Baked Tortellini with Sausage (2024)

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Brown Your Sausage.

I like to let it sit for a minute so it gets *actually* crisped and browned on the outside.

Chop and Sauté Your Veggies.

I am lazy so I did my veggies in the food processor into a very fine mince. But you can also be proper and chop them.

Add Tortellini, Etc.

Here goes the sauce and tortellini…

Bake that Baby Up Under a Cheese Blankie.

I use shredded mozz and grated parm! Plus a bit of parsley for beauty.

Eat This With Garlic Bread. Please. Yum.

It’s very carb-on-carb and it’s SO delicious. Chunks of garlic bread are the perfect vehicle to scoop up that flavorful tomatoey, sausagey sauce plus a bite or two of tortellini. OMG I’m drooling.

Ingredients

Units Scale

Baked Tortellini:

• 1 tablespoon avocado or olive oil
• 1 lb. ground Italian sausage (I use a mild one for my kids, but spicy would be delicious)
• 2–3 carrots, chopped
• 2–3 stalks of celery, chopped
• 1 yellow onion, minced
• 3 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed
• 1 25-ish ounce jar of tomato sauce OR a can of San Marzano tomatoes
• 10–15 ounces of refrigerated cheese tortellini
• 1 1/2 – 2 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups baby spinach, torn

To Go On Top:

• 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• finely chopped parsley

For Serving:

• this garlic bread

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

1. Brown the sausage:Heat a very large oven-safe skillet over medium high heat. Add the oil and the sausage; break apart with a wooden spoon and brown until it’s got some nice color. Transfer to a bowl and drain out any of the oil that you don’t want (I usually drain off about a tablespoon, leaving a tablespoon in the pan).
2. Sauté the veggies:If you’ve got some browning on the bottom of your pan – great. Add the veggies and they should start to pull up some of that yummy brown flavor. Add the fennel seeds. Cook until the veggies are fragrant and soft – you can add a bit of salt or oil if you’re feeling chefy. Then add the sausage back in.
3. Add everything else:Add your tomato sauce, your tortellini, and 1 cup of broth. The pan will be full. Let it come to a low simmer and cook for 5 minutes or so to cook the tortellini. If you need more liquid to cook the tortellini, go ahead and add some or all of the remaining broth. Sometimes I just pop a lid on and leave it for a while on low heat.
4. Spinach and cheese:Give it a taste – if you used canned tomatoes instead of a jar of sauce, it will probably need some salt. Add the spinach and stir it in until it wilts. Top the whole thing with the mozzarella cheese and pop it into the oven at 375 for 8-10 minutes, or until the cheese is nice and melty.
5. Finish:Sprinkle some grated parm on top along with some chopped parsley, and dunk into that baby with some chunks of garlic bread. SO GOOD.

Package sizes for tortellini range between 10-20 ounces, and the amount of tortellini you add here can be dependent on your pan size – I can never fit a full 20, but sometimes I feel like I can fit a little more than 10? Basically… it’s flexible. Grab a package of tortellini and fit what you can in there.

In the photos above, I’m using a3 quart All Clad sauté pan. If you have doubts about the size of your pan being big enough, I would suggest just sizing up into a Dutch oven or similar so you don’t run out of room!

How do you make a meatless baked tortellini?

Use a plant-based ground sausage in place of the regular Italian sausage to make this meatless – I really enjoy the Impossible Sausage. You could also just omit the Italian sausage, but be sure to add a bit more fennel, more salt, and maybe even some Italian seasoning or red pepper flakes to compensate for the flavor.

What is the best brand of tortellini?

I prefer fresh / refrigerated tortellini and I really love the Rana cheese tortellini and the Good and Gather cheese tortellini, both found at Target. I normally love Trader Joe’s… buuut their cheese tortellini is the only brand I’ve tried that I don’t super love. I think it’s something about the shape and the texture that just doesn’t do it for me.

What is the best kind of sauce for baked tortellini?

I enjoy this with both jarred tomato sauce and also just a can of whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes that I smash in the pan. If you’re using a store bought sauce, I’ve found that Rao’s can be a bit oily here – there’s already a lot of fat from the sausage, the cheese, etc. so, while Rao’s is very popular and very yummy, I would opt for something with slightly less oil. I’ve been using Carbone’s sauce lately and really enjoying it, and of course, we love our DeLallo sauces!

How long do baked tortellini leftovers last?

I enjoy the leftovers for 1-2 days. The tortellini will absorb liquid as it sits in the fridge so it will get a bit more mushy and there will be less of a sauce. But it’s still quite delicious and sometimes I just eat it cold out of the fridge.