Meatball Tortellini Soup with Cajun Meatballs
Meatball tortellini soup is a hearty soup made with Cajun meatballs, fresh herbs, and spices. In Cajun dishes, you use something called the “holy trinity” for most of your bases.
“Holy trinity” is green onion, green pepper, celery, and white onion. Onions and celery are the main ingredients for most creole dishes and add a lot of flavor to soups, gumbos, and stews.
Homemade Cajun meatballs add a whole lot of flavor to this soup and “holy trinity” adds a savory taste to this cozy dish.
Needless to say, this soup was so good and tastes even better with some warm baguette bread for dipping.
Recipe Highlights
- You can use frozen meatballs in this dish, however, homemade Cajun meatballs are my favorite.
- Soaking bread in milk adds moisture to meatballs, meatballs wont become dry when cooking.
- Add kale last 5 minutes of cook time to meatball tortellini soup.
- Pan-searing meatballs give meatballs more flavor and cooking in the oven helps get rid of unwanted grease.
- Be sure to cook meatballs until slightly pink inside when baking in the oven The meatballs will simmer in the soup for more added flavor and cook entirely.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Italian Sausage
- Ground Beef
- Minced Garlic
- Chopped Celery
- Onion
- Fresh Parsley
- Green Onion
- Ritz Crackers
- Bread
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Dash of Hot Sauce
- Milk
- Egg
- Chicken Broth or Vegetable Broth
- Water
- Chopped Kale
- Sliced Carrot
- Diced Tomatoes
Make this recipe a vegan option and substitute homemade meatballs with plant based meatballs. Here is a list of some vegan options.
- Beyond Meatballs
- Gardein Plant Based Meatballs
- Impossible Meatballs
- Morning Star Farms Veggie meatballs
How to Make Meatball Tortellini Soup
- Soak bread in milk. Add bread to a bowl of milk and allow bread to soak. Mix with hands and add milk and bread mixture to ground meat.
- Blend ground sausage & ground beef. Blend ground sausage and ground meat, stir in seasonings, ritz crackers, worcestershire sauce, dash of hot sauce, egg, bread and milk mixture, and green onion.
- Roll meatballs. Roll meatballs in the palm of your hand and make sure you roll meatballs equal in size.
- Brown meatballs in a pan. Heat oil in a pan on medium heat. Cook each meatball until browned on each side. Transfer meatballs to napkin lined plate.
- Bake meatballs in oven. Bake meatballs in the oven at 350 degrees until meatballs are slightly pink in the middle.
- Saute’ vegetables in pan. Heat a small amount of olive oil in a pan on medium heat. Stir in onions and celery saute’ until onions and celery are translucent and garlic is browned.
- Stir in broth & other ingredients. In a stock pot, stir in broth, diced tomatoes, sliced carrots, meatballs and simmer.
- Add chopped kale and simmer. Add chopped kale to soup and tortellini, simmer until the kale is slightly wilted and tortellini floats to the top. Top soup with grated parmesan cheese and enjoy!
Related Questions:
What is the best way to cook meatballs in soup?
The best way to cook meatballs in soup is to have a 3 step cooking method, brown, bake, and simmer. This 3 step cooking process helps ensure meatballs are soft, full of flavor, and soup is not full of unwanted grease. Here are the steps below.
- Brown. Browning meatballs in a skillet help get rid of any unwanted grease and give meatballs more flavor in soups.
- Bake. Baking meatballs helps drain any unwanted grease that would be absorbed in soup and helps give meatballs even more flavor.
- Simmer. Simmering meatballs in soup for 20 minutes helps cook meatballs entirely and gives broth more flavor.
How do you cook meatballs and tortellini in boiling water?
- Follow the steps above for perfectly cooked meatballs.
- Next, add meatballs to the soup along with additional soup ingredients. Let simmer for 20 minutes.
- Lastly, stir in refrigerated tortellini and chopped kale, and cook for 5 minutes on a simmer. Enjoy!
What is tortellini soup made of?
Hearty tortellini soup consists of cheese-filled tortellini, rich broth, crushed tomatoes, ground meats, Italian seasoning, and sliced carrots. Spinach and kale give this dish a nutritional boost and make this soup a nutritional powerhouse. Yum!
