Tortellini with Sausage and Mascarpone

An ordinary week in the life between milestones. The kitchen produces meals on schedule. Amma is in memory care. Appa visits her daily. The children grow. The sambar gets made. The rasam gets made. The wet grinder roars on Sundays. I made Upma tonight. Not because it is special but because it is Tuesday and Tuesday needs dinner and the kitchen does not distinguish between milestone weeks and ordinary weeks. The generous pinch is generous either way. The food continues. We continue.

Upma was Tuesday’s answer, but this tortellini is another night’s — the same logic, a different pantry. When the week is neither a milestone nor a crisis but simply a week, dinner needs only to be warm, filling, and ready without ceremony. Sausage and mascarpone ask very little of you, and they give a great deal back. That felt right.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 lb cheese tortellini (fresh or refrigerated)
3/4 lb Italian sausage, casings removed
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
1 cup mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup reserved pasta water
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
2 cups baby spinach
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Salt and black pepper to taste
Fresh basil or flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

Instructions

Cook the tortellini. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook tortellini according to package directions until just tender. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water before draining. Set tortellini aside.
Brown the sausage. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook the sausage, breaking it into crumbles, until browned and cooked through, about 6–8 minutes. Drain excess fat, leaving about 1 tablespoon in the pan.
Sauté the garlic. Reduce heat to medium. Add garlic and red pepper flakes to the skillet and cook, stirring constantly, for about 1 minute until fragrant.
Deglaze. Pour in the white wine or broth and stir, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Let it reduce by half, about 2 minutes.
Build the sauce. Add the mascarpone and stir until melted and smooth. Add 1/4 cup of the reserved pasta water and stir to loosen the sauce to a creamy consistency. Add Parmesan and stir to combine.
Add spinach. Stir in the baby spinach and cook for 1–2 minutes until just wilted.
Combine. Add the drained tortellini to the skillet and toss gently to coat. Add more pasta water a splash at a time if the sauce feels too thick. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
Serve. Divide among bowls and top with extra Parmesan and fresh basil or parsley.

Nutrition (per serving)

Tortellini with Sausage and Mascarpone — Because Tuesday Still Needs Dinner