Tomato & Chicken Tortellini Soup

This Tomato & Chicken Tortellini Soup is a twist on one of the recipes in my cookbook, “Soup’s On!”

It’s also one of the soups I will be cooking at my next class at Love To Cook at the Newgate Mall in Ogden on March 5. Besides how good it tastes, the next-best thing about it is it only takes 30 minutes and one pot to make.

It has the same flavors of tomato soup with grilled cheese sandwiches, something I loved during my childhood when it was cold or rainy outside. You get that nice tomato-y taste, and the sandwich’s gooey cheese is repeated in cheese-filled tortellini. But hey, there’s nothing wrong with serving a grilled cheese sandwich along with this one.

It’s a good way to use up leftover cooked chicken, but this recipe is equally good without chicken. If you use vegetable broth and no chicken, this is also a vegetarian option.

The cream cheese thickens the soup and adds richness. Don’t use fat-free cream cheese; it won’t melt properly.

TOMATO & CHICKEN TORTELLINI SOUP

Prep time: 30 minutes

2 14-ounce cans (about 4 cups) vegetable or chicken broth

1 9-ounce. package refrigerated cheese tortellini

1 6-ounce can tomato paste

1 15-ounce diced tomatoes

1 teaspoon basil

1 tablespoon dried chopped onions

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 to 2 cups of chopped cooked chicken

1-1/2 cups milk (or a 12-ounce can of evaporated milk)

4 ounces lite cream cheese (Neufchatel )

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup shredded cheddar or Parmesan, optional

Optional garnishes: chopped green peppers or fresh herbs

In a large pot, bring broth to a boil. Add tortellini to broth and cook 5 minutes.

Stir in the tomato paste and tomatoes, onion, sugar, garlic and chicken. Cook for about 5 minutes.

While soup simmers, cut cream cheese in several chunks. Stir in the milk, and then add the chunks of cream cheese to the soup.

Let the soup simmer an additional 5 minutes more to allow flavors to blend. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve topped with chopped green peppers, herbs, cheddar or Parmesan cheese.

Makes about 6 1-1/2 cup servings.