My Tortellini Soup

Ingredients:

1 bag of Barilla Collezione Cheese and Spinach Tortellini pasta

1 shallot or Onion, diced

2-3 cloves of garlic, pressed (or minced)

4 carrots, sliced

4 stalks of celery, sliced

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1/2 - 1 tablespoon fresh thyme

2-3 cups Spinach (or more, use as much or as little as you like)

4 cups stock (vegetable, chicken, beef-it's up to you!)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

1.    In a large Dutch oven, or large pot, cook pasta according to the package. Drain and set aside.

2.    In the same pot add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sauté the shallot, garlic, carrots, celery, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning until vegetables are tender. You will want to keep an eye on the veggies, stirring often, or you risk burning the garlic. Use more olive oil if the bottom of the pot gets too dry.

3.    Once the vegetables are tender add 2 cups of your stock. I bring this up to a simmer and I add the the spinach. Cook just until it's wilted (it doesn't take long).

4.    Add the cooked tortellini, and add enough or the remaining broth to cover. For me, that's usually 2 more cups. The pasta really soaks up the stock. I bring this up to a simmer again just so it's all the same temp, and the pasta is reheated. Taste the broth and see if you need to add additional seasoning, like a little more Italian seasoning or salt and pepper. Then enjoy!