freezer pasta sauce and tortellini recipe

This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and Barilla, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #JoytotheTable http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO.

I know it is the busiest time of year and I try to do anything I can to simply! Today I want to share a great recipe for bulk pasta sauce that you can prepare in advance and freeze, as well as some cheesy tortellini that is super simple and can help you get a meal on the table in no time when life is really hectic.


I went shopping at Safeway to gather all of my supplies. They have a great promotion for $.75 off the purchase of ONE (1) package of Barilla® Tortellini so I knew it was a great time to get what I needed!

Look at all those choices!

I grabbed the Barilla three cheese tortellini for my recipe, but the cheese and spinach sounds so delicious too! I will have to try that next time.

I also needed to grab a few jars of the Barilla sauce to use in my bulk pasta sauce to freeze.

So here is the recipe for the bulk pasta sauce which you will need for the Tortellini recipe. I love this sauce. It is so hearty and I just can't use anything else!

Bulk Freezer Pasta Sauce

In a large stock pot mix together:

2 lbs browned Italian sausage (I use the Jimmy Dean tubes, you can also go meatless if you prefer)

2 onions, chopped

1 cup green pepper, chopped

2 tsp. garlic, minced

5 jars commercial pasta sauce (like the Barilla I bought)

2 (28 oz) or 4 (16 oz) cans Italian-style stewed tomatoes, diced

2 cans sliced black olives (optional)

Mix it all together and then I scoop it into freezer gallon sized ziplocs and lay them flat out in the freezer so they can be stacked together. I usually do about 3-4 cups of the sauce per bag, but you can decide what is best for you and how you will use it. They can be thawed and used in any pasta recipes!

So now that you have your sauce made... onto the Tortellini! I love tortellini, especially when it is cheese-filled. The Barilla Three Cheese Tortellini is really delicious. And of course I also top mine with some extra cheese when I make it!  

I thaw my pasta sauce (or use it fresh if you have just made it) and I place a little bit of that in the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan. I boil my tortellini just to soften it a bit (about 5-7 minutes), then place it onto the sauce in the pan and cover with the rest of the sauce over the top. I then sprinkle 1 cup of mozzarella onto the top and bake at 350 degrees covered for 30 minutes and then uncovered for another 10 minutes.

Now wasn't that super easy? You can have a meal on the table in no time and get to wrapping those presents! Be sure to visit the Barilla Facebook page for more ideas.