Keep in mind that there are a variety of recipes for tortellini soup some recipes use heavy cream, broth, sun-dried tomatoes, and mushrooms. You can even use ground turkey or ground chicken for fewer calories. Both meats taste savory in this dish and tortellini soup will never disappoint. It’s the perfect cozy meal and an even better treat served with warm baguette bread for dipping leaves one saying, “Ca c’est bon!” or “That’s Good.”
Where does tortellini soup come from?
Tortellini are delightful, hat-shaped, pasta filled with aged cheese, spinach, and ground meats. They derived from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy however, other surrounding areas around Bologna, and Modena also claim to have been the original recipe holder and tortellini mastermind behind this pasta we all know and love.
However it happened, aren’t you glad tortellini exist? Cheese filled noodles or cheese filled noodles with spinach are the perfect blend and even better when added to soups, homemade pasta sauce, and stews. Godere! Enjoy and be delighted!
Here are some more recipes for soups, perfect for a cold winter day! Spinach Artichoke Dip Soup or TikTok Noodle Soup Recipe
Meatball Tortellini Soup
Meatball tortellini soup is a hearty soup with homemade Cajun meatballs, sauteed' vegetables, and an ambriosal amount of spice. This is the perfect cozy soup for a cold winter day. And an even better treat served with warm baguette bread for dipping. Ca c'est bon!
Ingredients
- 1 lb of Italian sausage
- 1 lb of ground beef
- 1/2 tablespoon of freshly chopped parsley
- 1/2 tablespoon of sliced green onion
- 8 ritz crackers
- 3 slices of bread ( I use end slices)
- 2 tablespoons of worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon of hot sauce
- 1/4 cup of milk
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tablespoon of garlic powder
- 1/4 tablespoon of black pepper
- 1/4 tablespoon of salt
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 celery, chopped
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 7 cups of chicken broth or vegetable broth
- 1 cup of water
- 1 cup of chopped kale
- 1 carrot, sliced
- 14 oz diced tomatoes
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
For Meatballs:
- Soak bread in milk. Add bread to a bowl of milk and allow bread to soak. Mix with fingers add milk & bread mixture to ground meat.
- Blend ground sausage & ground beef. Blend ground sausage and ground meat, stir in salt, pepper, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, ritz crackers, worcestershire sauce, dash of hot sauce, egg, bread & milk mixture, and green onion.
- Roll meatballs. Roll meatballs in the palm of your hand and make sure you roll meatballs equal in size.
- Brown meatballs in a pan. Heat oil in a pan on medium heat. Cook each meatball until browned on each side. Transfer meatballs to napkin lined plate.
- Bake meatballs in oven. Bake meatballs in the oven at 350 degrees until meatballs are slightly pink in the middle.
For Tortellini Soup:
- Saute' vegetables in a pan. Heat a small amount of olive oil in a stockpot on medium heat. Stir in onions and celery. Saute' for 2-3 minutes and add minced garlic. Saute' until the garlic is browned.
- Stir in broth & other ingredients. In same stock pot, stir in broth, diced tomatoes, sliced carrots, meatballs, and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Add chopped kale and simmer. Add chopped kale to soup and tortellini, simmer until the kale is slightly wilted and tortellini floats to the top. Cook time should be about 5 minutes for kale and 3-4 minutes for tortellini. Top soup with grated parmesan cheese and enjoy!
Notes
- Cajun meatballs add ambrosial flavor to broth and give this soup a homemade taste.
- You can use any broth you prefer. My favorite is vegetable broth.
- Make sure to roll meatballs equal in size.
- You may use frozen meatballs, If in a hurry ( I recommend Cooked Perfect Homestyle Meatballs) if using.
- Follow the 3 step cook method on homemade meatballs to ensure meatballs cook entirely.
- For fewer calories substitute meat with ground turkey or ground chicken.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1 cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 177Total Fat: 4.63gSaturated Fat: 1.8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 59.25mgSodium: 287.11mgCarbohydrates: 10.88gFiber: 1.28gSugar: 2.88gProtein: 14.60g