Garlicky Tortellini, Spinach and Tomato Soup

last night, to compliment my cupcakes, I made soup from scratch! last week the weather here was in the low 20s and the sun was shining and yesterday is was 11*c and rain. soup seemed fitting! it was a big hit with my guests but I wasn't too fussy on it. I found it extremely salty which could have been the chicken broth I used but on the positive side, it was extremely easy to make and healthy, too!

the key ingredients in this soup is garlic (and lots of it), spinach, cheese tortellini and tomatoes! plus a little bit of basil. the recipe calls for fresh basil but I figured frozen was just the same and it lasts way longer! 

there weren't any leftovers. the recipe says it serves four but there were three of us and we managed to demolish the entire pot! I served it with cheese garlic bread because what is soup without some form of carbs!

 the recipe is under the cut! :)



1 tbsp. butter
6-8 cloves of garlic (use it all!)
4 cups of chicken broth
6 oz. cheese tortellini (3/4 cup)
14 oz. can diced tomatoes with liquid or 2 1/2 cups of skinned, chopped fresh ripe tomatoes
10 oz. bag of spinach, stems removed (1 and 1/4 cups)
8-10 fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
parmesan cheese, grated

melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. add garlic and saute about two minutes. add broth and bring to a boil. add tortellini and cook halfway (about 5 minutes if frozen, less if using fresh). add tomatoes and their liquid; reduce heat to simmer and cook just until pasta is tender. stir in spinach and basil and cook until wilted, 1-2 minutes. to serve, sprinkle with parmesan cheese. serves four.

I had bought the parmesan cheese (for $8!!!) and totally forgot to garnish the soup with it so I can't give any input on that aspect. I used fresh spinach because the grocery store was out of frozen and fresh tortellini because that's the only way to eat it!

it was a simple recipe, easy to whip up in 20 minutes or so and good for a cool night or a rainy day!

enjoy :)