Creamy Tortellini Soup

Ingredients

• 1 small yellow onion
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 28-ounce fire roasted crushed tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 teaspoon each dried oregano and dried basil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 4 cups baby spinach (or chopped standard spinach), packed
• 1 handful fresh basil leaves (about 6 to 8 large leaves)
• ½ cup heavy cream (or half and half or whole milk)*
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 12 to 16 ounces frozen or refrigerated tortellini, any flavor

Instructions

1. Dice the onion. Mince the garlic.
2. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and sauté for about 5 to 6 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic and sauté 30 seconds more. 
3. Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, broth, herbs and kosher salt. Bring to a simmer and simmer for 8 minutes. 
4. Stir in the spinach, basil leaves, heavy cream and Parmesan cheese. Bring to simmer and add the tortellini. Cook according to the package instructions: about 2 to 3 minutes for refrigerated and 3 to 5 minutes for frozen. Taste and add additional salt as desired (we added another ¼ teaspoon). Serve immediately.
5. Make ahead and storage: Store leftovers refrigerated. The pasta does soak up quite a bit of the broth, so you may want to add a splash of water when reheating. If you make it ahead, we recommend making the soup without the tortellini; then heat it up and cook the pasta right before serving.