1Start by sautéing your onion, celery, and carrot, season with salt and pepper and your Italian seasoning and red pepper. Saute for about 5-7 minutes or until tender and beginning to caramelize.
2Throw in your garlic and then add in your Italian sausage and cook that until it's brown. Cook until no longer pink.
3Add in some tomato paste and let it cook off in the pan for about a minute before incorporating with the rest. Then cook for another 2 minutes.
4Sprinkle in some flour and stir. Cook for 1-2 minutes to cook out the raw taste.
5Deglaze the pan with some white wine, scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Let that cook for about 2 minutes.
6Pour in your chicken broth and your crushed tomatoes, season with salt and pepper. Stir.
7Add in a parmesan rind and a bay leaf. Give that a nice stir and simmer uncovered for about 20 to 30 minutes.
8Once finished, remove your parmesan rind and bay leaf. Add in spinach and tortellini. Simmer for another 3-4 minutes, until your tortellini is tender.
9As the last step, pour in your heavy cream and as much parmesan as you like. Stir until everything's nicely combined.
10Serve immediately. Top with extra parmesan cheese, fresh basil, and red pepper. Enjoy.
Ingredients
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb Italian Sausage
1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
0.5 cup celery, finely diced
0.5 cup carrot, finely diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
Salt
black pepper
1 tsp red chili flakes
3 tbsp tomato paste
3 tbsp flour
0.5 cup dry white wine
28 oz crushed tomatoes
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
Parmesan rind
1 Bay leaf
0.5 cup heavy cream
2 cups spinach
1 cup Parmesan cheese
fresh basil
Equipment
large pot
Tips
Saute vegetables until tender and beginning to caramelize for best flavor.
Cook tomato paste off in the pan before incorporating fully to deepen the flavor.
Cook flour for 1-2 minutes to remove the raw taste.
Deglaze the pan with white wine, scraping up any brown bits for extra flavor.