"Marry Me" Italian Sausage And Orzo Soup Recipe
At this point, we're all familiar with the wildly popular "marry me" chicken (thanks, TikTok). Sun-dried tomatoes, tender chicken, softened spinach, and plenty of garlic are enveloped in a creamy sauce that's hard not to enjoy, hence the suggestive name. Though we may never grow tired of the classic Tuscan formula, we do have to admit that a riff on the original is more than welcome — if only to make us feel better about it being on our menus every week. Even better than a simple riff? Making it into soup.
Developer Michelle McGlinn shares a recipe for Italian sausage and orzo soup that is altogether warming, creamy, and ever-so-slightly spicy. The soup has all of the best elements of "marry me" chicken, including garlic, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, and cream. But, it adds Italian sausage, orzo, and plenty of broth, resulting in a totally different dish that is equally as delicious as the original (if not more). Resembling a tomato-filled zuppa Toscana, this soup is familiar and hard not to like — so much so that you might just end up engaged after eating it.
Gathering the ingredients to make marry me Italian sausage and orzo soup
First, you'll need a few pantry staples — olive oil, salt, and pepper — along with a few spices; namely, red pepper flakes, oregano, dried basil, and dried parsley. These spices can also be substituted for a store-bought Italian spice mix. From there, you'll need onion, garlic, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes. You'll also need chicken broth, tomato paste, orzo, and freshly grated Parmesan, which melts better than pre-grated Parm. Finally, make sure you have Italian sausage, either mild or hot. You can buy this ground or simply remove the casings and crumble the sausage into the skillet.
Step 1: Heat the oil in a pot
Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.
Step 2: Crumble and brown the sausage
Once hot, add the sausage and crumble until browned. Remove the sausage from the pot and reserve.
Step 3: Soften the aromatics
Add the onion and garlic and saute until soft, about 4 minutes.
Step 4: Add the tomatoes
Add the tomato paste and sun-dried tomatoes and cook until the tomato paste is beginning to stick to the bottom of the pot.
Step 5: Add more ingredients
Add the broth, cream, oregano, basil, parsley, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil.
Step 6: Boil the orzo
Add the orzo and cook until al dente, about 10 minutes.
Step 7: Add the sausage, spinach, and Parmesan
Return the sausage to the pot and add the spinach and Parmesan.
Step 8: Finish over low heat
Lower the heat to low and stir until the spinach is wilted and the Parmesan is melted.
Step 9: Serve
Serve.
Marry Me Italian Sausage and Orzo Soup Recipe
Taking inspiration from the ever-popular "marry me" soup, this recipe swaps the chicken for Italian sausage and adds orzo for a filling, one-pot soup.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound Italian sausage
- 1 cup diced yellow onion
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes, sliced
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 cup orzo
- 4 cups spinach
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Directions
- Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.
- Once hot, add the sausage and crumble until browned. Remove the sausage from the pot and reserve.
- Add the onion and garlic and saute until soft, about 4 minutes.
- Add the tomato paste and sun-dried tomatoes and cook until the tomato paste is beginning to stick to the bottom of the pot.
- Add the broth, cream, oregano, basil, parsley, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil.
- Add the orzo and cook until al dente, about 10 minutes.
- Return the sausage to the pot and add the spinach and Parmesan.
- Lower the heat to low and stir until the spinach is wilted and the Parmesan is melted.
- Serve.
Nutrition
| Calories per Serving | 1,015 |
| Total Fat | 70.2 g |
| Saturated Fat | 31.2 g |
| Trans Fat | 0.9 g |
| Cholesterol | 181.6 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 50.0 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 3.9 g |
| Total Sugars | 14.2 g |
| Sodium | 1,737.5 mg |
| Protein | 46.0 g |
Can this orzo soup be frozen?
Soup is one of those meals that we love for being easy to prepare in large batches and freeze for easy future meals. Most soups can be frozen without issue, but there are exceptions that cause soups to become gummy. Starches like pasta, rice, and potatoes soak up liquid, which you might notice if you refrigerate a soup and try to reheat it the next day. The exception to this is pureed potatoes. In this recipe, the pasta is — of course — not pureed, which will cause this gummy effect.
If you want to freeze this soup and avoid the gummy orzo it would result in, prepare the recipe in full but omit the orzo. Let the soup cool completely, transfer it to freezer-safe containers, and freeze it for up to 3 months. When you're ready to eat, thaw or reheat the soup from frozen in a large pot. Bring it to a boil, add the orzo, then boil until al dente. This might take a few extra minutes, but it will be far faster than making the whole soup from scratch.
Can I make this soup in a slow cooker?
Because this recipe doesn't involve pulled meats or cubed potatoes, making this soup in a slow cooker doesn't offer a lot of benefits compared to making it on the stove. Making this soup in a slow cooker can be useful if you are at work all day or need to run a few errands and can't watch over a boiling pot on the stovetop.
To make this in a slow cooker, first begin the recipe on the stove, crumbling and browning the sausage. Add the onion and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer this mix to the slow cooker and add the tomato paste, chicken broth, sun-dried tomatoes, and seasonings. Cook on low for 4 to 5 hours or high for 2 hours. Once it's done, stir in the heavy cream, spinach, pasta, and Parmesan, and cover. Cook for another 10 minutes on high, or until the pasta is al dente.