot, heat olive oil over medium flame for a minute or two. Crumble in the meat; cook about 5 minutes, stirring, OR until about half-cooked. Tip in the onion, celery, fennel, and garlic. Season with the salt and pepper, parsley, thyme, rosemary, and sage; stir well. Cook, stirring regularly, until the vegetables are becoming tender and there’s no pink remaining in the meats.
Pour in the white wine and let simmer until half the wine has evaporated. Stir in the broth, water, and hot sauce; bring to a boil. Add the squash and carrots, reduce heat to a low boil and cook 13-15 minutes or until the squash and carrots are nearly tender. If the soup becomes too thick, add a little more broth or water.
Stir in the fresh tortellini, lower the heat to a simmer, and cook about 5 minutes—or according to package directions. Taste and adjust seasonings. Immediately serve hot garnished with cheese and chives. Store quickly cooled leftovers in containers with tightly-fitted lids for 3-4 days in the refrigerator. To reheat the next day: warm over low flame to just a simmer. No matter what, the pasta will probably come apart but it's still delicious! The soup is not well-suited for freezer storage.
If making a day ahead, cook up until the point you've added and cooked the squash and the carrots. Cool, store overnight in fridge, bring to a boil and add tortellini just before serving.