Shrink-My-Ass-Month: Tortellini-Spinach Soup

Hello Readers! It's Nanuck of the North here, checking in! Well, that's at least who I feel like lately--we woke up to a temperature of -4 yesterday.

What kind of assholery is Mother Nature up to? Nothing good happens at -4 degrees.

Okay, I will admit that the trees looked pretty. And it got me in the mood to make soup. Fortunately, in the panic felt by hearing the words "blast of frigid arctic air" slip from the lips of a newscaster a few days ago, I'd made a recent trip to the grocery store. At the time, it was snowy and blowy and I was pissed to be trekking to the market, but that weather was hella better than what I woke to yesterday morning. I went out to get the newspaper and I think my butt cheeks froze together.

This soup is easy, vegetarian, warming and delicious. That's a tall order!

I made only one modification to the recipe. Prior to adding the spinach and the tortellini, I whizzed the soup through my immersion blender. Because my kids don't *do* chunks in their soup, and sans-spinach, I had a fighting chance of getting them to eat this recipe. So I stacked the deck.

And hubba-hubba, they ate it! Can you feel me doing a herky?



Tortellini-Spinach Soup
from Ellie Krieger's So Easy
serves 4**

1 teaspoon canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped (about 2 cups)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large carrot, peeled and thinly sliced (1 1/2 cups)
2 ribs celery, chopped (1 cup)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 14-oz. can low-sodium diced tomatoes with juice (I used fire-roasted)
6 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
3 ounces baby spinach, sliced into ribbons (3 cups)
1 9-oz. package fresh store-bought spinach-and-cheese tortellini (2 cups)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (1 1/2 ounces)

Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring until the onions are translucent and the garlic is softened, another 3 minutes. Add the carrot, celery, oregano, thyme and red-pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until softened, 5 to 6 minutes.

Add the tomatoes with their juices and the broth and bring to a boil; reduce the heat and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Add the spinach and tortellini and cook until the tortellini are cooked through, 6-7 minutes. This soup will keep up to three days in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Serve topped with parmesan cheese.

**This soup serves 4 very generously! Kreiger lists each serving as 3 cups of soup plus 2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese. Calorie total: 380 per serving