Creamy Cheesy Tortellini Soup is an easy, kid-friendly meal. It is so simple to make. You can set it and forget it in the crockpot, or you can make it all in one pan and have it for supper. Whatever fits in your schedule.
Leftovers
Once the soup sets in the refrigerator for a day, the flavors actually melt together, and it even tastes better the second day. I always make enough to have it for leftovers in the week.
Growing up in a small town, my mom cooked a lot of meals for our family. It was nice to come home to a prepared meal in the middle of the school day. One thing that I learned from my mom and grandma; was to use what you have. “Back to the basics” Over the last couple of months, I have leaned on my experiences and knowledge that I gained from watching my grandma and mom in the kitchen. I needed this time to clean out the clutter of my life and get back to the basics of life.
Note: For this recipe, I used a Sweet Italian Sausage mainly because it is one of my husband’s favorite. I also added in a few vegetables but don’t tell my family!
INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED
(full amounts in the downloadable recipe below)
- Sweet Italian Sausage
- Chopped onions, carrots, and spinach
- Chicken Broth
- Water
- Spaghetti Sauce
- Diced Tomatoes
- Cream Cheese (secret ingredient #1)
- Italian Seasoning
- Roasted Garlic & Herb Seasoning
- Tortellini
HOW DO YOU MAKE THE CREAMY CHEESY TORTELLINI SOUP?
1. Brown the Sweet Italian Sausage and add in the chopped onions and carrots. Drain!
2. After the Sweet Italian Sausage mixture is browned and drained, add the mixture to the crockpot. (If you are making this in one pan, then just keep it in the pan and add the rest of the ingredients.)
3. Add the spaghetti sauce, water, chicken broth, diced tomatoes, and seasonings to the Sweet Italian Sausage mixture. **Cook on high for 3 to 3 ½ hours in the crockpot. (total cooking time for this is 4 hours) **If you are making the one pan version, simmer on the stove until the sauce is thickened! 15-20 minutes.
4. After the soup has cooked for 3 ½ hours, add the frozen spinach, cream cheese, parmesan cheese, and tortellini. For the one pan version, when the soup has thickened, add the cream cheese, parmesan cheese, and tortellini.
5. Serve the soup with garlic bread or a side salad.
One Pan Prep and Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Crockpot Prep and Cooking Time: 4 hours
Servings: 8
Today on Tasty Tuesday’s Tips and Recipes, I am sharing a yummy recipe for homemade Sloppy Joes. Sloppy Joes are a fun kid, friendly recipe. In addition, they are so simple to make and so much better for you than using the original sloppy sauce or package seasoning.
Leftovers
If you have any leftover, you can use it on baked potatoes, as a dip with some tortilla chips, or even on a hotdog. Yum! You can also cook up a couple of pounds of ground beef and divide it up to use for later.
When I was a kid, I lived in a small town, so we ate at home most of the time. For supper, my mom would fix us sloppy joes. They were yummy but I wanted to do a version of these that was a little healthier. In addition, you can make these even healthier, I add my homemade coleslaw and cheddar cheese as a topper. I wish I would have come up with this recipe when the boys were little but better late than never. One last thing, I have a couple of secret ingredients that I use in the sloppy joes that I will share with you.
Another tip: For this recipe, I used grass-fed beef. Also, you can use ground turkey because they turn out just as good.
INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED
(full amounts in the downloadable recipe below)
- Ground grass-fed beef (or ground turkey)
- Chopped onions and bell peppers
- Ketchup
- Spicy ketchup
- Water
- Red pepper flakes
- Ground mustard (secret ingredient #1)
- Worcestershire (secret ingredient #2)
- Chili powder
- Onion powder
- Salt
- Pepper
- Garlic powder
- Brown Sugar
HOW DO YOU MAKE THE EXTRA SLOPPY, SLOPPY JOES?
1. Brown the ground beef or turkey and add in the chopped bell peppers and onions. Drain!
2. After the ground beef or turkey mixture is browned and drained, put the meat mixture back into the pan.
3. Add the ketchups, water, seasonings, and brown sugar.
4. Bring to almost a boil and turn down the heat to let simmer.
5. Simmer the sloppy joe mix until slightly thickened.
Prep Time: 25 minutes and serves: 4
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Today on Tasty Tuesday’s Tips and Recipes, I am sharing a Pickled Beets recipe that I made over the weekend. As I shared yesterday, we visited Denton Valley Farms on Friday and picked strawberries, onions, carrots, and beets. If you like beets, then you will love the quick and easy pickled beets recipe that I am sharing today.
A few tips to help you…
I roasted my beets until they were fork tender. One important step that you must not forget is to wear gloves when peeling the skin off the beets after roasting. (otherwise, you will have red fingers and hands) The pickling process is simple and easy, and they last in the refrigerator for up to six weeks.
My family loved these, and I know you will too!
INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED:
(full amounts in the downloadable recipe below)
- 5 to 6 medium-sized beets
- Apple cider vinegar
- Sugar
- Allspice
- Salt
- Water
- Ground mustard
HOW DO YOU MAKE QUICK AND EASY PICKLED BEETS?
1. Wash the beets, cut off the stems, and wrap them in aluminum foil. Roast them at 350 degrees for 1 hour to 1 ½ hour. Please check on them in the cooking process by poking a fork to see if they are fork-tender.
2. Remove from the oven and let them rest a while otherwise if you try to peel them, they will burn your hands.
3. Bring the vinegar, water, sugar, allspice, salt, and ground mustard to a boil in a medium saucepan stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside.
4. Peel and slice the beets. Add them to a clean glass jar with a tightly fitted lid. I used a wide mouth glass jar.
5. Pour the brine into the jars making sure to cover the beets.
6. Cover and set aside for several hours, then transfer them to the refrigerator.
One more tip:
Please keep these in the refrigerator. These are refrigerator beets. These should last in the refrigerator for up to 6 weeks.
Prep Time: 1 to ½ hour
Chill: 1 day
Servings: 8
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