Chicken and Tortellini Soup

After shopping my pantry, I had enough ingredients to make a chicken rotisserie soup. There was a package of tricolor frozen cheese tortellini taking up space in my freezer for weeks. Insert lightbulb moment.

The tortellini gave the soup a heartiness I needed. My toddler fought over the "red pastas" and finished every last drop.

Don't skimp on the quality of the tortellini. I bought a cheap, unappetizing looking package once and regretted it. You know the saying, cook with wine you would drink. The saying is true for pasta, cook with the pasta you would eat. The good stuff gives the soup a lot of flavor from the tortellini filling. You can substitute chopped escarole in place of spinach.

Chicken Tortellini Soup

2 carrots, chopped

1 sweet onion, chopped

1 T olive oil 

3 c. cooked chicken, shredded

2 bay leaves

1 T Kosher salt 

1/2 t. garlic powder

1 t. white pepper 

2 t. dried parsley

32 oz. low sodium chicken stock

6 c. water

2 c. fresh baby spinach

1 20 oz. frozen tricolor cheese tortellini (about 2.5 cups)

Parmigiano reggiano--optional 

Sauté carrots and in olive oil until soft and translucent on medium/high heat. Add chicken, bay leaves, herbs, chicken stock and water. Bring to a boil then reduce to simmer, add spinach and cover.

Soup is ready in 30 minutes, but it is most flavorful when you can cook for an hour or two. 

When you are ready to eat, turn off heat and add tortellini. Serve when pasta floats. Top with parmigiano reggiano. 

Sanity Saver-

Buy a rotisserie chicken or roast your own. Shred the chicken and divide chicken evenly into smaller freezer bags.  Add frozen chicken to your meals when needed. The cooked chicken defrosts quickly and cuts down your prep time.