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This super simple Healthier Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Vegetable Soup is the perfect fall dinner…great for nights when you’re craving Italian, but want something warming and healthy too. A mix of vegetables, simmered with Italian seasonings, a splash of wine, kale, and cheese tortellini. Finish each bowl off with an extra sprinkle of cheese and serve with crusty bread. It’s hearty, full of greens, and so delicious. Great for just about any night of the week. Plus the leftovers the next day make for the best lunch!
As promised…a new slow cooker recipe to start off the week. And a healthier one too. But don’t worry, it’s still creamy, cozy, and of course, delicious. I mean, it’s October, I wouldn’t share a non-cozy recipe at this point in the year. Cozy is always the way to go when the weather begins to turn cooler.
To be completely honest, I don’t love all soups. To me, a dinner soup needs to be hearty. It needs to be brothy, but it also needs texture, carbs, and preferably some cheese on top too. French onion? Yes – yum. Hearty, thick chili? Of course. Ramen with double the noodles? Yes, 100%.
But a brothy soup with just a few vegetables just doesn’t do it for me, which brings me to this soup. It’s vegetable soup, but it’s not your average vegetable soup. This one is creamy, cheesy, and made with not just vegetables, but cheese tortellini too.
It’s all the things I love in a bowl of soup, yet made on the healthier side too. Promise you guys, this one is good, and kid-friendly too!
Here is the story:
This soup just sounded good to me. I’ve never done an Italian-style tortellini soup, but oddly I’ve done a Mexican-inspired tortilla soup with tortellini. Not sure where I got that idea, but it sure is different. Nothing like this bowl of tortellini soup.
When I presented the idea of a vegetable-based tortellini soup to my sister-in-law, she gave it a double thumbs up. Granted Lynds loves a bowl of soup, but she’s also picky about her them. So instead of second-guessing my ideas, like I always do, I took her double thumbs up and I ran with it. And the verdict? I am very, very happened I listened. This is such a delicious bowl of warming soup. And I love that I was able to make it a touch healthier than the versions you might find in a restaurant.
And my favorite part…well, aside from the taste…this is actually the easiest soup to make. You can cook it low and slow in the slow cooker, or speed things up by cooking it in the instant pot, or you can even cook it on the stove-top.
To make this tortellini soup:
I love to start this off on the stove-top. I know it’s annoying, but I really think cooking your vegetables with the dried herbs and spices before slow cooking adds so much wonderful flavor. If you have an all-in-one browning slow cooker then you can do this all in the slow cooker bowl. I literally just hit purchase (before starting this post) on this all-in-one All-Clad slow cooker with a browning function. I cannot wait for it to arrive this week!
Cook the onions with a mix of my favorite Italian spices…the dried herbs, fennel, and smoked paprika. They are all KEY here. They add so much flavor, almost like Italian sausage, but minus any of the meat.
Once the onions have been seared, add everything to the bowl of your slow cooker. Then add tomato paste, a good splash of dry white wine, and plenty of vegetable broth. Cover and cook low and slow.
I like to just let my soup cook all day long. The house smells incredible as this simmers away in the slow cooker. But, as I mentioned, I’ve also included directions for the Instant-Pot and stove-top variations, in case you’re in a crunch.
Once the soup has finished cooking, before serving, stir in a few large handfuls of kale, cream or milk, parmesan cheese, and the cheese tortellini. Cook another few minutes and then that’s it.
Easy. EASY. But yet so delicious.
I’d highly recommend serving this soup with a side of crusty bread. If you own the HBH Super Simple cookbook, there’s a really good, really easy, no-knead bread recipe that’s perfect to pair with this soup.
If you’re planning to enjoy this soup leftover, be sure to first remove the tortellini from the broth before refrigerating. That way the tortellini won’t soak up all the broth. Then just add them back in before serving.
Alright, and with that, I’m going to leave you all to it. If your Monday night needs some warming soup, this should be it. I’m actually beyond excited to make this again today on Instagram stories. It’s the perfect fall soup.
Cannot wait!
Looking for other fall soup recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Creamy Wild Rice Chicken Soup with Roasted Mushrooms
Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar and Zucchini Soup
Instant Pot Pesto Zuppa Toscana
Lastly, if you make this Healthier Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Vegetable Soup be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
I made this soup last week and O…M…G! Best soup ever is all I can say and I’ve made a lot of soups. The broth is SO flavourful. Absolutely delicious, everyone LOVED it. Will definitely be on repeat over here. Love it.
