Creamy Tomato Tortellini with Sausage

I was in the mood for tortellini, and my original idea was to make a soup, with italian sausage and tomatoes, maybe spinach. But as I was shopping for my ingredients, I created a different dish entirely. I was so pleased when it turned out exactly as I had envisioned.

This was so simple. I didn't need to pre-cook the tortellini, since they were fresh. I just let them soak up the delicious sauce from the tomatoes and the cream. You wouldn't even need to add the sausauge if you wanted to leave this as a vegetarian dish. If you used the dried, store bought tortellini, just make sure to boil them until al dente.

Creamy Tortellini with Sausage

1 pound fresh, cheese filled tortellini
1 pound spicy Italian sausage
5 large cloves garlic, minced
2 15 ounce cans chopped, fire roasted tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly coat a 9 by 13 pan with olive oil. Spread the tortellini in the bottom of the pan. In a large skillet, brown the Italian sausage. Spread the sausage over the top of the tortellini. Add the garlic to the same skillet, and saute using the sausage fat until tender. Add the tomatoes and spices, and bring to a simmer. Spread the tomato mixture over the top of the sausage. Pour the cream over the entire pan, and sprinkle with the bread crumbs. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes, then remove foil and bake uncovered for an additional 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, and let cool for 10 minutes before serving.