Weeknight Dinners WEEKNIGHT

Creamy Tomato Tortellini

Name: Creamy Tomato Tortellini
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 500 g cheese tortellini; 1 tbsp olive oil; 3 garlic cloves, sliced; 400 ml passata; 120 ml double cream; 40 g parmesan; Handful basil; Chilli flakes; Salt and pepper

Cooking the tortellini straight in the sauce means it drinks up the flavour instead of rinsing it off in a colander..

By Dana Reyes

Published 23 Sep 2026 · Tested 2 times · 0 comments

Creamy Tomato Tortellini — It thickens as it sits, so loosen leftovers with a splash of milk, not water.

5 min

Prep time

15 min

Cook time

Serves

4.7

NEW

The 20-minute panic dinner

Cooking the tortellini straight in the sauce means it drinks up the flavour instead of rinsing it off in a colander.

Use a tomato passata rather than chopped tomatoes if you want it smooth; either way a pinch of sugar rounds the acidity.

We tested fresh and shelf-stable tortellini. Both work; the fresh ones need two fewer minutes and a gentler simmer.

Instructions

About 20 min from start to finish

Warm the oil, soften the garlic 1 minute, then pour in the passata and a pinch of sugar and salt.

Simmer 5 minutes until slightly reduced.

Slide in the tortellini, add 100 ml water, and simmer gently until the pasta is tender, about 6 minutes, stirring now and then.

Stir through the cream and parmesan until glossy; loosen with pasta water if needed.

Tear in basil, add chilli flakes, and taste.

Testing notes & substitutions

Three rounds of testing turned up three things worth knowing before you start cooking.

Add veg

A handful of spinach or frozen peas dropped in with the cream bulks it out.

Lighter

Swap half the cream for milk; it loses a little silk but keeps the speed.

Questions we get a lot

Will it split?

Keep it at a gentle simmer once the cream is in and it stays smooth.

Can I bake it?

Top with mozzarella and grill 5 minutes for a gratin version.

Dana Reyes

Dana has cooked professionally for eleven years and has been testing recipes for Hearth & Thyme since 2019. She writes about weeknight cooking, slow breads, and the small techniques that quietly change a dish. Every recipe she publishes is cooked at least twice, in an ordinary home oven.