Thank you!!
Hey Dana,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am so glad it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Your cookbook is my first go to, I love so many of your recipes. I made this because it is one of your popular recipes. I followed the recipe exactly except only half the tortellini as a pound is way too much. The tortellini was mushy and the flavor was just odd. I ended up throwing it out, a first!
Hey Donna,
So sorry you had issues with the recipe, please let me know how I can help! xTieghan
This recipe was DELICIOUS!!! Thank you so much for sharing. I made the instant pot version and ate two bowls in one setting-soooo good!!!
Hey April,
I am so glad this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for giving it a try! Have the best week. xTieghan
Hi Tieghan
Wondering if there would be any benefit to using my
New Dutch oven. My crock pot cooks very hot so
Often even on low my food is ready in half the time…so I wonder if I am missing out on the results of a long slow cooking time.
Thanks!
Hey Kathleen,
Using a dutch oven would be great, just follow the stove top instructions! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi! I love this soup! Do you think it’s ok to freeze?
Hey Morgan,
Thanks so much! I would totally freeze, just do it without the tortellini. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
This was delicious. I added rotisserie chicken (love my protein). My husband hates soup and devoured his. ❤️
Hey Allie,
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe, thanks so much for giving it a try! Happy Sunday:) xTieghan
Delicious and easy to prepare. Recipe makes enough for multiple meals.
Hey Susan,
I am thrilled that you enjoyed the recipe, thanks so much for trying it out. Have a great weekend! xTieghan
Wow! Just made this today. We loved it! I am so happy we have leftovers. I followed the directions as written, I splurged on really good, block parm and I may never go back. I used fresh tortellini from Rana brand. The broth is so tasty; and we added some fresh bread. Super easy, super tasty!!
Thank you! Just fantastic!
Hey Jenny,
I am so glad this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! Have a great weekend! xTieghan
I omitted the celery, added some diced sweet potatoes, and swapped out the kale for baby spinach! Next time, I would add more broth as there wasn’t a lot of actual soup, and I’d reduce the cooking time as the carrots and sweet potatoes were a lot softer than I like (I made it in my instant pot). Otherwise this was as super tasty, easy meal. Thanks Tieghan!
Hey Joey,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am delighted that it was enjoyed! Have the best weekend:) xTieghan
I am a HUGE fan of HBH and have made many recipes (I own the latest cookbook, too). All have all been great. This soup is not one of them. The broth was bland and the whole thing was just so blah. Very disappointing.
Hey Rebecca,
So sorry you did not enjoy the recipe, please let me know how I can help! xTieghan
I made this with several substitutions and it was INSANELY good! Here’s what I changed:
cheese tortellini – used lobster ravioli from TJ’s
used fresh basil instead of dried
didn’t add fennel seeds
no celery
Used dry vermouth instead of white wine
used a 1/2 cup almond milk (didn’t affect taste surprisingly!)
I can’t wait to make this again — I had three helpings the first night!
Hey Annie,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try. I am so glad that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
I’ve made both versions of this soup on the stove top and they both are delicious! It is a very flexible recipe… I subbed spinach for kale in round 2, added some frozen peas at the end (yum!) and used fresh basil at the end instead of dried early on. I love tomato so added about a 1/4 cup of tomato sauce in addition to the tomato paste and loved the flavor. Thank you for the delicious and easy recipe!
Hey Gina,
Thanks so much for making the recipe, I am so glad it was enjoyed! xTieghan
This was so good ! I made it in the crock pot and very tasty. I did add cherry tomatoes and let those cook with the rest of the veggies. Perfect winter soup!
Hey Beth,
I am thrilled that you liked the recipe, thanks so much for giving it a go! Have an awesome week:) xTieghan
This was delicious! My only comment was that I had to add twice as much broth as the recipe indicated to get it “soup” like.
Hey Bridget,
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe, thanks so much for making it! xTieghan
My family enjoyed this! I did the stovetop version with Pinot Grigio. We paired it with your beer bread recipe and both were wonderful! This is our week long Half Baked Harvest menu and every night has been a hit!!
Hey Emily,
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe, thanks so much for making it! xTieghan