Tortellini Soup with Bacon
2001-10-22 @ 11:22 a.m.
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I haven't been doing much writing here because I don't have as much spare time as I used to. I've been working lots more day shifts, and in the evenings I don't have the energy or sometimes the time. Weekends, at least Sundays, are very special to me, and I'm rarely found inside on the computer.
Yesterday, for instance, Jake and I went on an expedition to find some new bicycle trails, new to us, at least. We read about them in Friday's newspaper. It is a big park with two small lakes and a bunch of trails through the woods for bicycles. Incidentally, it is the same park where the Olympic beach volleyball tournaments were held (in a different part of the park). I'm still adjusting to the idea of Olympic beach volleyball. The trails are marked as easy, intermediate and advanced so we could decide on our challenge. Since it was our first off-road excursion we opted for easy as often as we could. The day was warmer than we'd hoped for, but it was beautiful. We had a great time. And, as I told Badsnake last night, it was my first adventure with injuries in a long time. Yes, I wiped out, twice, on the easy trails. I have a bruise on the inside of my right knee and scratches on the outside of the same calf. I spent some time yesterday afternoon reading my book with an ice pack on my knee. Today it is no more swollen than yesterday, so that is good. I have found a new bruise today, in the lower belly area just above the groin area. Fortunately I have plenty of padding there so the groin bone was saved. In any case, I had a great time and am anxious to go back again as soon as I am healed.
Badsnake cooked supper yesterday. As the weather cools each year she is compelled to make her fabulous chili recipe. I hope she will do another guest entry here and share it with you (and she did). I've been doing more cooking since I've been working day shifts, and I'm home in the evenings. Unfortunately for this diary, the cooking is one of the things that is taking up my time. Fortunately for me, I love the chance to do more cooking. Last week Bad raved about a soup I made, so I'll share that with you today.
This is based on a recipe I got from Fine Cooking magazine. Yes, I read a lot of cooking mags. It is almost an obsession. Fine Cooking (Nov. 2001 in Quick and Delicious by Joanne McAllister Smart) calls it "Garlicky Tortellini, Spinach and Tomato Soup." I added the bacon. I messed around with the recipe some because it says it makes enough for 2 or 3 people and I wanted to feed four. Here is the basic recipe from the magazine.
2 tbsp unsalted butter
6 to 8 cloves garlic, chopped
4 cups homemade or low-salt chicken broth
6 oz fresh or frozen cheese tortellini
14 oz can diced tomatoes, with their liquid
10 oz spinach, washed and stemmed; coarsely chopped if large
8 to 10 leaves basil, coarsely chopped
Grated Parmesan cheese
I used olive oil instead of butter just because I prefer to cook with olive oil. I doubled some things but not others. I doubled the tortellini. I used about 1 1/2 times the broth and spinach. Everything else I left the same except I used a little less basil than the recipe calls for. I added about 4 slices of bacon that I chopped and saut�ed with the garlic.
Melt the butter in a large saucepan (or heat the olive oil) over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and saut� until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Add the tortellini and cook halfway, about 5 minutes for frozen pasta, less if using fresh. Add the tomatoes and their liquid, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook just until the pasta is tender. Stir in the spinach and basil and cook until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve sprinkled with the grated cheese.
It was very easy and very well received. A good comfort food for a cold night. We had a dry ros� wine with it, specifically Tortoise Creek ros�. If you can get Tortoise Creek wines where you are, there are inexpensive and quite good for the price. Sauvignon blanc would also be good or a light Sangiovese or Chianti.
Now I'm going to dump this cat out of my lap and go walk with my dog. My poor cat has been very attention deprived lately because he won't come out of hiding when the dog is around. That is why I have put up with him sitting in my lap while I try to type around him, even as he nudges my hands on the keyboard insisting on being petted. Actually I'm surprised he braved the house to come find me now because Angel is loose. I guess he's finally getting used to having a big, gawky, long-eared housemate around.
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