Creamy Tomato and Tortellini Soup

1/2 pound italian sausage
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
3-4 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups chicken stock
2 28oz cans plum tomatoes in juice
1 9 oz package fresh tortellini
1/2 cup heavy cream
Chopped basil
Parmesan cheese

In a soup pot, brown sausage.   Remove from pot and drain on paper towel.    To the same pot, add olive oil, onion and carrots, cook until soft.   Add garlic and stir until fragrant, stir in cup stock to deglaze pan, scraping up browned bits.   Reduce stock by half and add tomatoes.   Stir, cover and simmer until vegetables are soft, about 20 minutes.    Add remaining 1cup stock and tortellini, cooking for about 5 minutes more.  When tortellini looks done, stir in cream and chopped basil.
Serve hot with Parmesan cheese garnish.

**note: for basil, I chop basil in blender with a tbsp of olive oil when I clean out the garden at the end of the growing season.   Freeze it in an ice cube tray and pop into ziplock bag when frozen.   Fresh tasting basil all winter!