Rosemary Chicken and Tortellini Soup

I love a feel good yummy comfort soup, especially when the weather has turned chilly. This rosemary chicken and tortellini soup is my family’s favorite soup because it’s so full of wonderful flavors and it’s filling on it’s own because of the tortellini .

  While my basic soup recipe is always the same, sometimes I switch things out and throw in dumplings, rotini, tortellini or rice.  Other times, I don’t add anything except extra chicken for a basic homemade chicken soup that is always so delicious.  But I have to say, this version with the tortellini is always the biggest hit.

Again, since this is a basic staple recipe, you can easily adjust the seasonings/herbs and thickness of the soup by reducing or increasing some of the ingredients.  When I want a thick gooey chicken and dumplings, I reduce the water by one cup and I cook it longer.  As with any soups, the longer you can allow it to simmer on the stove, the more flavorful the soup is.  However, if I don’t have a lot of time to let the soup simmer beyond the minimum time, this soup is still full of flavor.

I know this sounds crazy but I actually prefer to use store bought rotisserie chicken because it’s so easy and honestly, it has so much more flavor than a boiled chicken breast.  If you find a lemon pepper or herbed rotisserie chicken, it’s even better because of the added seasonings.  By the way, you can get at least 3-4 cups of shredded chicken from one small rotisserie chicken.

Here’s the recipe

Rosemary Chicken and Tortellini Soup
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Finely Diced Onions
1 Cup Sliced Carrots
3/4 Cup Sliced Celery
1 Tablespoon Diced Fresh Garlic
4 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Flour
3 Cups Chicken Broth (I like to use Swanson’s)
3 Cups Water
2 1/2- 3 Cups Shredded (large bite size pieces) Cooked Rotisserie Chicken (If I’m adding dumplings or tortellini, I only use 2 1/2 Cups)
1 Tablespoon Dried Basil
2 Tablespoons Dill Weed
2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
1 teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Cracked Pepper
1 Tablespoons Fresh Rosemary
7-9 Ounce bag of Small Cheese Tortellini (dried- not the large fresh tortellini’s that have to be refrigerated)
Shredded Parmesan Cheese to Top Each Serving

Directions:

Saute the onions, carrots, celery in the butter on medium heat in a larger soup pot. Saute the vegetables until they begin to get soft and then add the fresh garlic and saute for two minutes off to the side. Add the flour and mix in/toss with the butter and vegetables until you get a paste like mixture. Saute the flour mixture (while stirring) for two minutes (until the flour gets a golden color).

Next, if you’re using raw chicken, now would be the time to pot on top of the vegetables (wait until later for rotisserie chicken).

Next, add chicken broth and water and bring the soup to a boil (medium high heat) and then add all of the other seasonings except the salt,pepper and rosemary then reduce heat to medium and maintain a low boil (covered) for at least 30-45 minutes (depending on how much time you have). Add the the rotisserie chicken and the tortellini and cook at a low boil for another 15-20 minutes.  After 15-20 minutes, add the salt, pepper and fresh rosemary and continue to low boil for another 5-10 minutes.

Fresh rosemary can overpower a soup quickly and I was conservative on the rosemary measurement for this reason. If you want more rosemary, I would taste the soup 5-10 minutes after you have added it to see if you want to add a little more.

Serve by topping bowl with Parmesan cheese.

I adjust this recipe all of the time depending on how thick I want the soup and if I want dumplings, pasta or white rice.  This recipe makes the most amazing thick and gooey chicken and dumplings and what I do is reduce the water by one cup and instead of using tortellini, I use Kettle frozen dumplings (sold next to the biscuits in the freezer section).  I break up about 6-8 sheets of the dumplings into bite size pieces and throw it in. Keep in mind, dumplings take at least 30 minutes to completely cook.  I then add 2 cups of Parmesan cheese to the soup pot at the end and toss. I also add more cracked pepper as well and no rosemary.

I can’t wait for you guys to try this recipe!  It’s  our family’s favorite and the flavors are so amazing and it taste like it’s cooked on the stove all day.  If you make it and add any variations, I would love to know!

Cheers!

Cyndy

Rosemary Chicken and Tortellini Soup

A welcomed twist on the traditional chicken soup with this rosemary chicken and tortellini soup. Perfect soup all year round.

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Course: Dinner, Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Chicken, Rosemary, Tortellini Soup

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 6

Calories: 276kcal

Equipment

• Soup Pot

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup onions finely diced
• 1 cup carrots sliced
• 3/4 cup celery sliced
• 1 tbsp fresh garlic minced
• 4 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 1/2 lb chicken breast boneless, skinless
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 3 cups water
• 1 tbsp basil dried
• 2 tbsp dill weed dried
• 2 tbsp parsley dried
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp pepper
• 1 tbsp rosemary fresh
• 7-9 ounce bag small cheese tortellini dried
• shredded parmesan cheese for topping

Instructions

• Saute the onions, carrots, celery and butter on medium heat in a large soup pot until they begin to soften.
• Add the fresh garlic and saute for two minutes.
• Add the flour and mix in/toss with the butter and vegetables until you get a paste like mixture. Continue cooking flour mixture (while stirring) for two minutes (until the flour gets a golden color).
• Place the raw chicken breasts over the vegetables and then add the chicken stock and water.
• Bring the soup to a boil (medium high heat) and then add all seasoning except the salt, pepper and rosemary, then reduce heat to medium and maintain a low boil (covered) for at least 30-45 minutes (depending on how much time you have).
• Remove the chicken from the soup and shred or chop into large bite sized pieces then return the chicken to the soup.
• Add the tortellini and cook at a low boil for another 15-20 minutes and then add the salt, pepper and fresh rosemary and continue to low boil for another 5-10 minutes.
• Serve by topping with Parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Notes

• Fresh rosemary can overpower a soup quickly and I was conservative on the rosemary measurement for this reason. If you want more rosemary, I would taste the soup 5-10 minutes after you have added it to see if you want to add a little more.

 

• The chicken breast can be substituted for 2.5 cups of shredded rotisserie chicken and added at the same time as the raw chicken is. Cooking in the broth will keep the rotisserie chicken moist and add great flavor to the soup.

 

• Fresh (refrigerated) tortellini can be used for this recipe in place of the boxed tortellini. Just be sure to cook in a separate pot (according to directions) and add to the soup before serving to ensure the noodles don’t overcook and fall apart.

Nutrition

Calories: 276kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 86mg | Sodium: 1136mg | Potassium: 682mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 3830IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 104mg | Iron: 2mg