Recipe: Chicken Tortellini Soup and Spinach Tortellini Soup

CHICKEN TORTELLINI SOUP

6 chicken thighs (about 2 1/2 lbs.), trimmed of excess fat
2 t. vegetable oil
2 carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 (9-oz.) package fresh or frozen cheese tortellini

Brown chicken in hot oil in Dutch oven or large saucepan over medium-high heat. Remove chicken from pan. Drain off excess fat, reserving about 1 tablespoon.

Add carrots, celery and onion; saut 3 minutes. Stir in 5 1/2 cups water, soy sauce and chicken. Bring to boil; cover and simmer 15 minutes. Remove chicken; cool.

Meanwhile, cook tortellini according to package directions; drain. Remove skin and bone from chicken and cut meat into bite-size pieces.

Stir chicken into soup; bring to a boil. Stir in tortellini and heat through.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

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SPINACH TORTELLINI SOUP

One 9 ounce package of fresh cheese tortellini
Three 14 ounce cans of chicken broth
One 7 ounce jar of roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
3 green onions, chopped
3 cups of fresh spinach, stems removed
1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

Cook the tortellini according to the package directions. Drain. Heat the chicken broth in a large saucepan.

Add the cooked tortellini, peppers, green onions and spinach.

Simmer 1 minutes. Divide into six soup bowls and sprinkle with Parmesan.

Serves 6