Tortellini en Brodo

Active Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Why we love it:

If you’ve ever made homemade stock (chicken or vegetable), this is the time to use it. This old fashioned and delicious dish will only taste as good as the ingredients. You’ll definitely want to break out the pepper grinder and hunt down whole nutmeg. And, most importantly, use a block of real Italian Parmesan cheese grated over the top. Anything pre-shredded or grated will turn rubbery instead of velvety.

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Ingredients

¹⁄₂ Yellow Onion
1 Carrot
2 cloves Garlic (minced)
2 teaspoons Unsalted Butter
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
10 cups Stock (chicken or vegetable)
¹⁄₄ teaspoon Black Pepper (freshly ground)
¹⁄₄ teaspoon Nutmeg (freshly ground, if not using freshly ground, add closer to 1/16th of a teaspoon, the tiniest pinch!)
18 ounces Tortellini (we prefer cheese, but you could use any filling you enjoy)
¹⁄₂ pound Baby Spinach
¹⁄₂ cup Parmesan Cheese (freshly grated is key)

Cooking Instructions

1. AROMATICS

Cut the onion in half and peel it. Dice into small pieces.

Wash and dice the carrot into the same size pieces.

Mince the garlic.
2. SAUTÉ

In a large pot or dutch oven, melt the butter over medium-high heat and add the onion and carrot. Cook for about 3 minutes, then add the garlic. Add the salt and sauté for another 3 minutes.
3. STOCK

Add the stock (either 10 cups stock OR 8 cups stock plus 2 cups water, as per substitution notes).

Bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn down to maintain a simmer and add the black pepper and nutmeg. Using freshly ground really matters here since the soup is quite simple.

Simmer for about 5 minutes.
4. TORTELLINI

Add the tortellini and cook until it’s done and al dente - check package instructions - likely about 8-9 minutes.
5. SPINACH

Wash spinach.

When the tortellini is done, stir in the spinach for 30 seconds to wilt.
6. SERVING

Serve soup in large bowls and generously heap with Parmesan cheese.

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Substitutions

GLUTEN FREE:

look for GF tortellini. If you can’t find it, add a can of white beans and a small can of diced tomatoes to make more of a minestrone
DAIRY FREE:

use DF stuffed tortellini and don’t top with parmesan
PALEO:

we recommend searching for our other paleo dishes and soups rather than adapt this one
STOCK:

if you aren’t also making the braised artichoke dish, just use 8 cups stock and 2 cups water. If you are making the next dish, you’ll have 2 cups stock leftover here to use in that braise
MUST HAVE MEAT:

look for meat filled tortellini, or sauté some sausage meat, sliced or ground, with the onions. If you do this, we like adding a small can of diced tomatoes too
SPINACH:

baby kale, arugula, or escarole are nice
KIDS CORNER:

this is a slam dunk for many kids, if needed omit spinach for their bowl and add a vegetable they enjoy, like broccoli florets, peas or cauliflower. They may also like shredded rotisserie chicken warmed in the broth to make it like chicken noodle.