Italian Sausage Soup with Tortellini

Most of you know that every Sunday is homemade soup day. I decided to try a new recipe this week and it was delicious! Here you go:

INGREDIENTS
1 pound sweet italian sausage, casings removed
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
5 cups beef broth
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup red wine
4 large tomatoes - peeled, seeded and chopped
1 cup thinly sliced carrots
1/2 tablespoon packed fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1.5 cups sliced zucchini
8 ounces fresh tortellini pasta
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

DIRECTIONS
In a 5 quart dutch oven (or large pot), brown sausage. Remove sausage and drain, reserving 1 tablespoon of the drippings.
Saute onions and garlic in drippings. Stir in beef broth, water, wine, tomatoes, carrots, basil, oregano, tomato sauce, and sausage. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 30 minutes.
Skim fat from the soup. Stir in zucchini and parsley. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Add tortellini during the last 10 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese on top of each serving.

Notes
* I didn't have zucchini, so I just put a 1/2 cup of pureed zucchini (which I had in the freezer).
* I like soups pretty chunky so I added a lot more carrots
* I used 1 can Petite Diced tomatoes instead of 4 fresh
* I used ground italian sausage instead of removing the casings from links
* There wasn't enough drippings from the sausage so I added a little olive oil
* I used all dried spices instead of the fresh ones
* I used three cheese fresh tortellini

Serve with salad and warm french bread for a complete and delicious meal!