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Slow cooker full of slow cooker tortellini sausage potato spinach soup with ladle scooping soup.

Slow Cooker Tortellini Sausage Potato Spinach Soup

Yield: 6 Servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 6 hours
Total Time: 6 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 pound peeled, chopped sweet potatoes (about 2-3 medium potatoes)
  • 1 pound peeled, chopped Yukon gold or yellow potatoes (about 3 medium potatoes)
  • 3 cups chicken broth, I use low-sodium
  • ½ tablespoon dried parsley
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely minced (or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
  • ½ to 1 pound ground sausage, regular or spicy, cooked and crumbled (grease drained)
  • 9 to 12 ounce package cheese tortellini (see note)
  • 2 cups half and half (see note)
  • 2 to 3 handfuls fresh spinach, torn into pieces
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions 

  • To the insert of a 5- or 6-quart (or similar size) slow cooker, add the potatoes, chicken broth, parsley, and garlic. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or high for 2-3 hours until the potatoes are tender.
  • Leave the potatoes in chunks OR lightly mash them in the slow cooker until slightly chunky (I prefer mashing the potatoes lightly).
  • Stir in the cooked sausage, tortellini, half and half, and spinach. Cook on high for 20-30 mins until the tortellini is tender. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper! The soup will thicken slightly as it cools (refrigerated leftovers will thicken quite a bit).

Notes

Potatoes: I like the variety of both types of potatoes in this recipe, but you could use all of one or the other. If using 2 pounds of sweet potatoes (and no Yukon gold or yellow potatoes), tasting and adding additional salt and pepper, if needed, is especially important as the potatoes will make the overall flavor sweeter.
Substitutions: you can use heavy cream in place of the half and half OR try using 2 cups milk blended or whisked with 1-2 tablespoons flour (for a lighter version).
Doubling the Recipe: I've doubled this several times in an 8-quart slow cooker. It's full...but it works!
Tortellini: my go-to brand of tortellini is the Kirkland Five Cheese Tortellini at Costco. I definitely recommend refrigerated uncooked cheese tortellini vs the dried, shelf-stable variety in the pasta aisle.